From suntimes.com:
On his first day in office after being sworn in, new Lake County State’s Attorney
Mike Nerheim
announced the members he is appointing to an independent Case Review Panel in Lake County who will be authorized to review criminal cases where there is a question about the wrongful conviction of the innocent, identify the causes of wrongful convictions, and recommend protocols for investigating and prosecuting criminal cases going forward.
“I have invited a talented group of legal professionals to tackle this important issue who bring a balance of experience including from outside of Lake County and who have been vetted for independence,” Nerheim said Monday. “This voluntary Case Review Panel will provide a fresh, unbiased perspective at no additional cost to taxpayers.”
The panel is comprised of individuals with a diverse background of experience, including from outside of Lake County, who will look at cases in question and bring a fresh perspective, he said, adding the panel is being formed in response to recent exonerations and the public’s declining trust in the justice system in Lake County.
Members of the all-volunteer Case Review Panel will be sworn in as special assistant state’s attorneys and will take an oath of office with the protections and liabilities that come along with it, including the duty of confidentiality. The panel will be independent of the Lake County State’s Attorney’s Office and its staff, and will report its recommendations directly to Nerheim.
He said the Case Review Panel will meet quarterly or more often as needed, especially initially as work gets underway. The primary goal of the panel is to develop potential policies and procedures to reduce the possibility of conviction of the innocent in Lake County. The model is based on a similar program in place in North Carolina.
“It is my hope that based on the future success of our work in Lake County, that this will be the impetus to institute similar solutions across Illinois,” said Nerheim.
Wrongful Convictions Blog 
Reblogged this on JUSTICE FOR RAYMOND and commented:
Exoneration of the innocent is important – this step to appoint an independent panel to review criminal cases is a good first step as long as this panel includes provate citizens as well as the elected political players.
I beleive it is also necessary to form an independent panel of oversight to the coroner and medical examiner offices to examine cases that are indispute, or where a suspicious death has never been investigated.
Reblogged this on Upside Down.