Understanding Wrongful Conviction

Book excerpt: Understanding Wrongful Conviction: How Innocent People Are Convicted of Crimes They Did Not Commit identifies and discusses breakdowns in the criminal justice system that can have profoundly negative effects on individuals operating within or who are subjects of the system. The text also explores what can be done to successfully reduce the incidence of wrongful conviction. The opening chapter defines wrongful conviction, explains the importance of its study, and provides readers with context as to how often it happens within the American criminal justice system. Readers are provided with an overview of the history of wrongful conviction and the innocence movement. They read chapters that describe how errors and misconduct related to eyewitness testimony, forensic science, false confessions, false accusations, police error, prosecutorial error, and defense attorney error can lead to wrongful convictions. The final chapters address the aftereffects of wrongful conviction and what can be done to reduce instances of wrongful conviction. Providing readers with a unique and critical perspective, Understanding Wrongful Conviction is an ideal resource for courses and programs in criminal justice. Robert J. Ramsey, Ph.D. is an associate professor of criminal justice at Indiana University East, where he directed the Criminal Justice Program for 10 years. He holds a B.S. in political science from Miami University and a M.S. and Ph.D. in criminal justice from the University of Cincinnati. Dr. Ramsey has published articles and book chapters on the topic of wrongful conviction in Forensic Science, Crime and Delinquency, Journal of the Institute of Justice and International Studies, and Criminal Justice, and has spoken at numerous professional conferences about wrongful conviction. His professional research interests include wrongful conviction, community corrections and restorative justice, faith-based correctional interventions, reentry, and Judeo-Christian bases of the law.