Arnold & Porter and the Innocence Project Secure Exoneration of Wrongfully Convicted Man

Arnold & Porter and its co-counsel the Innocence Project recently secured the exoneration of their client, Marvin Grimm, after 45 years of wrongful incarceration when the Virginia Court of Appeals granted Grimm’s Petition for Writ of Actual Innocence on June 18, 2024.

“Working to exonerate Marvin was truly a team effort involving not only our Arnold & Porter team, but also multiple attorneys over the years from the Innocence Project, and could never have been accomplished without the unwavering support of Marvin’s sisters and entire family,” said Arnold & Porter partner Jeffrey Horowitz.

In 1975, Grimm was coerced into falsely confessing to sexual assault and murder. In 2017, Arnold & Porter and the Innocence Project submitted a clemency petition before the Governor of Virginia seeking exoneration of Grimm. Arnold & Porter and the Innocence Project continued to investigate and develop additional evidence demonstrating Grimm’s innocence. As a result of that work, Grimm was granted parole in November 2019 and subsequently released with restrictions in April 2020. In April 2023, the team submitted a Petition for Writ of Actual Innocence before the Virginia Court of Appeals, seeking to vacate Grimm’s murder conviction based on newly discovered DNA and non-biological evidence, with the Virginia Office of the Attorney General joining the petition.

The work of Arnold & Porter and the Innocence Project was featured in The New York Times article, “Virginia Exonerates Man Who Spent 45 Years in Prison for Death of 3-Year-Old,” which details Grimm’s case and the work that was done on his behalf.

The Arnold & Porter team included partner Jeffrey Horowitz, senior attorney Robert Grass, senior associate Angelique Ciliberti, associate Eliza Hopkins, and retired partner Glenn Pogust.

Read The New York Times article (subscription required).