Justice should never be denied.

• Author: Bookman, Alan B.
• Position: Florida - President's page

It doesn't matter whether you are a Republican or Democrat, prosecutor or criminal defense attorney, conservative or liberal--or somewhere in between. Consensus is mounting that DNA evidence is science of such certainty that it has both the power to lock up the guilty and set the innocent free. It's all about finding the truth and nothing but the truth.

That's why The Florida Bar has added its voice to the chorus that there should be no deadline on innocence. We advocate the passage of legislation that would do away with the current July 1, 2006, deadline on postconviction DNA testing.

This marks a golden opportunity for all three branches of government to work together to make Florida a model for criminal justice.

Already, Gov. Jeb Bush has signed an executive order to preserve physical evidence for postconviction DNA testing, saying, "the destruction of this evidence could potentially enable the innocent to be wrongly convicted and the guilty to go free."

The Florida Supreme Court has temporarily extended the October 1, 2005, deadline on postconviction DNA testing until July 1, 2006. Before that, the court had already extended a two-year deadline originally set by the legislature, when it was obvious the time frame was too short. More than 1,000 petitions for review have piled up at the two-lawyer office of the Florida Innocence Initiative in Tallahassee.

Meanwhile, legislators are working on a permanent end to the deadline that would be retroactive to October 1, 2005.

Even before the regular legislative session began March 7, the Governmental Operations Committee substitute for HB 61, co-sponsored by Rep. John Quinones, R-Kissimmee, and Rep. Ellyn Bogdanoff, R-Ft. Lauderdale, and SB 186, sponsored by Sen. Alex Villalobos, R-Miami--both identical bills--had already unanimously passed out of committees in each chamber. These bills include the opportunity for DNA testing, even for those who have entered no contest or guilty pleas, recognizing that sometimes even the innocent are persuaded--by any number of reasons--to "plead out."

Nationally, seven inmates who entered into plea agreements have later been cleared by DNA evidence.

David Rothman, a Miami criminal defense attorney and member of your Florida Bar's Board of Governors, testified eloquently at both the House and Senate criminal justice committees on Jan. 25 to show the Bar's support.

"How can we possibly refuse to allow inmates to use the advances of science to demonstrate that...