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To Mark International Wrongful Conviction Day on Oct. 2, Michael & Associates Researched the financial Impact of the Tim Cole Act for Exonerees in Texas
...The number of practical issues facing an exoneree can be staggering-housing, medical insurance, and transportation are just a few.” - Daniel Medwed, author of Barred: Why the Innocent Can't Get Out of PrisonAUSTIN, TX, UNITED STATES, October 2, 2024 /EINPresswire / -- October 2 is International Wrongful Conviction Day, a day to increase awareness of the causes and remedies of wrongful convictions and to recognize the financial, personal, social, and emotional costs for exonerees.
To recognize this year's theme, The Pursuit of Truth, Michael & Associates, an Austin-based criminal defense law firm, examined records from the Texas State Comptroller's Office to calculate the impact of the state's law to compensate exonerees. The law is known as the Tim Cole Act.
Texas has paid almost $100 million in lump-sum payments to 93 wrongfully convicted men and women since 2009, according to records requested under the state's Public Information Act.
The state also pays a monthly annuity to each qualified exoneree, which currently amounts to almost $500,000 per month.
Key statistics:
--Texas has paid a total of $99,839,320.13 in lump-sum payments since 2009
--Another $5,997,916.44 is paid per year in monthly annuity payments
--12 years, five months, and 14 days is the average length of time each exoneree spent behind bars
The compensation law, enacted in 2009, is named for Timothy Cole, a 26-year-old military veteran who was wrongfully convicted of aggravated sexual assault while he was working toward a business degree at Texas Tech University in Lubbock. Cole died in prison in 1999 while serving a 25-year sentence. Almost a decade later, Cole was posthumously exonerated by DNA evidence.
"This issue highlights the unfortunate fact that our justice system is not infallible. Far from it," said Ben Michael, founder of Michael & Associates. "Despite what the government might want us to believe, prosecutors and law enforcement often get it wrong."
Read the full report at .
Please email ... for more information or if you would like to schedule a phone or video call with founder Ben Michael.
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Rebecca Stumpf
Michael & Associates
+1 214-542-2502
email us here
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