A bipartisan group of senators has proposed Senate Bill 291, which would create the Wrongful Imprisonment Compensation Act. The proposed act provides that a person convicted under Michigan law and later imprisoned in a state correctional facility for one or more crimes that he or she did not commit can bring an action for compensation against the state in the court of claims.
A wrongfully convicted person is entitled to judgment on showing by a preponderance of the evidence that
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he or she was convicted and served at least part of the sentence in a state correctional facility;
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the judgment was reversed or vacated and the charges were dismissed, or he or she was found not guilty on retrial; and
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new evidence shows that the defendant did not commit the crime and results in reversal or vacation of charges, a pardon, dismissal of all charges, or a finding of not guilty of all charges on retrial.
However, the plaintiff is not entitled to compensation under the act if he or she was convicted of another criminal offense arising from the same transaction.
If a court finds that a plaintiff was wrongfully convicted and imprisoned, compensation would be awarded as follows:
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$60,000 for each year from the date the of imprisonment until the date of release from prison
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economic damages, like lost wages, attorney fees connected with the criminal defense, and actual medical expenses related to the imprisonment
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reimbursement of any amount awarded and collected by the state under the State Correctional Facility Reimbursement Act, MCL 800.401–.406
An award cannot include any attorney fees or expenses incurred in bringing a previous action that was dismissed. An attorney fee award under the act cannot be deducted from the compensation awarded the former prisoner, and the former prisoner’s attorney is not entitled to receive additional fees from the former prisoner.
In addition to compensation, the act also requires a court to expunge a criminal record if it determines that a plaintiff was wrongfully convicted and imprisoned.
A Senate Fiscal Agency analysis of legislation introduced in a previous legislative session indicated that the number of wrongful convictions is “quite low,” but that the compensation that is awarded can reach several million dollars in each case.
Although this act provides a standard for recovery, it is worth noting that recent articles about exonerated former prisoners show that some have been “shattered” by their experience and that they do not necessarily live happily ever after once they are released from prison.