SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP) — Attorney General Kwame Raoul is noncommittal about a proposal to create a statewide investigative unit to review claims of innocence by those convicted of crimes.

The Democrat said through a spokeswoman Tuesday that ensuring a conviction is correct by evaluating new evidence or circumstances “is the responsibility of every prosecutor.”

Private investigator Bill Clutter wrote Raoul to suggest a statewide “conviction integrity unit” to investigate innocence claims. Clutter helped create the Illinois Innocence Project which has worked to exonerate 12 convicted people since 2001.

The Cook County State’s Attorney’s office has a conviction integrity unit. Clutter says there should be a statewide team for those counties too small to support their own. He says a prosecutor’s job is to ensure justice but human nature is to be defensive of potential errors or omissions.