Criminal Law Commons^™

Conviction Integrity Units Revisited, Barry Scheck

Articles

“Conviction Integrity Unit” has become a brand name that has good public relations value for an elected official. But what does it really mean? Is it just a fashion accessory, a flashy but empty appellation intended to convey the idea that the office is extremely serious about correcting wrongful convictions and holding its own members accountable for errors or acts of misconduct, but really is not? Is conviction integrity nothing more than a passing fad, a nebulous slogan without real meaning that is good for propaganda purposes, but will not bring about any serious change in the way business is …

Following Finality: Why Capital Punishment Is Collapsing Under Its Own Weight, Corinna Barrett Lain

Law Faculty Publications

Death is different, the adage goes - different in its severity and different in its finality. Death, in its finality, is more than just a punishment. Death is the end of our existence as we know it. It is final in an existential way.

Because death is final in an existential way, the Supreme Court has held that special care is due when the penalty is imposed. We need to get it right. My claim in this chapter is that the constitutional regulation designed to implement that care has led to a series of cascading effects that threaten the …

Scandal, Fraud, And The Reform Of Forensic Science: The Case Of Fingerprint Analysis, Simon A. Cole

West Virginia Law Review

No abstract provided.

Folklore And Forensics: The Challenges Of Arson Investigation And Innocence Claims, Parisa Dehghani-Tafti, Paul Bieber

West Virginia Law Review

No abstract provided.

Building The Infrastructure For "Justice Through Science": The Texas Model, Sandra Guerra Thompson, Nicole Bremner Cásarez

West Virginia Law Review

No abstract provided.

Strengths And Limitations Of Forensic Science: What Dna Exonerations Have Taught Us And Where To Go From Here, Vanessa Meterko

West Virginia Law Review

No abstract provided.

Introduction To The West Virginia Law Review Flawed Forensics And Innocence Symposium, Valena E. Beety

West Virginia Law Review

No abstract provided.

Innocent Suffering: The Unavailability Of Post-Conviction Relief In Virginia Courts, Kaitlyn Potter

Law Student Publications

This comment examines actual innocence in Virginia: the progress it has made, the problems it still faces, and the possibilities for reform. Part I addresses past reform to the system, spurred by the shocking tales of Thomas Haynesworth and others. Part II identifies three of the most prevalent systemic challenges marring Virginia‘s justice system: (1) flawed scientific evidence; (2) the premature destruction of evidence; and (3) false confessions and guilty pleas. Part III suggests ways in which Virginia can, and should, address these challenges to ensure that the justice system is actually serving justice.

People V. Cole: Is The Incarceration Of An "Actually Innocent" Person Constitutional?, Aileen R. Kavanagh

Touro Law Review

No abstract provided.

Actual Innocence In New York: The Curious Case Of People V. Hamilton, Benjamin E. Rosenberg

Res Gestae

It is rare for a case from the New York Appellate Division to be as significant as People v. Hamilton. The case, however, was the first New York appellate court decision to hold that a defendant might vacate his conviction if he could demonstrate that he was “actually innocent” of the crime of which he was charged. Although the precedential force of the decision is limited to the Second Department, trial courts throughout the state are required to follow Hamilton unless or until the appellate court in their own Department rules on the issue. Courts throughout the state are …

The Wrong Kind Of Innocence: Why United States V. Begay Warrants The Extension Of "Actual Innocence" To Exclude Erroneous, Non-Capital Sentences, Greg Siepel

West Virginia Law Review

No abstract provided.

Harmonizing Equitable Exceptions: Why Courts Should Recognize An “Actual Innocence” Exception To The Aedpa’S Statute Of Limitations, Morgan Suder

San Diego Law Review

This Comment argues that to neutralize this potential inequality, the Supreme Court should affirm the Ninth Circuit’s recent decision in Lee v. Lampert, finding that a credible claim of actual innocence constitutes an equitable exception to the AEDPA’s one-year statute of limitations period. District courts must be able to call on their equitable powers, including both equitable principles already applied to the AEDPA’s statute of limitations as well as the actual innocence exception, in determining whether a district court may consider the merits of a criminal defendant’s otherwise untimely habeas petition.

Part II discusses the role of federal habeas corpus …

Is Innocence Irrelevant To Aedpa's Statute Of Limitations - Avoiding A Miscarriage Of Justice In Federal Habeas Corpus, Angela Ellis

Villanova Law Review

The article discusses the debate on recognizing the innocence exception to the statute of limitations for original petitions for habeas corpus as provided in the Anti-terrorism and Effective Penalty Act of 1996 (AEDPA). Those who oppose cite the need for judicial economy and the absence of congressional intent. The author stresses the primordial concern of protecting the innocent and preventing miscarriage of justice as upheld by the history of habeas corpus and Supreme Court jurisprudence.

Instituting Innocence Reform: Wisconsin's New Governance Experiment, Kate Kruse

Faculty Scholarship

The DNA exoneration cases of the past two decades have provided a window into what hasn't been working in the criminal justice system and an agenda for criminal justice reform. The challenge currently facing the innocence reform community is to translate this agenda into concrete reforms that institute and sustain best practices for the investigation and prosecution of crimes, while allowing flexibility for the understanding of best practices to continue to evolve. In 2005, Wisconsin underwent a breathtaking course of legal reform in two of the problem areas that have plagued wrongful convictions: mistaken eyewitness identification and false confession. The …