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Prosecutor, Law School Get Grant For New Look at Old Cases

DETROIT (AP) — The Wayne County Prosecutor's Office and a law school are getting $451,000 from the federal government to take a fresh look at cases that might have led to wrongful convictions.

The grant from the U.S. Justice Department will be used to determine if DNA testing might produce new evidence. The Innocence Project at Western Michigan University-Cooley Law School says it's reviewing 135 cases in Wayne County.

The prosecutor's office and Cooley Law School say forensic science has "undergone tremendous changes over the years and offers the ability to both exonerate and convict."

Valerie Newman, who as an appellate lawyer had worked to exonerate the wrongly convicted, now runs Wayne County's conviction integrity unit. She says her group's work will be enhanced by the grant.

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