Digital Innocence Initiative Leadership
Practitioner Leadership Grounded in Defense Experience
The Digital Innocence Initiative (DII) is led by practitioners with experience across criminal-defense investigation, digital forensics, litigation, public-defense training, technical quality, and post-conviction review.
Each leader brings a different professional perspective to the same objective:
Prevent and overturn wrongful convictions by making digital-evidence readiness practical and usable for the defense.
Learn About the Digital Innocence Initiative
Mike Udvardy
Founder and Director
Michael “Mike” Udvardy is a board-certified criminal defense investigator, cold-case specialist, and digital-evidence strategist whose work spans complex pretrial, appellate, cold-case, and post-conviction investigations.
His investigative work includes the Michael Skakel post-conviction investigation, work contributing to the exoneration of Vernon Horn, and the historical telephone-record investigation in Grant v. Commissioner of Correction.
Mike’s casework and collaboration with public defenders led to the development of DII’s digital-evidence readiness approach and the National Digital Evidence Readiness Framework for Public Defense.
He leads DII’s Framework development, public-defense partnerships, post-conviction initiatives, and broader national implementation.
Read Mike Udvardy’s Bio and DII Origin
James Oulundsen, EnCE, CCME
Co-Founder and Digital Forensics Advisor
James Oulundsen is a criminal defense investigator and certified digital-forensic examiner whose DII role focuses on forensic examination, interpretation, and independent review of digital evidence.
Jim began working with Mike through IRIS and contributed technical knowledge and case experience to DII’s early public-defense training and educational resources.
Within DII, he provides technical guidance on mobile-device and computer evidence, examiner documentation, underlying forensic data, recovery capabilities, and the limitations of forensic methods.
His role helps keep DII’s readiness work connected to what forensic examination can—and cannot—reliably establish.
William H. Paetzold, Esq.
Co-Founder and Legal Advisor
William H. Paetzold is a criminal defense attorney with more than three decades of experience. Before becoming an attorney, he worked for six years as a criminalist with the Connecticut State Police Forensic Science Laboratory.
Since his admission to the bar in 1990, William has handled complex criminal matters in state and federal courts, tried more than 40 criminal cases to verdict, and argued before the Connecticut Supreme Court, Connecticut Appellate Court, and United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.
William brings the legal and trial perspective to DII, connecting digital-evidence readiness with forensic science, discovery, expert testimony, admissibility, litigation strategy, and post-conviction claims.
George Shaw, CCO, CCPA
Technical and Quality Advisor
George Shaw is a criminal defense investigator and digital-forensic professional whose DII role focuses on technical recovery, device recovery, historical location evidence, and forensic quality practices.
His experience includes mobile-device repair and recovery, microsoldering, historical cell-site and radio-frequency analysis, tool validation, documented procedures, and quality control.
His perspective is especially relevant in cases involving devices previously considered locked, damaged, unsupported, or inaccessible, where newer repair or forensic methods may create another path to examination.
Andres Virgin
Training Director and Public Defense Advisor
Andres Virgin is a public-defense investigator and digital-evidence trainer whose DII role focuses on practical implementation and training within public defender offices.
He began his criminal-defense work with Mike Udvardy at IRIS, later worked within the Connecticut public defender system, and now serves with the Public Defender Service for the District of Columbia.
Andres brings direct experience applying investigative and digital-evidence principles within the staffing, workload, and resource realities of public defense.
Within DII, he helps translate digital-evidence readiness into practical training and workflows attorneys and investigators can use in everyday casework.
How the Leadership Team Works Together
DII’s leadership is intentionally multidisciplinary. Digital-evidence readiness requires investigative, forensic, legal, technical-quality, and public-defense perspectives working together rather than in isolation.
Those perspectives come together across:
- Framework development and research
- Digital Evidence Toolbox
- DERU implementation
- Public-defense training
- Post-conviction review
Early Curriculum Development
DII also recognizes the public-defense professionals who contributed experience, feedback, and practical insight to its early training and resources.
Special recognition is given to Chief Investigator Ellen Knight of the Connecticut Division of Public Defender Services, whose curriculum-development work and collaboration helped shape DII’s early public-defense training.
Explore DII’s Work
Learn more about DII’s Framework, case-level resources, and public defender implementation pathway.
Explore the Framework and Read the Paper