Justice Prevails as ND Law’s Exoneration Justice Clinic Helps Exonerate Anthony Bedolla After 14-Year Wrongful Conviction
Anthony Bedolla, a Mexican national and client of Notre Dame Law School’s Exoneration Justice Clinic (EJC), was exonerated this week after spending 14 years in prison for crimes he did not commit. In February 2010, following a bench trial, he was convicted of a murder and related drug offense that occurred in a parking lot outside of an Indianapolis nightclub. He was sentenced to 45 years in prison. The Marion County Superior Court vacated his convictions this week after new evidence cleared him of the crimes.
The EJC investigated this case in collaboration with the Marion County Prosecutor’s Office (MCPO) Conviction Integrity Unit (CIU) for almost two years. The MCPO Conviction Integrity Unit, the only CIU in Indiana, was established in 2021. This is the first collaboration between the EJC and the MCPO’s CIU.
“Through our joint collaborative efforts, we have addressed, confronted, and corrected a tragic miscarriage of justice,” said Professor Jimmy Gurulé, founder and director of Notre Dame Law School’s Exoneration Justice Clinic. “In wrongful conviction cases, not only is an innocent person convicted and deprived of his freedom for a crime that he did not commit, but the real killer remains at large and is not held accountable. So, really, it’s a double tragedy and injustice to society.”
Gurulé stated that the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department engaged in gross police misconduct by withholding substantial exculpatory evidence of an alternative suspect, the real killer. The department also withheld exculpatory evidence that would have seriously undermined the credibility of the critical prosecution witness in the case. The lead detective also testified falsely at trial and during a deposition, which led to Mr. Bedolla’s wrongful conviction.
“This was a violation of Bedolla’s constitutional rights,” said Gurulé. “Our client was deprived of the fundamental right to a fair trial because the police knowingly withheld material exculpatory evidence.”
On Tuesday, the Marion County Superior Court granted a written motion filed by the State to dismiss the pending criminal charges against Bedolla with prejudice, officially exonerating Mr. Bedolla. He was released from prison on Thursday.
Elliot Slosar, a partner with Loevy and Loevy, a prestigious civil rights law firm in Chicago, and an invaluable member of the EJC team, did an outstanding job leading the investigation and litigation of Bedolla’s wrongful conviction.
“Over the past few years, we were blessed with an incredible opportunity to collaborate with Jessica Cicchini and the Conviction Integrity Unit team at the Marion County Prosecutor’s Office. Instead of the typical adversarial process, our teams jointly conducted an intense investigation designed to unravel the truth. That investigation ultimately allowed us to correct the ultimate injustice: Anthony’s wrongful conviction. We will forever be grateful for the tireless efforts of the Marion County Prosecutor’s Office. Without their assistance, Anthony would still be wrongfully imprisoned in a system that often values finality over truth,” said Slosar.
The post-conviction case was initially litigated by Cynthia Carter, an Indianapolis lawyer, who brought the case to the attention of the EJC for further investigation and litigation.
Several EJC students worked on the Bedolla case, including Rachel Schneider ‘23 J.D. and Adam Miller, a third-year law student. Miller has been involved in this case even before he became a student at Notre Dame Law School. He has assisted in several exonerations through his work at the Exoneration Project, Innocence Project New Orleans, and Notre Dame Law School’s Exoneration Justice Clinic, but the case of Anthony Bedolla was Miller’s first to see through from beginning to end.
“Indiana failed Mr. Bedolla over and over, and stole 14 irretrievable years. We owe it to Anthony — and to all who are wrongfully convicted — to do better,” said Miller. “I can’t think of anything I am more proud of than the quality of legal representation provided to Mr. Bedolla by the Exoneration Justice Clinic.”
Miller added, “This moment took years. Today we celebrate that he is free, vindicated, and reunited with his family.”
Gurulé also emphasized that this case has provided students at the EJC with an invaluable experiential learning opportunity. “This case showed the students the power of the law and how their legal education and training can be transformed in a way that has a dramatic and positive impact on someone’s life. This is a compelling example of using those legal skills to be a positive force for good in society,” said Gurulé.
Mexican nationals are particularly vulnerable to being wrongfully convicted. To address this problem, the EJC has recently been selected by the Mexican government to implement the “Program for the Defense of Mexican Nationals in Criminal Matters in the United States” to provide legal assistance to Mexican nationals claiming that they were wrongfully arrested or convicted of a crime they did not commit. The PDM assisted in the final stages of the case and will assist with helping Bedolla reintegrate into society.
Learn more about Notre Dame Law School’s Exoneration Justice Clinic at exoneration.nd.edu.