Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®
Articles 1 - 7 of 7
Full-Text Articles in Law
Wrongful Conviction, Daniel Medwed, Helen Borton
Wrongful Conviction, Daniel Medwed, Helen Borton
Daniel S. Medwed
No abstract provided.
Justice In New England, Daniel Medwed
Emotionally Charged: The Prosecutorial Charging Decision And The Innocence Revolution, Daniel Medwed
Emotionally Charged: The Prosecutorial Charging Decision And The Innocence Revolution, Daniel Medwed
Daniel S. Medwed
Efforts to rectify wrongful convictions in the United States arguably represent a new civil rights movement for the twentieth-first century. Since 1989, post-conviction DNA testing has exonerated over two hundred inmates, their innocence proven beyond a shadow of a doubt through science, and at least three hundred other innocent prisoners have gained their freedom in cases lacking the magic bullet of DNA. Studies of these cases reveal that specific factors tend to cause wrongful convictions in the first place. Misbehavior by prosecutors - especially involving the suppression of exculpatory evidence - has emerged as one of those factors. This Symposium …
The Prosecutor As Minister Of Justice: Preaching To The Unconverted From The Post-Conviction Pulpit, Daniel S. Medwed
The Prosecutor As Minister Of Justice: Preaching To The Unconverted From The Post-Conviction Pulpit, Daniel S. Medwed
Daniel S. Medwed
This Article, which is part of a symposium on prosecutorial ethics, urges for a fuller realization of the minister of justice ideal for prosecutors in the post-conviction process where the factual innocence of a criminal defendant is in question. Specifically, to truly effectuate the minister of justice goal, prosecutors should take a more active part in rectifying wrongful convictions by considering the formation of internal post-conviction review boards or "innocence units" geared toward ferreting out potential wrongful convictions and assisting in presenting them to courts. Part I of this Article discusses the minister of justice ideal for prosecutors, as articulated …
Beyond Biology: Wrongful Convictions In The Post-Dna World, Daniel S. Medwed
Beyond Biology: Wrongful Convictions In The Post-Dna World, Daniel S. Medwed
Daniel S. Medwed
Post-conviction DNA testing first exonerated an innocent prisoner nearly twenty years ago. During this period, we have learned many lessons from the 200 subsequent DNA exonerations, including insight into the factors that led to those wrongful convictions at trial and the procedural obstacles that can make it difficult for inmates whose cases contain biological evidence to procure DNA testing after conviction. Yet, as I have often written in the past, these exonerations are just the tip of the proverbial innocence iceberg. As a threshold matter, very few criminal investigations result in the collection of biological evidence whatsoever; over time, moreover, …
The Zeal Deal: Prosecutorial Resistance To Post-Conviction Claims Of Innocence, Daniel Medwed
The Zeal Deal: Prosecutorial Resistance To Post-Conviction Claims Of Innocence, Daniel Medwed
Daniel S. Medwed
This Article analyzes the institutional and political factors deterring prosecutors from accepting the possible legitimacy of post-conviction innocence claims and formulating creative responses to them. Specifically, the institutional culture of most prosecutors' offices treasures convictions; an attorney's conviction rate may serve as a barometer of that person's stature within the organization and a key factor in determining that person's chances for internal advancement. This professional incentive for prosecutors to obtain and maintain convictions may be bolstered by profound psychological and personal bases for believing in the soundness of the verdicts and pragmatic reasons for discounting the possibility that there may …
Prosecution Complex: America's Race To Convict And Its Impact On The Innocent, Daniel Medwed
Prosecution Complex: America's Race To Convict And Its Impact On The Innocent, Daniel Medwed
Daniel S. Medwed
This book explores how American prosecutors can inadvertently make decisions that contribute to the conviction of the innocent largely because of cognitive biases and an overly-deferential regime of legal and ethical rules. Divided into three parts that correspond to the three chief phases of the litigation process (pretrial, trial, and post-conviction), the book examines how mistakes at various moments over the course of a case, even seemingly innocuous missteps, can lead to wrongful convictions and prolong the incarceration of the innocent. Prosecution Complex is not intended to portray prosecutors as rogue officials indifferent to the conviction of the innocent, but …