COLUMBUS, Ohio — The Franklin County Prosecutor’s Office announced a new unit that will be tasked with reviewing and investigating claims of innocence and wrongful convictions.
Franklin County Prosecutor Gary Tyack said Assistant Prosecuting Attorney Jocelyn Stefancin will serve as the director of the Conviction Integrity Unit (CIU).
“As prosecutors, we have an ethical obligation to seek justice. One element of our duty is to ensure that no innocent person is wrongfully convicted or punished,” Tyack said.
According to the prosecutor’s office, defendants, their attorneys, prosecutors, innocence projects personnel, court personnel and law enforcement may submit applications beginning on May 1.
If the claims in the application meet criteria for further review, a full investigation will proceed and ultimately be presented to the prosecutor.
“We don’t want an innocent person sitting in prison,” Stefancin said. “The prosecutor’s role is to seek justice, which means we have a duty to ensure that wrongful convictions are corrected. The CIU is a great step in combating wrongful convictions, and I’m honored that I was chosen to lead it.”
Stefancin is a 1990 graduate of Case Western Reserve University School of Law. She has over 30 years of experience in criminal justice.
For the majority of those years, Stefancin served as an assistant prosecutor. She also served as the chief public defender for Medina County for more than eight years.
“Jocelyn is uniquely qualified to understand both sides of any criminal case and possesses all the experience required to make the recommendations associated with this type of legal review,” Tyack said.
The prosecutor’s office said dozens of prosecutors around the country, including Cuyahoga and Summit counties, have established CIUs since the mid-2000s.