Events

Kirk Bloodsworth, the first person exonerated by DNA testing from death row, will tell the story of his journey. His case rested entirely on eyewitness identifications, and yet he was sentenced to death in Maryland in 1985. He has since advocated for and was instrumental in the Maryland repeal of the death penalty, as well as in the adoption of the federal Innocence Project Act. Bloodsworth helped create the Kirk Bloodsworth Post-Conviction DNA Testing Program, which funds post-conviction DNA tests, and has been a member of Witness to Innocence since its creation. His story has been told in "Bloodsworth," published in 2005, and in a 2016 documentary film. Professor Brandon Garrett (Duke Law) will moderate. Lunch will be provided. Sponsored by the Duke Center for Science and Justice and the Duke Criminal Law Society. For more information, please contact Juliet Park at juliet.park@duke.edu.