[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 151 (2005), Part 1]
[Senate]
[Page 901]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                             THE EXONERATED

  Mr. LEAHY. Mr. President, I normally do not do movie reviews, but for 
this Thursday's premiere of ``The Exonerated'' on CourtTV, I feel 
compelled to make an exception. ``The Exonerated'' tells the harrowing 
true stories of six innocent people who were convicted and sentenced to 
death.
  Since February 2000, I have worked to prevent more innocents from 
meeting the same fate, and last year the Innocence Protection Act was 
finally passed and signed into law. The reforms it enacts will create a 
fairer system of justice, where the problems that have sent innocent 
people to death row are less likely to occur, where the American people 
can be more certain that violent criminals are caught and convicted 
instead of the innocent people who have been wrongly put behind bars 
for their crimes, and where victims and their families can be more 
certain of the accuracy, and finality, of the results.
  The film of ``The Exonerated'' was adapted from a play of the same 
title by Jessica Blank and Erik Jensen, which was performed last year 
at the Kennedy Center. Those who were unable to see the play will have 
the chance to watch the movie on CourtTV this Thursday, January 27, at 
9 p.m.
  Since 1973, some 117 innocent people have been released from death 
row with evidence of their innocence. Six of these stories are told in 
``The Exonerated.'' While the Innocence Protection Act passed with 
overwhelming bipartisan support in both the House and Senate, the task 
before us remains getting the new law funded. Watching these true-life 
accounts will help explain why funding the Innocence Protection Act 
should be a high priority that Congress and the administration must not 
ignore.

                          ____________________