Prof. Murray Co-Authors Model "Second Look" Legislation for States, with Accompanying Report

Professor JaneAnne Murray, Director of the School's Clemency Project and also a board member of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL), co-authored NACDL's model "Second Look" legislation and accompanying report.  The  legislation provides a vehicle that legislatures can use to safely reduce the number of individuals serving excessive, counter-productive sentences: guaranteeing all incarcerated individuals a “Second Look” once they have spent at least a decade in prison.  As noted in the accompanying report, it essentially takes up where the drafters of the Model Penal Code at the American Law Institute left off.  In December 2018, the ALI advocated systematic "Second Look" legislation, setting forth guiding principles but leaving states to develop fully fledged legislation.  Professor Kevin Reitz was the reporter for the sentencing provisions of the revised version of the Model Penal Code, and a key drafter of its "Second Look" provision.