When A Conviction Is Reversed But The Government Still Keeps Your Money
Surprisingly, there was a recent case that took place in the Colorado Supreme Court where the defendant had there conviction reversed but was not granted a refund of the fees, costs, and restitution that they had been forced to pay. In this case, titled The People versus Nelson, the court said that the defendant wasn’t deserving of a refund because they failed to meet the stipulated requirements set forth in the Colorado Exoneration Act.
The Reversal Of A Conviction Doesn’t Necessarily Mean The Court Finds You Innocent
If a conviction is overturned by the court because of eras that were committed while the case was being tried in lower courts or because there was insufficient evidence, to begin with, then the Colorado Exoneration Act stipulates that the defendant will not qualify for a refund. In other states like Texas sentencing will not be enforced until the entire appeal process is completed and this means the defendant won’t pay anything until the entire process is finalized. In Colorado, however, the Exoneration ACT says that if an individual was wrongly convicted they must provide overwhelming evidence that they are truly innocent before they are eligible for a refund.
In the case mentioned above the defendant was not able to prove her innocence with enough convincing evidence and therefore the court found that she was not eligible for a refund. The case has now gone to the US Supreme Court and the justices there will now have the responsibility of determining if this can be overturned or not. The state of Colorado is the only one in the country that requires a person who is found to be wrongly convicted to prove that they are innocent beyond a doubt to be eligible for a refund.
Our Firm’s Stance On Reversed Convictions
At Butler Law Firm Mr. Butler believes that anyone who is found to be wrongly convicted should get every penny they paid refunded regardless of whether or not they can provide convincing evidence of their absolute innocence. When a court rules that a conviction should be reversed then the law has exonerated them of the conviction and that means they should be entitled to the refund of any fees, costs, or restoration they paid as part of their conviction.
Unless the case is re-tried and the person is reconvicted then an overturned conviction should entitle them to be refunded of all money paid. Jim Butler is a licensed attorney with 24 years of experience. He routinely helps his clients get out of jail time that could have resulted in the loss of their jobs which would cause their families to suffer emotionally and financially. Mr. Butler’s success rate is currently 100% with DWIs and that is the focus of all his time.
He does not endorse or encourage drunk driving but he does believe that there are a lot of people that were wrongly arrested and it’s for that reason that he became a DUI lawyer. It is often a misunderstood fact that Texas law does not prohibit someone from drinking and driving as long as that person maintains an appropriate level of physical and mental faculties. When a person is very tired a field sobriety test can often give the officer the wrong conclusion. There are other conditions that include medicine and other factors that could cause someone to fail a test even when they are not intoxicated.
Give Jim a call today and let him give you a free consultation so that you can get the help that you need. You can contact Jim for your free consultation!