Access Restricted to Northwestern Law CommunitySteven Drizin
Associate Director, Bluhm Legal Clinic
Director, Center on Wrongful Convictions
Phone: (312) 503-6608
E-mail: s-drizin@law.northwestern.edu
Curriculum Vitae (pdf)
Related Links: Blog
Steven Drizin is a Clinical Professor at Northwestern Law School where he has been on the faculty since 1991. He is also the Assistant Director of the Bluhm Legal Clinic, and since March 2004, has been serving as the Legal Director of the Clinic's renowned Center on Wrongful Convictions. At the Center, Professor Drizin's research interests involve the study of false confessions and his policy work focuses on supporting efforts around the country to require law enforcement agencies to electronically record custodial interrogations. He also writes a blog on the subject of false confessions and police interrogations and has lectured and published widely on these topics.
Prior to joining the Center on Wrongful Convictions, Drizin was the Supervising Attorney at the Clinic's Children and Family Justice Center where he built a reputation as a national expert on juvenile justice related issues. He was a leader in the successful effort to outlaw the juvenile death penalty and co-wrote an amicus brief in Roper v. Simmons, the United States Supreme Court's decision striking down the juvenile death penalty as unconstitutional. In August 2005, Drizin received the American Bar Association's Livingston Hall Award for outstanding dedication and advocacy in the juvenile justice field.
Drizin received his B.A. with Honors from Haverford College in 1983 and his J.D. from Northwestern University School of Law in 1986.
AREAS OF EXPERTISE
- Criminal Law
- Criminal Procedure
- Wrongful Convictions
- Juvenile Justice
- Clinical Teaching
COURSES
PUBLICATIONS
Recent Publications
- Police Interrogation of Youth in The Mental Health Needs of Young Offenders, 2007
- Are Juvenile Courts A Breeding Ground for Wrongful Convictions?, NORTHERN KENTUCKY LAW REVIEW , 2007
- Bringing Reliability Back In: False Confessions and Legal Safeguards in the Twenty-First Century , WISCONSIN LAW REVIEW , 2006
- Heeding the Lessons of History: The Need for Mandatory Recording of Police Interrogations to Accurately Assess the Reliability and Voluntariness of Confessions, DRAKE LAW REVIEW, 2004
- Defending a False or Coerced Confession Case: What Do You Need to Know to Represent Your Clients Effectively?, WISCONSIN DEFENDER, 2004
EDUCATION
- BA, Haverford College
- JD, Northwestern University
RECENT CONSULTING ACTIVITIES
- Expert Witness, Office of the Public Defender Service in Washington, D.C.
