The George "Woody" Clarke Conviction and Sentence Review Unit (CASRU)

The San Diego County District Attorney’s Office is committed to ensuring the integrity of convictions and recommending re-sentencing when it is in the interest of justice. Our Conviction and Sentence Review Unit (CASRU) examines post-conviction claims of innocence where credible and verifiable evidence of innocence exists, or new technologies exist to test or retest remaining evidence. CASRU also takes a second look at sentences to determine whether a sentence currently being served should be reduced. To that end, we follow the highest standard of professional integrity and work collaboratively with our justice partners and innocence advocates. We are also partnering with community service providers to help ensure inmates who re-enter the community are provided the services and support needed for success.

CONVICTION REVIEW

CASRU accepts all applications capable of investigation and review, which, if substantiated, would result in a finding of a wrongful conviction. CASRU will review convictions which were obtained in a jury trial, bench (non-jury) trial, or part of a knowing and voluntary guilty plea. We also consider cases involving any felony, not just serious or violent felonies.

CASRU investigations are not limited to the issues raised by the application. We will consider all relevant issues uncovered during an investigation even if such issues were not raised during the initial prosecution or in a later appellate review.

If after consideration of the evidence originally known at the time of conviction and all additional information learned after conviction review, the District Attorney no longer has confidence in the integrity of a conviction, the District Attorney will take whatever action is reasonably necessary to achieve justice, including, but not limited to, exoneration.

Requirements

Individuals making a claim of innocence must meet the following criteria:

  1. The conviction must have occurred in San Diego County Superior Court;
  2. The conviction may be for any felony;
  3. The application must be based on credible and verifiable evidence of innocence;
  4. Applicant must agree to fully cooperate with the District Attorney’s Office, which includes providing disclosure of all information relevant to the case.

Application Information

Applicants or their representative must complete the form below in order to make a conviction review request (you may use additional pages if needed):

You may alternatively use this fillable PDF, save it to your pc and and send it as an attachment in an email.

Please send applications for Conviction Review to:

San Diego County District Attorney’s Office
Special Operations Division
Conviction and Sentence Review Unit
Attn: Conviction Review
330 W. Broadway, Suite 1020
San Diego, CA 92101
Fax (619) 685-6689
CASRU@sdcda.org

DISTRICT ATTORNEY INITIATED SENTENCE REVIEW

California Penal Code section 1172.1 gives District Attorneys the authority to recommend that a court recall and resentence criminal defendants. The law recognizes an inmate may have served sufficient time and may be adequately rehabilitated and, therefore, ready for a safe and law-abiding reentry.

The District Attorney’s Office prioritizes victims’ rights and community safety and will consider these critical areas in every potential resentencing. In appropriate cases, the District Attorney will recommend a recall and resentencing in the interests of justice.

Individuals interested in sentencing review by the District Attorney’s Office must meet the following criteria:

  • The conviction must have occurred in San Diego County Superior Court;
  • The Applicant was convicted of a felony;
  • The Applicant is currently incarcerated;
  • The Applicant was not convicted of a special circumstance (Penal Code § 190.2) and sentenced to life without the possibility of parole. Special circumstances cannot be dismissed by law.

If an Applicant meets the above criteria, they must fill out the application questionnaire and the three waiver forms below.

In identifying, investigating, and recommending individuals for recall and resentencing, the District Attorney’s Office will consider postconviction factors, including, but not limited to, the disciplinary record and record of rehabilitation of the defendant while incarcerated, evidence that reflects whether age, time served, and diminished physical condition, if any, have reduced the defendant's risk for future violence, and evidence that reflects that circumstances have changed since the original sentencing so that continued incarceration is no longer in the interest of justice.

The District Attorney’s Office will consider if the defendant has experienced psychological, physical, or childhood trauma, including, but not limited to, abuse, neglect, exploitation, or sexual violence, if the defendant was a victim of intimate partner violence or human trafficking prior to or at the time of the commission of the offense, or if the defendant is a youth or was a youth as defined under subdivision (b) of Section 1016.7 at the time of the commission of the offense, and whether those circumstances were a contributing factor in the commission of the offense.

Where the District Attorney’s Office determines, based on a totality of the circumstances, that an inmate has served sufficient time in custody, is adequately rehabilitated and, therefore, ready for a safe and law-abiding reentry, a recommendation will be made to the court for recall and resentencing. If the court agrees, it will resentence an inmate to a term less than and no greater than the initial sentence.

Application Information

The San Diego County District Attorney’s Office welcomes applications for sentencing review and is committed to reviewing these requests thoroughly and fairly Because the decision to recommend resentencing is discretionary, applicants are encouraged to provide as much accurate information as possible.

If an applicant for sentencing review claims their conviction was deficient due to new evidence of actual innocence or wrongful conviction, the applicant must instead file a Conviction Review application.

Additional information and instructions are contained within the questionnaire.

  1. QUESTIONNAIRE
  2. Form CDCR 7385 (medical records)
  3. Form CDCR 7385 (psychiatric notes)
  4. Central File Authorization Waiver

Please send applications for Sentencing Review to:

San Diego County District Attorney’s Office
Special Operations Division
Conviction and Sentence Review Unit
Attn: PC 1172.1
330 W. Broadway, Suite 1020
San Diego, CA 92101
Fax (619) 685-6689
CASRU@sdcda.org