A proposed bill would compensate wrongfully convicted people in Kansas $80,000 for each year served in prison and give them an additional $1 million if they were on death row.
The bill, if signed into law, would make Kansas one of the most generous states for exonerated people. The state currently doesn't have a law for wrongful conviction compensation.
If an exonerated person wants to qualify for compensation, a claim would need to be filed within two years of being released in order to prove wrongful conviction under state law. Defendants who pleaded guilty or no contest to the crime are exempt from qualification.
The nonprofit Innocence Project says that exemption should be removed.
The Senate Judiciary Committee is expected to discuss the bill Tuesday.
