Do You Qualify for Help From an Innocence Organization?

Intake criteria differ by organization, but most Innocence Network members generally look for:

• A claim of actual innocence — not just a procedural or sentencing error in an otherwise valid conviction.
• A completed conviction. Most organizations don't take cases that are still pretrial or on direct appeal with a public defender already assigned.
• Some avenue of case-specific evidence left to investigate — untested DNA, forensic re-analysis, a recanting witness, or newly discovered evidence — since these organizations investigate, not just advocate.
• Because caseloads are large and resources limited, cases with more time remaining on the sentence are often prioritized, though this varies by organization.

Every member organization has its own intake form on its website, reached through the Innocence Network's member directory.