Frazier champions bill to give convicts day in court

A new bill going through the state House of Representatives could change the way people convicted of crimes can file for appeal.

Under the current Minnesota law, a direct appeal may be brought within two years with few limitations. However, after two years, it is much more difficult for convicted persons to have their day in court.

A bill titled HF2400 would allow people to go back to court if there is new, compelling evidence to suggest innocence.

Rep. Cedrick Frazier (DFL-New Hope) is the author of this bill. Frazier represents District 43A, which encompasses the city of New Hope and the majority of Crystal.

“This bill is not just about legal technicalities,” Frazier said the a Feb. 20 House Judiciary Finance and Civil Law Committee meeting. “It is about ensuring individuals who have been wrongly convicted have a chance at justice.”

Lawmakers were visited by Marvin Haynes, who is a real-life example of how the current appeal laws can trap a falsely convicted person in prison.

Haynes shared his experience of being falsely convicted of murder and sent to prison as a teenager. Nineteen years later in December, he was released.

“Marvin was wrongly convicted and spent nearly 20 years in prison for a crime he did not commit,” Frazier told the committee. “It was only through the waiver of the statute of limitations by the Hennepin County Attorney’s Office that he was able to have his case considered — reconsidered. We cannot rely on such waivers to ensure justice is served. We need a more reasonable standard in place.”

Haynes said he missed out on many important things like funerals and spending time with family while he was incarcerated. Haynes spoke in favor of HF2400.

“There are other people like me sitting in prison waiting for justice,” Haynes said. “There are more Marvin Haynes. But without change in our law, they will continue to wait and miss out on life’s important moments. And our community will miss out on their gifts and contributions.”

Andrew Markquart is a managing attorney at the Great North Innocence Project. Markquart said he works with wrongfully convicted individuals like Haynes and supports the bill.

Markquart believes the current requirements set after the statute of limitations “to prove a negative” is too high. He also said Minnesota’s laws concerning the postconviction statute of limitations are more restrictive than most other states.

“You gotta affirmatively prove you didn’t do something,” Markquart said. “And you gotta do it by a clear and convincing standard — which the lawyers in the room will know is a very high standard. ... Imagine someone told you ‘give me clear and convincing evidence that bigfoot doesn’t exist.’ Could you do it? I suspect we would struggle.”

Markquart also said he believes the judicial system normally convicts people accurately, but this law would apply for those people who were wrongly convicted and deserve a reasonable path to freedom.

After listening to Frazier’s bill and hearing Haynes and Markquart speak, the committee voted unanimously to send the bill forward to the Public Safety Finance and Policy Committee.

To watch the meetings, go to house.mn.gov.