Can the wrongly accused receive compensation?
With the advent of DNA testing in the 1990s, more than 150 capital felony prisoners have been freed. According to a study by the University of Michigan, such releases have gone from an average of about 12 per year to 48 per year, a 400 percent increase, and are continuing to grow. Much of this increase is also due to the creation of ''Innocence Projects'' in 31 different states, where volunteer investigators, criminologists and lawyers assist in securing the release of innocent defendants. Florida is one of those states. The question of whether or not wrongfully convicted and imprisoned persons are entitled to compensation is often governed by local statute. The federal government ($5,000 cap), District of Columbia (no cap), and 18 states have differing compensation laws that require payment of specified amounts. Maryland, New York and West Virginia have no cap on payment of damages. Some state awards are on the high side. Alabama, for example, allows $50,000 or more per year served; Tennessee has a $1 million cap; and Texas allows $25,000 per year served up to cap of $500,000. Other state awards are much lower. California allows $100 per day for time served, and Iowa pays out $50 per day for time served. The most unique is Montana where the compensation is free tuition to any state school. Sometimes, in states without specific laws, special compensation bills are passed by the legislature in unusual cases of wrongful incarceration
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