From the 2010 News Archive

Students to Dramatize Wrongful Incarceration on April 21

Join the University of Maryland School of Law for the premiere of The Trial and Incarceration of Mark Grant, a 20-minute play based on the essential facts of the case of Mark Grant, who has spent more than 25 years in prison after having been seemingly wrongfully convicted of murder. The play, written by and starring students from Michael Millemann and Robert Bowie’s Lawyers and Legal Systems and Their Social Context class, will be presented twice on April 21, at 5 and 5:45 p.m., in the Ceremonial Courtroom.

As part of the Law School’s LEAD Initiative, the play will explore professional responsibility and ethical issues raised by Mark Grant’s story. Last week, the Baltimore Sun featured Mark Grant’s case, noting the support of School of Law students and faculty, who have been working on the case for the past two years.
Read the Baltimore Sun story.

Students enrolled in the Appellate and Post-conviction Advocacy Clinic with Assistant Professor Renée Hutchins have submitted a clemency petition on behalf of Mr. Grant. Five years ago, a clemency petition filed by Maryland Law students and faculty helped to win freedom for another wrongfully convicted prisoner Walter Arvinger, whose sentence was commuted after 36 years in prison.

Last year, students presented a play based on the trial and incarceration of Arvinger, showing both the events leading to the false conviction and the moral and ethical issues students grappled with three decades later as they tried to prove Arvinger’s innocence. Similar to last year’s performance, the students who have written this year’s play have received professional theatrical advice from Adjunct Professor Elliott Rauh, managing director of Baltimore’s Single Carrot Theatre.

Posted by Carrie Oleynik

UM | About This Site | Site Map | Contact Us