Signed by Governor Dave Heineman

Vote Smart's Synopsis:

Vote to pass a bill that authorizes individuals that were falsely convicted of a felony offense, for which that individual served all or part of a prison sentence, to file a claim against the state for monetary compensation that shall not to exceed $500,000 per occurrence.

Highlights:

-Requires the claimant to prove each of the following by clear and convincing evidence (Sec. 3):

-That the claimant was convicted of one or more felonies and served a term of imprisonment for those crimes; -That the claimant was pardoned by the Board of Pardons, a court has vacated the conviction, or the conviction was was reversed and remanded for a new trial and no subsequent conviction was obtained; -That the claimant is innocent of the crimes; and -That the claimant did not commit perjury, fabricate evidence, or make false statements to cause or bring about such conviction or the conviction of another, except for a guilty plea, confession, or admission that was coerced by law enforcement and later found to be false.

-Specifies that the claimant shall recover damages found to proximately result from the wrongful conviction, provided that the damages do not exceed $500,000 (Sec. 4). -Requires claims against the state to be filed under the State Tort Claims Act (Sec. 7). -Authorizes a claimant to file additional claims against private parties responsible for the claimant's wrongful conviction (Sec. 8). -Requires the court to extinguish any lien that was filed against the claimant's property to cover the costs of defense services rendered by the state to defend the claimant in connection with the crime for which the claimant was wrongfully convicted (Sec. 4). -Specifies that the costs of imprisonment and any care or education provided to the claimant shall not offset the damages awarded by the court (Sec. 4).

Full Bill Text