The Causes of Wrongful Convictions “Wrongful conviction is on the rise because the protections against it have been eroded” stated by Paul Craig Roberts in his article “The Causes of Wrongful Conviction. (Roberts, Spring 2003). It is a very old yet modern problem in today’s society. Wrongful convictions claim the lives of many innocent people in the justice system. In order to understand how wrongful convictions take place, one must be conscious of the causes. Wrongful convictions are a problem that have plagued the United States Justice System. Various factors are the underlying causes of wrongful convictions. Some of the factors include: eyewitness error, plea bargains, government misconduct, and defective or junk science. These are just a few of the causes of erroneous convictions. This paper will closely examine these causes and why they continue to be the leading factors in unjust convictions. Many people are victims of erroneous convictions because of eyewitness error.
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Some of the factors include: eyewitness error, plea bargains, government misconduct, and defective or junk science. Since 1976 there have been 86 exonerations for people on death row. In those 86 exonerations one or more of the causes for wrongful conviction played a part in determining the fate of those victims that where involved in an erroneous conviction. Wrongful conviction is a problem that needs to be addressed. Innocent people lose their lively hood and precious years they can never get back. “To make a dent in wrongful conviction, we must rethink the approach,” (Roberts, Spring 2003). The judicial system must be changed and to start one must consider re-evaluating ethic in law school as well as the judicial system. The media can help address the issue by publicizing more stories on wrongful conviction. Once people become aware of the problem, it may likely become less of a dilemma in the judicial
Some of the factors include: eyewitness error, plea bargains, government misconduct, and defective or junk science. Since 1976 there have been 86 exonerations for people on death row. In those 86 exonerations one or more of the causes for wrongful conviction played a part in determining the fate of those victims that where involved in an erroneous conviction. Wrongful conviction is a problem that needs to be addressed. Innocent people lose their lively hood and precious years they can never get back. “To make a dent in wrongful conviction, we must rethink the approach,” (Roberts, Spring 2003). The judicial system must be changed and to start one must consider re-evaluating ethic in law school as well as the judicial system. The media can help address the issue by publicizing more stories on wrongful conviction. Once people become aware of the problem, it may likely become less of a dilemma in the judicial