Join the fight for a Hampden County Conviction Integrity Unit

Many of us convicted in Hampden County and serving life sentences in prison desperately seek the establishment of a Conviction Integrity Unit (CIU) to review our cases and many others. Our family, friends and supporters have joined us to advocate for the cause.

For many years, controversy has surrounded convictions secured in Hampden County Superior Court: at least 9 innocent people wrongfully convicted in Hampden County have been exonerated since 2011. The Department of Justice (DOJ), the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), and the Committee for Public Counsel Services (CPCS) have all uncovered serious misconduct by the Springfield Police Department. Their findings have required the Hampden County District Attorney’s office to disclose evidence of law enforcement misconduct to more than 8,000 defendants. The Department of Justice found that Springfield police officers engaged in “a pattern or practice of using excessive force in violation of the Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution.” Hampden County prosecutors have also failed to disclose deals they made with witnesses, even though the law requires them to tell defendants. The ACLU of Massachusetts and the Committee for Public Counsel Services are suing for the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court to order an investigation into the Springfield Police Department and an investigation into the Hampden District Attorney’s practices. Now, public records requests have revealed a list of 53 police officers from various Hampden County police departments who did not play by the established rules and laws of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.

Conviction integrity reviews in other states and counties have contributed to a growing number of exonerations. In 2019, Suffolk County, Massachusetts launched its Integrity Review Board to review cases for discrepancies. This board’s review has already led to the release of at least 6 incarcerated people serving life sentences and has surfaced evidence of unlawful actions by law enforcement officers in Suffolk County. Considering how many people have been freed by Suffolk County’s Integrity Review Board in such a short time, we can only expect that the Board will continue to free people as it continues to screen cases.

The Hampden County DA opposes establishing a CIU in his office. He states that a conviction integrity unit will force victims’ families to relive some of their most painful moments. However, we know that the criminal legal system cannot provide these families with the support and healing that they need. Wrongful convictions do not honor the loves ones lost. Our imprisonment will not heal grief.

The Hampden County District Attorney, Assistant District Attorneys, and police officers would not support a CIU that could expose their wrongdoing. Now ask yourself, why are they fighting us now?

Please join us in the struggle for justice in Hampden County. Add your name below to sign-on in support of a Hampden County Conviction Integrity Unit.

Signed: Angel Diaz, Tabue K. Smiley, and anonymous others