...Wrongful conviction, often referred to as miscarriages of justice, can be defined as those who have been arrested on criminal charges, who have either pleaded guilty to the charges or have been found guilty, and, notwithstanding, their guilty plea or verdict, are actually innocent (Huff & Killias, 2010).While it may say like these situations are very rare, in fact there are many cases where innocent people are incarcerated, or even executed, because of errors in the criminal justice system. For example, as Dr. Michael Naughton, founder of the Innocence Project, which a non-profit advocacy group that works to free the wrongly convicted, said, “People think that miscarriages of justice are rare and exceptional . . . But every single day, people...
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...02/23/2024 Wrongful convictions affect everyone involved. According to the National Institute of Justice, being wrongfully convicted means that “the person convicted is factually innocent of the charges” (Wrongful Convictions, n.d.). They have been around since the beginning of the criminal justice system, and the numbers continue to grow. Eyewitness misidentification, false confessions, and flawed forensic evidence are the leading causes of wrongful convictions, which result in detrimental consequences for those involved. The purpose of this report is to analyze the main causes of wrongful convictions and to propose potential solutions. DISCUSSION OF FINDINGS Problem Defined Wrongful Convictions are when the person convicted of a crime is...
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...Wrongfully Convictions Introduction: Each year, many people that are innocent are dished out short or long term prison term for crimes that they did not commit. These innocent people have been “wrongfully convicted”. Sometimes these wrongfully convicted charges are unbeknownst to the judge and or jury; other times, they are just wrongfully convicted due to corrupt law enforcement officers. This corrupt issue is very wrong and should be done away with immediately, which is my reason my choosing this topic. In this research paper, I plan to find reasons for wrongful convictions, the actual number, statistics, of individuals that have been wrongful convicted, and those individuals who have stepped up to make a difference in this dilemma. Although there aren’t any statistics kept by the Criminal Justice Department on the number of crimes that were recorded as wrongful convictions, research has estimated about 5% of the cases that are tried annual result in a false conviction. Since 1989, 1,241 people have been wrongfully convicted and later cleared of all charges based on evidence that they were innocent, according to the National Registry of Exonerations, a project of the law schools at the University of Michigan and Northwestern University (Clark 2013). The Michigan Innocence Clinic was the first clinic of its kind to work on non-DNA exonerations. Their work has revealed particular circumstances far too often seen in cases of wrongful conviction. These cases show us how...
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...Knowing how wrongful convictions happens research have shown there are quite a lot of ways to fix the problem. A lot of studies have shown that recording interrogations to reduce false confessions which are usually used during the trail of the wrongful convictions. Some other ways to reduce wrongful conviction would be to have a guide in which possible red flags that lead to the officers and prosecutors believing they have the wrong person, better training for the police officers and the prosecutors. For example when it comes to using the “jailhouse snitch” that can be lying just to get a better deal for him self. Another way to reduce wrongful conviction is to after the inmate have been exonerated letting the inmate know that the prosecutor will be getting disciplined and just given “hush money” in sense now that it was proven they were innocent. To avoid wrongful convictions from happen eyewitness testimonies, false DNA evidence, and other obstacles need to be examined by an unbiased eye. When researching ways to prevent wrongful convictions all the articles had the same thing about recording the interrogations, and doing the open file discovery. I thought all...
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...Wrongful Convictions Author: Balko, Radley After carefully reading the article “Wrongful Convictions” by Radley Balko (Reason. Jul2011, Vol. 43 Issue 3, p20-33 14p.) I have learned how our technology has advanced greatly in the last 2 decades as far as DNA testing and Forensic Science is concerned. Though still suggests all possible mistakes and errors made in a wrongful conviction case. This article has also shed light on the ignorance and indolence of our government and all other parties involved in these wrongly convicted cases such as our law enforcement, members of the bar, judges, forensic analysts, and many more. As well as pointing out the trials and tribulations of the wrongly convicted from the first initial interrogation to the conviction and then on to what may or may not lead to their cases being overturned and those accused of being “guilty” proven innocent and being set free. Their main example used in this article pertaining to the wrongfully convicted cases in the United States was a man named Paul House. The first exoneration took place in 1989 thanks to the advancement of DNA testing. Since then 268 convicts have been exonerated and set free. On average most of those had already served 13 years in prison as well as waiting on death row. It has been found that 17 convicts that have already been sentenced to death were wrongfully convicted. Now since the onset of DNA testing in the year 2000 it has added great pressure for those awaiting the death penalty...
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...Wrongful Convictions A man who was caught in a crime scene at the wrong time, is now serving 25 years to life, for a crime he did not commit, this is an example of a wrongful conviction. Wrongful convictions occur when innocent defendants are found guilty in criminal trials, or when defendants feel forced to plead guilty to crimes they did not commit in order to avoid the death penalty or very long prison sentences. In some instances, the law runs into convictions before getting complete facts, which is very unfair in the criminal justice system. Also, in the United States about 10,000 people may be wrongfully convicted of serious crimes each year according to Ohio states. This shows that it’s a major issue that needs to be solved; therefore,...
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...public relies on the justice system to provide safety and to ensure that criminals are put in their place so justice can be served. However, there have been many cases where the justice system has failed to put the correct person in jail. Wrongful convictions occur when an innocent person is arrested and charged with a criminal act. “Two thirds of all wrongful convictions are related either to rape or assault” (Ramsey, 2007). The case of Guy Paul Morin is an ideal example of wrongful convictions. This paper will first address the case of Guy Paul Morin, showing where the justice system went wrong. Later, lead on to the ways this problem can be solved and remedies that should be available to people who have become a victim of wrongful convictions. The case of Guy Paul Morin occurred between the 1980’s and the 1990’s. “Morin was accused with the rape and murder of his eight year old neighbour, Christine Jessop, and was convicted in 1992 in Ontario ” (Kaufman, 2001). “He was charged due to the evidence of hair and fibre found on the body of the victim” (Denov & Campbell, 2005). This indicated that there was direct contact between the victim, Jessop, and Morin. This is where the whole situation takes a turn. The forensic scientists that were put to investigate made some mistakes that had a huge impact on the case. “They failed to report that the fibre and hair found on Jessop was contaminated” (Macfarlane, 2006). This now creates the possibility that there was no physical...
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...miscarriage of justice. Miscarriage of justice means the failure of a judicial system or court in the administration of justice, especially when an innocent is convicted in a crime (Dictionary.com, 2007). Miscarriage of justice is also known as wrongful conviction. If someone is wrongfully convicted, that person is punished for an offence he or she did not commit and the actual perpetrator of the crime goes free. As well, public confidence in the system declines when wrongful convictions are identified. There are several elements that cause a miscarriage of justice, such as non-disclosure of evidence by police or prosecution, confirmation bias on the part of investigators, fabrication of evidence, poor identification, and unreliable confessions due to police pressure or psychological instability. They are all considered unjust as they violate the principle of justice. The three major causes for wrongful conviction are false confession, eyewitness error, and official misconduct. When a defendant has confessed to committing a crime, the vast majority of police, prosecutors, and jurors see it as rock-solid evidence of guilt. Many of these involved children or suspects with mental illnesses or mental retardation. Even more cases involve adults with no history of mental illness or retardation who...
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...prison. The verdict of Hatchett's case relied heavily on the misconduct of Gerard Williams' sole eyewitness testimony which overlooked evidence that initially identified the true perpetrator (Innocence Project). Using the works of Loftus’s (2015) and Rattner’s (1983), I will examine how the primarily causes for cases of wrongful convictions consist of faulty eyewitness testimony and the exposure of the false memories. To begin, Loftus suggested that the identification of defendants from criminal cases were predominantly determined by witnesses (2015). In fact, studies have established that the possibility of misidentifying an individual tends to be increasingly high due to...
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...Leilani Stertz Jane Zunkel Writing 121 29 April 2013 Justice The word justice evokes passion in the people who speak it but what is Justice and where did it come from? Justice is a noun and the word has origins in Middle English, from the Anglo-French word justise, further in Latin justitia, from justus. The current definition according to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary is: 1(a) The maintenance or administration of what is just especially by the impartial adjustment of conflicting claims or the assignment of merited rewards or punishment. (b) Judge (c) the administration of law; especially the establishment or determination of rights according to the rules of Law or equity. 2 (a) the quality of being just, impartial, or fair (b) 1. The principal or ideal of just dealing or right action. 2. Conformity to this principal or ideal: righteousness. (c) The quality of conforming to law. 3. Conformity to truth, fact, or reason: correctness. Justice can only be satisfied through law, legislation, and impartial judgment. Without justice a society cannot survive. In modern society the very system who decides how to serve justice is the only system not ruled by it. (Merriam-Webster ) In 1215, a document giving birth to the English legal system, which grants rights to 'freemen' or non-serfs, was enacted. The Magna Carta limited the power of King John and provided legal securities only allowing prosecution through the 'Law of the land'. "No free man shall be seized or imprisoned, or...
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...[Type the company name] | What You Can Do With A Degree in Criminal Justice | Help Prevent Wrongful Convictions | | Shamone Salter | Kaplan University | 11/6/2014 | This paper which is a letter to my fellow criminal justice students will inform potential criminal justice graduates of what type of employment opportunities that are available to them after graduation that will aide in the effort of preventing American citizens from being wrongfully convicted. | As your Criminal Justice Club Vice President, I have been informed that many of you who are studying criminal justice have been question what you can do after graduation with a degree in criminal justice. Many of you think that the only possible jobs available for you are as corrections officers or police officers. However that is not true, you can become a forensic science technician, a police officer, a private detective, and a crime scene investigator and even a paralegal. More importantly, due to the recent discoveries of many people having been falsely arrested and convicted reinforces my belief that these field or should I say career paths are very important one’s that need to be filled by my fellow graduates recent graduates who have I know have the drive and want to become successful individuals within the criminal justice field. Did you know that between 1972 and 2007 nearly one hundred and twenty inmates have been released from prison because it was found that they had been wrongfully...
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...In Unites States, Texas has been known as the number one state for wrongful conviction. In June 26, 2013 a woman named Kimberly McCarthy was drugged from her food. She was the 500th person to be executed after 1982, what a tragedy. Even after she was proven to be innocent, there was no stop to her death. Another innocent was “murdered”. This was a pity way of trying to force a crime on someone, who never committed it. Even though people protested, her death was taken upon action. Texas leads the nation in wrongful conviction because, our state government is weak. If we want to execute someone we should think about it before reacting. If we don’t want to do that, then basically we are making an illiterate move. Governor Rick Perry was applauded for overseeing many executions, and he stated, “[kill] one of our citizens-you will face the ultimate justice in Texas.” Is that justice death? Even though in California they had the largest death row population of 727 people, no one was executed. Each case was handled with caution, rather than being sensitively taken like it’s done in Texas. Some important steps that states can take to ensure fair representation in court, is to reexamine their laws. Also if someone is proven innocent they should look at the case one more time and let them go is point less keeping innocent people in jail for many years. Texas has strict policy and I know not everyone is right all the time but, if a same mistake done over and over again then one...
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...The case of William Mullins-Johnson is a tragedy, because it was totally preventable. It is an example of a person who has had too much pride and arrogance in himself, and in doing so caused the destruction of several lives and families. The wrongful conviction of Mullins-Johnson rests, almost totally, in the hands of Charles Smith, the former pathologist whose shoddy work was really exposed through this case. Mullins-Johnson was treated terribly by the courts, who completely turned on him in his time of need, they placed too much value on the work Smith, without taking into consequence if the evidence was valid. While it is important to maintain a rigorous criminal justice system in any country, it is also imperative that the work of officials...
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...Times article. The State of Florida uses outdated and inhumane procedures when administering lethal injections. They do so without a doctor present to insure that the proper steps are taken to prevent what happened to Angel Diaz from happening again. The excuse that it is hard to find doctors that are willing to violate their ethics is inexcusable. The are more issues at hand then just the correct administration of capital punishment. Many of the people executed in this country are innocent. The legal system direly needs to be reworked. There should be protections in place to protect innocent people from being murdered by the courts. The amount of legal red-tape in the appeals process is excruciatingly high. The case of Leo Jones is one example. On May 23, 1981 patrolman Thomas Szafranski was shot by high-powered 30-30 rifle while he was stopped at a traffic light. Leo Jones who lived in apartment near by was later arrested (Mills, 2008). That night he was beaten until he confessed to the murder (Mills, 2008). Retired police officer Cleveland Smith testified that officer Officer Lynwood Mundy had bragged about beating Jones (Mills, 2008). Jones was taken to the hospital after the arrest for injuries received during the beating. During the appeals process 12 witnesses were brought forward who testified that another man had confessed to the crime to them or that they saw another man leaving the scene with a rifle. Despite the evidence...
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...death row. However, capital convictions there are frequently reversed on appeal and later reduced to life sentences because the county did not provide adequate representation to many defendants. According to a 2011 study by the Philadelphia Inquirer, 69 Philadelphia death penalty cases have been reversed or sent back by state or federal courts after findings that the defense attorney’s inadequate performance deprived the defendant of a fair trial. When these cases were retried, almost all of the defendants received a sentence less than death, and some were acquitted altogether. Maricopa County in Arizona ranks fourth among counties in the country...
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