State Attorney’s Office launches ‘conviction integrity review unit’ in Jacksonville
Posted on Wednesday, January 31st, 2018 at 11:49 am
Inmates convicted in Florida’s Fourth Judicial District have a new lawyer on their team, and she comes from a surprising source — the State Attorney’s Office itself. In what’s said to be a first in Florida, Shelley Thibodeau, previously a private defense attorney, is tasked to work with inmates as part of a new “conviction integrity review unit” in Jacksonville.
Thibodeau will act independently. … She will only look for defendants that claim innocence, not just cases where prosecutors might have mishandled trials. She will only accept claims for felonies, not misdemeanors. She will also issue reports … that detail past mistakes.