Steven.A.Drizin, Clinical Professor of Law at Chicago's Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law’s Center on Wrongful Convictions of Youth is regarded as a national expert regarding false confessions, wrongful convictions and juvenile justice reform.^[1] Professor Drizin is known internationally for his ongoing representation of Brendan Dassey^[2] and for research in the field of false confessions and policy reform efforts across the United States. Drizin's interest in justice reform resulted in co-authoring an amicus brief with the Juvenile Law Center, American Bar Association, Amnesty International and other interested parties representing fifty child welfare, juvenile justice, and child advocacy organizations in the case of Roper v. Simmons that resulted in the United States Supreme Court determining the juvenile death penalty as unconstitutional.^[3]

Professor Drizin "champions the rights of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities in the criminal justice system "^[4]with further areas of focus including clinical teaching, juvenile justice, criminal law and procedure and wrongful convictions.^[5]

Early Career

Born in Philadelphia, Steven Drizin completed a B.A with Honors from Haverford College, Pennsylvania in 1983 and a J.D from Northwestern School of Law in 1986.^[6] On completion of his Juris Doctor, Drizin commenced his law career in commercial litigation with Chicago based Sachnoff and Weaver.^[7] October 1988, Drizin was retained as a law clerk to the Honorable Ilana Rovner United States District Court Judge for the Northern District of Illinois, Eastern Division. Notably, in June 2017 Judge Ilana D Rovner would author the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit opinion, affirming a federal court decision to overturn the conviction of Drizin's client Brendan Dassey.^[8]

Northwestern University Bluhm Legal Clinic

A member of faculty from 1991, Drizin joined the Bluhm Legal Clinics Children and Family Justice Center as a supervising attorney^[9] while focused on furthering the constitutional rights of juveniles. A Clinical Professor of Law, Drizin succeeded Professor Lawrence C.Marshall as Legal Director of the Center on Wrongful Convictions in 2005.^[10] Steven Drizin remained the legal director of the Center on Wrongful Convictions from 2005-2013. From 2013-2017, Professor Drizin held tenure as the Assistant Dean of the Bluhm Legal Clinic.^[11]

During his time with the Center on Wrongful Convictions, Drizin's research interests focused on the mandatory videotaping of police interrogations, parental/attorney presence and the right to counsel for juveniles. Making a Murderer viewers watched Brendan Dassey's videotaped interrogation as a result of a July 2005 ruling by the Wisconsin Supreme Court that mandated the electronic recording of interrogations of minors, Professor Drizin had filed a non party brief in the case of State vs Jerrell C.J which resulted in this decision.^[12]

Center on Wrongful Convictions of Youth

Established in 2008, the CWCY would be the first juvenile criminal justice initiative dedicated to the representation and advocacy of adolescents who are fighting wrongful convictions.^[13] A joint enterprise between the Center on Wrongful Convictions and the Children and Family Justice Center, the Center currently represents Brendan Dassey and has successfully exonerated over 20 wrongfully convicted juveniles.^[14]

The CWCY is active in the areas of appellate litigation, juvenile policy reform, interrogation processes and the enforcement of juvenile constitutional protections.^[15] The Center on Wrongful Convictions of Youth represents many juveniles who have falsely confessed to a crime they have not committed, and are prominent collaborators in the juvenile justice space. Professor Drizin and Co-Director Laura Nirider author numerous amicus curiae briefs and conduct professional training in the area of false confessions and interrogation practices for legal professionals including judges, attorneys and the greater law enforcement community.^[16]

Noteable Federal Appellate Cases

Brendan Dassey v Michael Dittman: 201 F.Supp. 3d 963 (E.D. Wi. 2016)(federal habeas corpus decision granting relief to 16-year-old Dassey who gave “involuntary” confession), aff’d 860 F.3d 933 (7th Cir. 2017), reh’g en banc granted and district court’s grant of habeas relief reversed, 877 F.3d 297 (7th Cir. 2017).^[17]

Montgomery v. Louisiana :577 U.S. ___, 136 S. Ct. 718 (2016)(co-authored amicus brief on behalf of juvenile advocacy organizations arguing that Miller v. Alabama’s holding abolishing mandatory life without parole sentences is retroactive)^[18]

J. D. B. v. North Carolina: 564 U.S. 261 (2011)(co-authored amicus brief concerning juvenile false confessions that was cited by the United States Supreme Court in majority opinion).^[19]

Roper v. Simmons:543 U.S. 551 (2005) (joined the Juvenile Law Center, Amnesty International and other organisations representing over fifty child welfare, juvenile justice and juvenile advocacy organisations in a landmark juvenile death penalty case. The United States Supreme Court determined that it was unconstitutional to impose the death penality on juveniles under the age of 18 as a result.^[20]

U.S. ex rel A.M. v. Butler: 2002 WL 1348605 (N.D. IIl. June 19, 2002)(federal habeas decision vacating murder conviction of 11 year minor). Argued and briefed before United States Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals September 2004. Conviction reversed in published opinion A.M. v. Butler, 360 F.3d 787 (7th Cir (Ill.), Mar 02, 2004)^[21]

U.S. ex rel. Hardaway v. Young: 162 F.Supp.2d 1005 (N.D.Ill. Sep 13, 2001) (NO. 01 C 3963) judgment reversed by Hardaway v. Young, 302 F.3d 657 (7th Cir.(Ill.) 2002)(federal habeas corpus decision concerning the involuntariness of juvenile confessions)^[22]

Yarborough v. Alvarado :541 U.S. 652 (2004) (was co-author to an amicus brief with the Juvenile Law Center in police interrogation case involving a juvenile before the United States Supreme Court - the Miranda test).^[23]

Noteable State Appellate Cases

State v. Jerrell C.J: No. 02-3423, Wisconsin Court of Appeals and Wisconsin Supreme Court (2003) Authored an amicus brief in the reversal of an armed robbery conviction of a juvenile defendant. The opinion mandated a new rule requiring that all custodial interrogations of juveniles must be electronically recorded.^[24]

People of the State of New York v. David McCallum :A juvenile who falsely confessed at age 16 to a 1985 murder, is exonerated after post-conviction proceedings in 2014 by King’s County District Attorney’s Office’s Conviction Review Unit.^[25]

Michigan v. Davontae Sanford :14 year-old developmentally impaired juvenile who falsely confessed after two days of interrogation to a quadruple murder in Detroit is exonerated in 2016.^[26]

People of the State of Illinois v. Terrill Swift, et al :17 year old who falsely confessed to a 1995 murder is exonerated by DNA evidence in January 2012.(Englewood Four)^[27][28]

People of the State of Illinois v. Robert Taylor, et al :14 year old adolescent who falsely confessed to a 1991 murder exonerated by DNA evidence in November 2011, freeing Taylor and 4 co-defendants.(Dixmoor Five)^[29][30]

People of the State of Illinois v. John Horton :17 year-old who falsely confessed to a murder in 1993 is exonerated in 2017 after serving 23 years as appellate court tosses conviction and state decides not to retry.^[31]

People of the State of Illinois v. Justin Doyle :In 2017 Governor Bruce Rauner granted clemency to Justin Doyle who was convicted under the Illinois felony murder rule in 2008, commuting a 30-year sentence to 9 years of time-served.^[32]

Author

• Huffington Post :contributor ^[33]
• True Stories of False Confessions: Rob Warden & Steven A. Drizin (editors) (published August 2009, Northwestern University Press)
• The Problem of False Confessions in the Post-DNA Age: Steven A. Drizin & Richard A. Leo (2008)(translated into Japanese and published as a book and amicus brief which was filed by the Center on Wrongful Convictions before the Supreme Court of Japan)(translated by Kazuko Ito)(Japan UNI Agency, Tokyo, 2008).^[34]

Professor Steven Drizin has authored a catalogue of law review articles^[35], books chapters^[36], psychological journal articles^[37], book reviews, position papers and newspaper and magazine articles, essays^[38] and Op-eds for both national and international publications.

Recognition

• The Perske Award: Drizin was awarded The Perske Award by The Arc for "a lifetime of work on justice reform for youth and people with disabilities and his representation of Brendan Dassey, a young man with learning ad developmental disabilities".^[39]
• Northwestern Pritzker School of Law Dawn Clark Netsch Public Service Award.^[40]
• Campaign for Fair Sentencing of Youth’s Healing and Hope Award.^[41]
• Congressional Black Caucus Veterans Braintrust Award 2016.^[42]
• American Bar Association’s Livingston Hall Award 2005.^[43]
• National Juvenile Defender Center’s Juvenile Defender Leadership Award 2000.

Film

• Making a Murderer Seasons 1 & 2, Emmy-winning Netflix Global series addressing the case of Brendan Dassey
• West of Memphis BAFTA-nominated documentary about the West Memphis Three.
• A True Story of a False Confession: The Brendan Dassey Case a discussion on Brendan Dasseys case, police interrogations, and false confessions. Livestream from Northwestern Pritzker School of Law.
• David & Me Documentary on the wrongful conviction of David McCallum exonerated after 29 years in prison^[44]
• The Injustice System Documentary concerning Jason Strong exonerated after 15 years in prison

Podcasts

• Concord Law School: Discussion between Professor Steven Drizin and Martin Pritkin (Dean of Concord Law School) concerning the wrongful conviction of juveniles.
• Undisclosed: with Rabia Chaudry and Professors Drizin and Nirider. Discussion on Dassey v Dittman before the United States Supreme Court
• Scalar Learning Podcast: Huzefa interviews Professor Steve Drizin.
• Planet Lex Podcast: Professors Drizin and Nirider interviewed on defending Brendan Dassey of Making a Murderer.

See Also

• List of wrongful convictions in the United States
• Juvenile Law Center
• Arc of the United States
• Innocence Project
• Saul Kassin
• Rob Warden
• West Memphis Three
• False Confession
• American juvenile justice system
• Miscarriage of Justice
• Making a Murderer

References

External links

• Official website