Dan Fletcher of Time writes about a case reported here earlier this week:
Northwestern University is dealing with a class project that may have become too successful. From 2003 to 2006, students at the university’s Medill School of Journalism investigated the evidence surrounding the murder conviction of Anthony McKinney, who was sentenced to life in prison for the 1978 murder of a security guard outside of Chicago. They eventually posted their findings online, including key witnesses recanting their statements during the trial, allegations of police intimidation and two potential suspects named by a man who says he was present during the murder. In response to the student investigation, the state attorney’s office is revisiting the McKinney case.
But producing a persuasive argument for reopening the case is not the only result of the Medill project. The office of Cook County State’s Attorney Anita Alvarez has subpoenaed a broad range of materials from Northwestern, from off-the-record interview notes and student memos to class grades and syllabi for the school’s Investigative Journalism class, which worked on the project.
Read more on Time.