JEFFERSON COUNTY, Colo. — Some prisoners in Colorado are getting a second chance because of a new unit reviewing old cases. The Conviction Integrity Unit within the Jefferson County District Attorney's Office is trying to make sure a sentence of the past makes sense today.
District Attorney Alexis King was elected in November and took office in January. Soon after she started the job, the Conviction Integrity Unit was formed. Work began almost within days of being in office.
Other Conviction Integrity Units in Colorado focus on claims of innocence when a person says they were wrongfully convicted. Jefferson County is doing that as well but their unit will also review past convictions for equity.
Jennifer Kilpatrick is leading the effort in Jefferson County.
"We know across the board and for several decades, people were sentenced to very long periods of incarceration that no longer remain necessary," she said.
Kilpatrick said there have been requests from lawyers, the Department of Corrections and even law enforcement to review the cases of more than 40 inmates.
John Eastman was the first case the unit reviewed.
"We successfully petitioned the court to reduce [Eastman's] sentence from 24 years to 12 years," Kilpatrick said.
According to Kilpatrick, Eastman cashed a check for $163 that was not his. He was found to be a habitual criminal because he had a lengthy criminal history.
Eastman was sentenced to a mandatory 24 years behind bars in 2015.
"Mr. Eastman through an attorney petitioned the court to have that case reviewed in light of a case that came out of the Supreme Court a couple years ago and we conceded that petition and worked with defense to find a resolution," Kilpatrick said.
Eastman is no longer in prison. He was paroled to Community Corrections. Kilaptrick said he's doing well and he found a job.
"Mr. Eastman was in prison for six years, which cost taxpayers almost $1 million," she said.
When a recommendation is made to Jefferson County's unit, the team will see if the prisoner has rehabilitated and whether there's a risk to letting them out early.
"Individuals who are over the age of 50 and then onto 60 and 70, essentially age out crime," she said. "So these sentences no longer remain necessary."
By reducing that sentence, Kilaptrick believes it benefits the inmate and the community. Her goal is to help people who have been treated unfairly and make it right.
The Conviction Integrity Unit has also supported multiple clemency petitions, including Sidney Cooley's.
Cooley was sentenced to a total of 64 years at the age of 22 for a series of daytime burglaries. His attorney, Gail Johnson, said Jefferson County DA King has show leadership by starting a unit that includes taking a second look at excessive prison sentences.
"My client Sidney Cooley’s case is a prime example of why second looks at long prison sentences make sense and are good public policy," said Johnson. "There was significant sympathetic information about his background that was not discovered or presented at the time he was originally sentenced. Now, more than 16 years later, Mr. Cooley has fully addressed the problems that led him to commit his nonviolent burglary crimes."
Cooley has sent a written submission to Governor Jared Polis. His request remains pending.
"He has demonstrated through good behavior, hard work, and the extraordinary act of saving another person’s life in prison that he is rehabilitated and ready to be released," Johnson said.
The district attorney's office will reach out to the victims of the crimes to see if they oppose or support a sentence reduction. The unit is also reviewing cases where the inmate is serving life without parole for felony murder.
"Felony murder was recently made a second-degree murder versus a first-degree murder which carries life without parole," she said. "So Miss King has allowed us to review those cases so that individuals can potentially receive relief because they would be sentenced to life today."
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