When Ropes & Gray took on George Perrot’s case, it seemed like a good opportunity for DNA exoneration. That is, until the firm found the DNA evidence was unusable.

Perrot had been convicted for a break-in and assault of an elderly woman that took place in the mid-1980s. Prosecutors had used forensic hair and blood analysis to tie him to the scene of the crime, but Ropes & Gray expected newer DNA analysis technology would show Perrot was innocent.