Cynthia R. Garza is the Special Fields Bureau Chief of the Dallas County Conviction Integrity Unit. She obtained her undergraduate degree in both Psychology and Sociology from Southern Methodist University and graduated from Southern Methodist University Dedman School of Law. Ms. Garza practiced trial and appellate criminal defense at the Dallas law firm of Sorrels, Udashen & Anton before joining the Dallas County District Attorney’s Office’s Appellate Division in 2008. She joined the Conviction Integrity Unit in January 2010 and has been involved in a significant percentage of the Unit’s exonerations. Ms. Garza was named a Rising Star in 2008 and 2009 by Texas Super Lawyers Magazine and was awarded the La Cima Latina Government Leader by the Greater Dallas Hispanic Chamber of Commerce in 2014. She has served on the Board of Directors for various bar associations, including the Dallas Hispanic Bar Association (DHBA) and Dallas Association of Young Lawyers (DAYL). She has also co-chaired committees with the Dallas Bar Association, DHBA, and DAYL. In addition to heading the Dallas Conviction Integrity Unit, Ms. Garza trains fellow prosecutors, defense attorneys, law enforcement agencies, and judges on actual innocence and wrongful convictions.