The Tennessee Legislature has approved a bipartisan bill (SB256/HB201) that will provide a path for wrongfully convicted people who have pled guilty to a crime they did not commit to file an innocence claim in court based on new non-scientific evidence of innocence. The bill reflects a compromise between the Tennessee District Attorney’s Conference and the Tennessee Innocence Project, and was sponsored and championed by Chattanooga Republican Senator Todd Gardenhire and Nashville Democrat Rep. Bob Freeman.
The legislation creates a more direct path for innocence claims to be heard, potentially saving years of unnecessary incarceration for the wrongfully convicted, said officials. Under current Tennessee law, individuals who plead guilty have no legal avenue to return to court, even when new, non-scientific evidence of their innocence comes to light. This gap in the law sets Tennessee apart from most other states, which already allow for such cases to be reconsidered. The bill aims to close that gap by creating a clear pathway for innocent individuals to have their cases heard. The legislation creates a collaborative process under which judges are empowered to reopen cases when both the district attorney general and the convicted person—or their attorney—jointly file a petition.
"This legislation addresses a practical problem with a common-sense solution,” Senator Gardenhire said. “We shouldn't have cases where evidence of innocence exists but can't be properly considered by our courts because of procedural hurdles. This bill creates a clearer path for reviewing new evidence, which means our system can more efficiently correct mistakes when they're discovered. It's a straightforward improvement that makes our justice system more effective and more just for all Tennesseans."
Rep. Freeman said, “When we imprison the wrong person, everyone loses. The innocent person loses their freedom, true victims don't receive justice, communities remain unsafe with the actual perpetrator still at large, and taxpayers bear the cost of unnecessary incarceration. This legislation is about making our justice system work better for all Tennesseans by improving how we consider new evidence of innocence. Strong justice isn't just compassionate—it's smart policy."
Before 2016, individuals with new non-scientific evidence of innocence could file an error coram nobis petition to have their case reconsidered in court, even if they had entered a guilty plea. However, in 2016, the Tennessee Supreme Court interpreted the statute to apply only to those convicted at trial, effectively closing the door for individuals who had pleaded guilty. The legislation amends the statute to explicitly include guilty pleas, restoring the law to its pre-2016 interpretation and ensuring that innocent people once again have a path back to court.
"Innocence work shouldn't be adversarial,” said Jason Gichner, executive director of TIP. “When evidence of innocence emerges, everyone in the system should work together toward the truth. This legislation helps break down barriers to justice by improving how courts consider new evidence. While we can't give back the years lost to wrongful conviction, we can stop the clock sooner when evidence of innocence comes to light. That's what this reform is all about. The overwhelming bipartisan support shows that justice for the innocent transcends political divides.”
Innocence Project estimates that approximately 29 percent of DNA exonerations involve individuals who initially confessed, and they cite many reasons why an innocent person might choose to confess. In Tennessee, the first exoneration achieved by the Tennessee Innocence Project involved a person who pled guilty to a lesser sentence for murder and was later fully exonerated by DNA evidence.