Convicted But Innocent: False Positives and the Criminal Justice Process (From Controversial Issues in Crime and Justice, P 130-144, 1988, Joseph E Scott and Travis Hirschi, eds. -- See NCJ-110235)

• NCJ Number: 110242
• Author(s): C R Huff; A Rattner
• Date Published: 1988
• Length: 15 pages
• Sale Source: Sage Publications, Inc
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

The problem of wrongful conviction should be addressed by several policy reforms, because it affects all citizens in that it both injures the innocent victims and simultaneously exposes society to increased risk.

Abstract

Data from a survey of 229 criminal justice officials indicate that wrongful convictions constitute less than 1 percent of all felony convictions. Even if the error rate were 1 in 200, a total of 6,000 innocent citizens would have been convicted in 1981. Sources of wrongful convictions are eyewitness errors, unethical police or prosecutors, community pressure for convictions, knowledge of the defendant's past criminal record, false accusations, plea bargaining, and inadequacy of counsel. Policy reforms that would reduce the number of wrongful convictions and compensate their innocent victims include financial compensation, determination by a judge or jury of the adequacy of eyewitness identification offered as the sole evidence, prompt investigation of eyewitness and victim reports, conduct of all identification procedures in the presence of an attorney, and granting of new trials where reasonable concern about errors exist. Postconviction appeals by reason of innocence or on the basis of prejudicial error, stronger sanctions against unethical practices by police and prosecutors, and training bank tellers and others at risk about how to report crimes are also recommended. 20 references.