Internship - Innocence Program - Fall 2024 - Committee for Public Counsel

Overview

The Committee for Public Counsel Services (CPCS) Innocence Program is currently seeking students for our Fall 2024 internship positions. 

We fight for equal justice and human dignity by supporting our clients in achieving their legal and life goals. We zealously advocate for the rights of individuals and promote just public policy to protect the rights of all. 

Our Values

Courage   •   Accountability   •   Respect   •   Excellence

DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION MISSION STATEMENT 

CPCS is committed to protecting the fundamental constitutional and human rights of our assigned clients through zealous advocacy, community-oriented defense, and the fullness of excellent legal representation.  We are dedicated to building and maintaining strong professional relationships, while striving to accept, listen to and respect the diverse circumstances of each client, as we dedicate ourselves to meeting their individual needs.  It is our CPCS mission to achieve these goals, and in furtherance thereof, we embrace and endorse diversity, equity and inclusion as our core values as we maintain a steadfast commitment to: (1) Ensure that CPCS management and staff members represent a broad range of human differences and experience; (2) Provide a work climate that is respectful and supports success; and (3) Promote the dignity and well-being of all staff members. CPCS leadership is responsible for ensuring equity, diversity, and inclusion. The ability to achieve these goals with any level of certainty is ultimately the responsibility of each member of the CPCS community. 

AGENCY OVERVIEW 

CPCS is the state agency in Massachusetts responsible for providing an attorney when the state or federal constitution or a state statute requires the appointment of an attorney for a person who cannot afford to retain one.  The agency provides representation in criminal, delinquency, youthful offender, family regulation, guardianship, mental health, sexually dangerous person, and sex offender registry cases, as well as in appeals and post-conviction and post-judgment proceedings related to those matters. 

The clients we represent are diverse across every context imaginable and bring many unique cultural dimensions to the matters we address. This reality creates a critical need for CPCS staff to be culturally competent and able to work well with people of different races, ethnicities, genders and/or sexual orientation identities, abilities, and limited English proficiency, among other protected characteristics. 

INNOCENCE PROGRAM OVERVIEW

The Innocence Program (IP), located in Boston, is a unit of the Massachusetts public defender’s office that is devoted to identifying and fighting wrongful convictions across the state. IP aims to identify and litigate meritorious Massachusetts innocence claims at both trial and appellate levels; assign experienced attorneys to litigate such claims; supervise and train lawyers handling innocence cases; and administer funds from a federally-supported Expert Funding System to support post-conviction investigation, forensic consultation and testing in both DNA and non-DNA cases. In the 14 years since our creation, our staff and panel attorneys have been instrumental in securing the release of 26 wrongfully convicted Massachusetts defendants, 21 of whom have been fully exonerated. We also helped establish an innovative partnership with prosecutors, criminal clerks, and scientists from the Massachusetts State Police Crime Laboratory to identify areas of common concern related to wrongful convictions.

You may also visit our website for more information:  https://www.publiccounsel.net/pc/innocence-program/

Qualifications

QUALIFICATIONS/SKILLS 

All students who will have completed their first year of law school by the start of their internship are eligible to apply.  

Preferred qualifications:  

• Students who have taken classes in evidence, criminal law, criminal procedure, constitutional law, critical legal theory, and/or trial advocacy  
• Students with experience working with low-income clients, people of color, immigrants, LGBT people, and other underrepresented groups
• Students who speak a foreign language  

Candidates must also:

• Have access to a personal computer with home internet access sufficient to work remotely on at least a part-time basis.

Responsibilities

POSITION OVERVIEW

Interns will work closely with the program director, staff attorneys, paralegal, and fellows to screen cases, provide litigation support to post-conviction innocence claims, work on research and data projects and policy advocacy, and help draft trial court filings or appellate briefs for any active litigation. Interns will have the opportunity to attend court for any hearings or arguments.

EEO Statement 

 The Committee for Public Counsel Services (CPCS) is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, ethnicity, sex, disability, religion, age, veteran or military status, genetic information, gender identity, or sexual orientation as required by Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, and other applicable federal and state statutes and organizational policies.  Applicants who have questions about equal employment opportunity or who need reasonable accommodations can contact the Chief Human Resources Officer, Sandra DeBow-Huang, at sdebow@publiccounsel.net