Sept. 23, 2014
The Duke Law School Wrongful Convictions Clinic was a crucial ally of defense attorney Sean Devereux in the recent exoneration of Michael Alan Parker, whose “satanic ritual abuse” conviction bears many fundamental similarities to Junior Chandler’s.
Now, co-director Theresa Newman tells me the clinic “is reviewing the case file to determine if we can help Mr. Chandler prove his innocence.
“We are at the VERY early stages of our review, so we do not have a good sense of things yet and cannot even estimate a timeline for the review. The file is large and the case is complicated, so the review will take some time.
“That said, we are mindful of how long Mr. Chandler has been imprisoned and, to the extent possible, will try to conduct the review without undue delay.”
Even given Ms. Newman’s cautious caveats, this review must be seen as opening new possibilities for Junior Chandler.
As many doors as the legal system has slammed in Junior’s face, there has always seemed to be one more. Thank you, Wrongful Convictions Clinic.