Conference Looks at Wrongful Convictions
Nick Schimmer/Muleskinner
Issue date: 2/22/07 Section: News
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For years, organizations have been attempting to prove the innocence of individuals on death row in an effort to battle faulty legal methods in the criminal justice system.
Since the implementation of DNA testing, 123 individuals have been released from death row, determined to be innocent of crimes a jury of peers had condemned them to die for.
As part of Central's "Miscarriages of Justice" conference, Sean O'Brien, executive director of the Public Interest Litigation Clinic in Kansas City, Mo., discussed the impact of DNA testing in legal cases.
In a session titled: "Presumed Guilty: Innocence and the Death Penalty," O'Brien examined the process to exonerate individuals from death row and the benefits DNA testing can have.
"DNA has changed the way lawyers approach the criminal justice process," O'Brien said.
The use of informants or snitches, O'Brien said, can lead to skewed versions of the truth that law enforcement may use to ensure conviction.
"There is an unholy alliance that can form between law enforcement and a person looking to solve a big crime," O'Brien said.
With many snitches deriving from the prison system and the individuals looking for reduced sentences, the validity of the information comes into question.
Other factors listed by O'Brien that play into police misconduct include: suppression of evidence, fabrication of evidence and coerced confession.
O'Brien said innocent individuals are not likely to willingly give a confession for a crime they did not commit.
"Absent of physical torture, a person will not confess to a crime they did not commit," O'Brien said.
Prosecutorial misconduct provides a wrinkle that may have a greater impact on the fate of the accused. A large influx of inexperienced lawyers can lead to a series of false statements and improper closing arguments to mislead a jury.
O'Brien said plea bargaining, an agreement between the accused and the prosecution for a lesser sentence to ensure a conviction protects the guilty while hurting the innocent.
Since the implementation of DNA testing, 123 individuals have been released from death row, determined to be innocent of crimes a jury of peers had condemned them to die for.
As part of Central's "Miscarriages of Justice" conference, Sean O'Brien, executive director of the Public Interest Litigation Clinic in Kansas City, Mo., discussed the impact of DNA testing in legal cases.
In a session titled: "Presumed Guilty: Innocence and the Death Penalty," O'Brien examined the process to exonerate individuals from death row and the benefits DNA testing can have.
"DNA has changed the way lawyers approach the criminal justice process," O'Brien said.
The use of informants or snitches, O'Brien said, can lead to skewed versions of the truth that law enforcement may use to ensure conviction.
"There is an unholy alliance that can form between law enforcement and a person looking to solve a big crime," O'Brien said.
With many snitches deriving from the prison system and the individuals looking for reduced sentences, the validity of the information comes into question.
Other factors listed by O'Brien that play into police misconduct include: suppression of evidence, fabrication of evidence and coerced confession.
O'Brien said innocent individuals are not likely to willingly give a confession for a crime they did not commit.
"Absent of physical torture, a person will not confess to a crime they did not commit," O'Brien said.
Prosecutorial misconduct provides a wrinkle that may have a greater impact on the fate of the accused. A large influx of inexperienced lawyers can lead to a series of false statements and improper closing arguments to mislead a jury.
O'Brien said plea bargaining, an agreement between the accused and the prosecution for a lesser sentence to ensure a conviction protects the guilty while hurting the innocent.
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