Pennsylvania State Sen. Stewart J. Greenleaf, chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, announced the formation of an advisory committee to examine the cases of people who have been wrongly convicted in the state. The commission will consist of about 30 members drawn from the state’s prosecutors, defense attorneys, judges, corrections officials, police, victim advocates and others. The commission will report its findings and recommendations to the Senate by Nov. 30, 2008.

“[W]e’re finding people on death row and otherwise who have been mistakenly convicted of crimes,” Greenleaf said. “All too often, we forget that justice is also served when the innocent are acquitted.”

Among those exonerated in the past was Nicholas Yarris, who became the first person freed from the state’s death row by DNA testing when he was released in January 2004. Yarris had spent 22 years in prison after he was convicted of the rape and murder.
(Associated Press, Nov. 28, 2006). See Innocence and Recent Legislation .