Wrongful Conviction
Name
Institution
Wrongful Convictions
Since the initial post-conviction DNA exoneration in the United States in 1989, there have been over 364 exonerations with an estimated 20 of them having been serving death sentences (Duncan, 2019). generally, it is known that the purpose of justice is to convict the guilty while protecting the innocent. It is very unfortunate that the justice system continues to fail innumerable individuals through wrongfully convicting them. When a prisoner gets back their freedom due to a wrongful conviction of a crime, the concern turns to the years and decades lost while these individuals were behind bars. Most of these individuals are affected negatively in terms of feelings of guilt, fear, helplessness, devastation and depression. For some of these victims, the impact of the wrongful conviction could be comparable or more worse than the original victimization (Duncan, 2019). It is only proper support and counselling that will see them build better futures regardless of their experiences.
Most of the time, the resources available for use by the justice system often work against the poor defendants while the more able fit their way through. The situation becomes even more complicated if the attorney representing the defendant is either incompetent or at time overburdened. Furthermore, other factors such as the shrinked budget for the public defenders and overburden lawyers also contribute towards wrongful convictions. According to Gold and Leo (2010), some of the major reasons for wrongful convictions include mistaken identity, perjury, wrongful confessions, and false evidence. Apart from the negative effect on the victim, the harms of wrongful conviction are extensive. They include: the public remains at risk as long as the perpetrator is still free, taxpayer resources are wasted as long as imprisonment of innocent persons is happening, and the public constantly loses trust in the criminal justice system among others. Wrong convictions will constantly cause negative ripple effects on the society hence the need for them to stop.
Notably, this research seeks to understand the prevalence of wrongful convictions and specifically what are the primary contributors. The research questions to guide on the research include:
1. What are the primary factors contributing to wrongful convictions and their respective remedies?
2. What policy developments or reforms can be done to reduce the number of wrongful convictions?
3. What can be done to ensure that all criminal justice officials such as the police and prosecutors are held accountable for their wrongful convictions?
This research will also seek to analyze extensive literature in relation to the prevalence of wrongful convictions, their primary contributors and their impacts on the victims while holding the officials accountable. The research will further explore any policy reforms that have been deemed feasible in attaining the desired change. The field of wrongful convictions remains one that has been extensively delved into. Therefore, the existing literature will be fundamental in getting an accurate image of the challenges and finding the gaps as to why the problem still exists. Some of the factors to be considered in this research will primarily look into eyewitness misidentification, inadequate or ineffective legal representation, official misconduct, improper forensics, false confessions, informants, government misconduct or a combination of the factors (Gold & Leo, 2010). An extensive understanding of these factors will guide on the right policies that will prevent the occurrence of the convictions and how the existing one can be solved. – essay writers
References
Duncan, C. (2019). Justifying Justice: Six Factors of Wrongful Convictions and Their Solutions. Themis: Research Journal of Justice Studies and Forensic Science, 7(1), 6.
Gould, J. B., & Leo, R. A. (2010). One hundred years later: Wrongful convictions after a century of research. The Journal of Criminal Law and Criminology, 825-868.
