Center on Wrongful Convictions of Youth

The Center on Wrongful Convictions of Youth (CWCY) at Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law in Chicago is the only organization in the world exclusively dedicated to representing youth who were convicted of crimes they did not commit. Founded in 2009 as a sister project of the acclaimed Center on Wrongful Convictions, the CWCY has contributed to the exoneration of twelve individuals nationwide and secured the release of five additional individuals. The CWCY has also developed sought-after expertise about false confessions that has enabled us to conduct high-impact educational outreach to law enforcement officers, prosecutors, judges, and defenders around the country – as well as to the general public – in order to reduce the likelihood that children and teenagers will falsely confess. The CWCY’s work in this regard has most recently been featured on the hit Netflix series Making a Murderer, which tells the story of our client Brendan Dassey and features commentary by our founder Steven Drizin and co-director Laura Nirider. We now seek grant assistance to fund one of the CWCY’s two current full-time attorney positions. Such support is vital if we are to maintain our capacity and avoid downsizing at a time when demand for our work is skyrocketing and the impact of our work is being felt around the country.