Despite broad bipartisan Congressional support for the Advancing Justice Through DNA Technology Act, which includes the “Innocence Protection Act” (IPA) to help states pay for the costs of post-conviction DNA testing, the Senate Judiciary Committee has delayed action on the bill. Kirk Bloodsworth (pictured), whose name accompanies the IPA, urged Congress to act: “Nobody should have to wait for justice. I struggled for nearly 20 years to clear my name. This legislation will prevent innocent people from ending up on death row, and it will ensure that the truly guilty are caught. Congress should pass this legislation and prevent more stories like mine.” Bloodsworth was the first person in the nation to be freed from death row on the basis of DNA evidence.

The legislation passed the House with overwhelming support by a vote of 357-67 in November 2003. Since then, it has stalled in the Senate due to what Senator Patrick Leahy calls “needless delays.” Some critics have said the bill would result in unneccessary appeals and undermine the death penalty system. But Senator Leahy, ranking minority leader of the Judiciary Committee and a co-sponsor of the bill, said, “We have wasted a lot of time in reporting this bill out of committee. Every day that the bill is stalled is another day that rape kits go untested for lack of funds; another day that inmates with colorable claims of innocence are denied access to DNA evidence that could set them free and put the real criminals behind bars.” The Committee is expected to continue its consideration of the bill on September 14th. (The Washington Post, September 10, 2004). See Innocence.