''The Innocence Project'' is a

television Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertisin ...

drama Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance: a play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a genre of poetry in general, the dramatic mode has been ...

series created by

BBC Northern Ireland BBC Northern Ireland ( ga, BBC Thuaisceart Éireann; Ulster-Scots: ''BBC Norlin Airlan'') is a division of the BBC and the main public broadcaster in Northern Ireland. It is widely available across both Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ire ...

and first broadcast on

BBC One BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's flagship network and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television bulletins, p ...

on 9 November 2006. The series follows the work of Professor Jon Ford ( Lloyd Owen), who sets up ''The Innocence Project'', peopled entirely by a hand-picked group of law students. They take on cases

pro bono ( en, 'for the public good'), usually shortened to , is a Latin phrase for professional work undertaken voluntarily and without payment. In the United States, the term typically refers to provision of legal services by legal professionals for pe ...

that no one else will handle, or those that have been forgotten or given up on, working for clients that would otherwise have no hope, and who have possibly been wrongly convicted. The series is based on a British version of the

Innocence Project Innocence Project, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit legal organization that is committed to exonerating individuals who have been wrongly convicted, through the use of DNA testing and working to reform the criminal justice system to prevent futur ...

, a non-profit legal clinic in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. ''The Innocence Project'' fared particularly poorly for a BBC primetime drama, and received a number of negative reviews. In an unusual move for the BBC, the series was pulled from the schedules mid-run, and the final three episodes were not broadcast until over a month later. The BBC subsequently confirmed that the series would not be renewed. Notably, the series has also never been issued on DVD.

Foundation

The first and best-known Innocence organization is based at the

Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law The Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law is the law school of Yeshiva University. Located in New York City and founded in 1976, the school is named for Supreme Court Justice Benjamin N. Cardozo. Cardozo graduated its first class in 1979. An LL.M. p ...

of Yeshiva University. It directly serves

defendant In court proceedings, a defendant is a person or object who is the party either accused of committing a crime in criminal prosecution or against whom some type of civil relief is being sought in a civil case. Terminology varies from one jurisdic ...

s who can conclusively be proven innocent by

DNA testing Genetic testing, also known as DNA testing, is used to identify changes in DNA sequence or chromosome structure. Genetic testing can also include measuring the results of genetic changes, such as RNA analysis as an output of gene expression, or ...

of evidence done ''after'' their convictions. The clinic was founded in 1992 by Barry Scheck and Peter Neufeld. In addition to working on behalf of those who may have been wrongfully convicted of crimes throughout the

, the Innocence Project performs research and advocacy related to the causes of wrongful convictions. ''The Innocence Project'' is a member of the recently formed

Innocence Network The Innocence Network is an affiliation of organizations dedicated to providing pro bono legal and investigative services to individuals seeking to prove innocence of crimes for which they have been convicted and working to redress the causes of ...

, which brings together a number of innocence organizations from across the United States. As of 2012, 292 defendants previously convicted of serious crimes in the United States have been exonerated by DNA testing. Almost all of these convictions involved some form of

sexual assault Sexual assault is an act in which one intentionally sexually touches another person without that person's consent, or coerces or physically forces a person to engage in a sexual act against their will. It is a form of sexual violence, which ...

and approximately 25% involved

murder Murder is the unlawful killing of another human without justification (jurisprudence), justification or valid excuse (legal), excuse, especially the unlawful killing of another human with malice aforethought. ("The killing of another person wit ...

. Dr. Michael Naughton, founder and director of the Innocence Network UK (INUK), set up the first innocence project in Britain at the

University of Bristol , mottoeng = earningpromotes one's innate power (from Horace, ''Ode 4.4'') , established = 1595 – Merchant Venturers School1876 – University College, Bristol1909 – received royal charter , type ...

in January 2005. Additionally, INUK has actively assisted in setting up over 30 innocence projects in British universities and referred approximately 90 cases to member innocence projects for further investigation.

Cast

* Lloyd Owen — Professor Jon Ford * Christine Bottomley — Sarah Shawcross *

Ruth Bradley Sharon Ruth Bradley is an Irish actress. She is best known for playing Emily Merchant in ''Primeval'' (2011) and Karen Voss in ''Humans'' (2015–18). She has also had recurring roles in ''Legend'' (6 episodes, 2006), ''The Innocence Project'' ...

— Beth McNair *

Stephen Graham Stephen Joseph Graham (born 3 August 1973) is a British actor. He is best known for playing Andrew "Combo" Gascoigne in the film ''This Is England'' (2006) and its television sequels ''This Is England '86'' (2010), '' This Is England '88'' ( ...

— Andrew Lucas * Oliver James — Nick Benitz *

Luke Treadaway Luke Antony Newman Treadaway''Births, Marriages & Deaths Index of England & Wales, 1916-2005.''; at ancestry.com (born 10 September 1984) is a British actor and singer. He won an Olivier Award for Best Leading Actor for his performance as Christ ...

— Adam Solomons *

Shelley Conn Shelley Deborah Conn (born 21 September 1976) is an English actress. She is perhaps best known for her roles as Lady Mary Sharma in the hugely successful Netflix series ''Bridgerton'', as Isabella in the film ''Love Sarah'', as Dr Elizabeth Shan ...

— Dr. Eve Walker * Andrea Lowe — Philippa Lucas * Ruta Gedmintas — Mary Jarvis *

Thomas Turgoose Thomas Aiden Turgoose (born 11 February 1992) is an English actor, best known for his role as Shaun Fields in the film ''This Is England'' (2006), a role he reprises in the ''This Is England'' TV series ''This Is England '86'' (2010), ''This Is ...

— Darren "Dizzy" Littlewood * Charlotte Emmerson — Lizzie Ford

Episodes

References

External links

* *
The Innocence Project
''TightropePictures.com''
The Innocence Project
''BBC.co.uk'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Innocence Project, The 2006 British television series debuts 2007 British television series endings 2000s British drama television series BBC television dramas British crime drama television series 2000s British legal television series Television shows set in Manchester Wrongful convictions English-language television shows 2000s British crime television series

Foundation

Cast

Episodes

See also

References

External links