You got the wrong guy

Chapter Summary:

·       A study found that there were 416 people exonerated of murder from 1990-1991

·       Other countries have made attempts at ensuring that people are not wrongfully convicted or put to death. America has yet to follow suit.

·       When looking at our justice system one of the most troubling issues is when someone who is innocent actually pleads guilty due to fear of being found guilty by a jury and sentenced to an even harsher penalty.

·       The innocence project lists 5 main causes: 1. Eyewitness misidentification. 2. Confessions that is false. 3. Testimony from jail house snitches. 4. Junk science or misleading science that leads to a conviction. 5. Prosecutorial misconduct. 

·       The author then addresses each of the 5 individually and the last one which is prosecutorial misconduct is the one I find most troubling but at the same time fixable.

·       There are 26,520 employed in the 2,344 offices around the country

·       The author really talks in depth about the great amount of discretion prosecutors have and the fact that most of them have immunity from prosecutions.

·       The next section talks about ineffective counsel for those who cannot afford to pay an attorney.

·       In conclusion the author blames the lack of proper representation and wide prosecutorial discretion to be 2 of the main factors in wrongful convictions.

Reflection:

 While I agree with the 5 causes listed above, if I had to pick 2 main causes of wrongful convictions they would be the CSI affect and the lack of proper representation for the indigent. I base my opinion on what I have read and learned while at USI and from personal experience. My cousin was recently arrested and charged with driving a vehicle when his license is revoked for life (a C felony 2-8 years). I found it hard to believe that driving a vehicle with your license revoked for life was actually a C felony. So I paid to print off my cousins entire record. What I found amazed me. My cousin has a lengthy criminal record most offenses being minor traffic or liquor law violations but few being serious felonies in which he did serve a total of 1 year in prison. His number of offenses is not what I found interesting, what I found after reading the court briefs and the statements of lawyers on both sides is that my cousin never could afford an attorney and therefore, he was appointed a public defender.

            His most serious offense was driving under the influence resulting in bodily injury, possession of a controlled substance, and arson. All of these charges came at the same time.  While reading the story the prosecutor presented to the judge at the initial hearing I noticed that there had been a change in my cousin public defender. Flash forward to sum up this long story, I ended up counting 4 times in the process of this case in which my cousin was assigned a new public defender. Naturally there was no trial, he plead guilty to all of the original charges. There was no offer to reduce the charges if he agreed to plead guilty. It seems to me that the prosecutor got away with convictions on all these charges without having to do any work what so ever. My cousin sentence was significant and he also lost his license for life. Regardless of whether or not he was actually guilty of any or all of these charges, there was no attempt by his numerous public defenders to even try and defend him against said charges.

            The story above is a perfect example of one of the biggest reasons for wrongful convictions. Just recently I asked my cousin about this case and all the charges and he told me that he was drunk, he did crash his girlfriend’s car which injured her, but the drugs they found in the car were hers and he still maintains today that he had no idea she had drugs in the car. If what he says is true then he was wrongfully convicted of the possession of a controlled substance charge (which was a felony).  Had any of the numerous public defenders assigned to his case attempted to challenge this charge maybe the prosecutor would have dropped it or he would have been found innocent. Everyone deserves their day in court and to expect their attorney (appointed or paid for) to defend them to the best of their ability. In my cousins case this did not happen nor does it happen in so many other cases involving those who cannot afford an attorney. This is a serious problem and it troubles me deeply.