As we finish out the year with the fourth quarter wrongful conviction roundup, I want to highlight the cause-effect relationship of many of the common themes discussed in this blog. The fourth quarter wrongful convictions and exonerations illustrate the tragic, real world effects of prosecutorial misconduct, police misconduct, false confessions, and flawed eyewitness identifications. The… Read More
The prosecutor is one of the most powerful actors in the criminal justice system. Should the cop who gunned down that black child for no reason and then lied about it in his police reports be prosecuted for murder? It’s the prosecutor’s decision. The number of women in prison jumped 646% between 1980 and… Read More
There are rules of fair play in criminal cases, and one of the most important ones is: the prosecutors must give the defense any evidence that is favorable to the person accused and material to the question of whether or not that person is guilty. In other words, it is cheating for prosecutors to hide… Read More
It’s 2015, and those of you who are not criminal trial attorneys might be shocked and offended to learn just how frequently and intentionally prosecutors in some parts of the country exclude black people from juries, trying to obtain all white juries. Of course, that’s supposed to be unconstitutional, but the system to prevent race… Read More
