Prison Fellowship

  • DONATE
    • One-Time
    • Monthly
    • Angel Tree
    • Other Ways to Give
  • GET INVOLVED
    • Volunteer
    • Subscribe
    • Angel Tree Christmas
    • Start a Fundraiser
    • Pray With Us
    • Justice Action Center
    • Share on Social
  • STORIES
    • Stories
    • Blog
    • Videos
    • The Restoration Series [Videos]
  • WHAT WE DO
    • Why Help Prisoners?
    • What We Do
    • In-Prison
      • Prison Fellowship Academy
      • In-Prison Programs
      • Hope Events
      • Inside Journal
      • Women’s Ministry
      • Create: New Beginnings
    • Angel Tree
      • Register your church or group for Angel Tree
      • Prison Fellowship Angel Tree
      • Angel Tree Christmas
      • Angel Tree Camping
      • Angel Tree Sports Camps
    • Justice Reform
      • Justice Reform
      • Second Chance Month
      • Sign the Justice Declaration
      • Get a Copy of Outrageous Justice
    • Warden Exchange
    • Church Partners
    • Corporate Partnerships
    • Preparing Prisoners for Reentry
  • RESOURCES
    • Subscribe to Our Email
    • Support for Friends and Family of Prisoners
      • Resources for Friends and Family of Prisoners
      • Coping with Incarceration
      • Resources for Prisoners
      • Resources for Children of Prisoners
      • Supporting Successful Prisoner Reentry
    • Resources for Churches and Volunteers
      • Resources for Churches and Volunteers
      • In-Prison Ministry
      • Reentry Ministry
      • Family Ministry
      • Justice Reform
      • Mentoring Ministry
    • Resources for Angel Tree Coordinators
    • Resources for Chaplains
    • Resources for D.O.C.
    • Justice Reform Resources
    • Share on Social
    • For Media Outlets
  • ABOUT US
    • Leadership
    • Chuck Colson
      • About Chuck Colson
      • The Charles Colson Hope Awards
    • Our Beliefs
    • Financials
      • Financials
      • 2022 Annual Report
    • Employment
    • Contact Us
    • In The News

Wrongful Convictions

Hundreds of people have spent time in prison for crimes they did not commit

United States courts are supposed to be the guardians of justice. Yet, incorrect verdicts occur far too often. Since 1989, the United States has used DNA testing to exonerate 225 innocent people after they have spent years in captivity. At least 123 people have been exonerated from death row since the 1970s. Condemning the innocent makes a mockery of justice, robbing men and women of dignity, relationship, time, opportunity, and freedom. Wrongful convictions also endanger the public because locking up an innocent person means the real culprit walks free.

The trouble with evidence

The tragedy of wrongful convictions results from multiple factors. Eyewitness misidentifications, because of poor crime scene visibility and bad police procedures, are involved in the vast majority of cases. Coerced false confessions from defendants, lying jailhouse informants, and bad forensics science also bear responsibility for locking innocent people behind bars. When public defense lawyers are incompetent and prosecuting attorneys suppress important evidence, wrongful convictions increase. Because roughly half of states have no laws requiring crime scene evidence to be preserved, evidence is often unavailable for reevaluation once a person is incarcerated, making confirming or denying pleas of innocence nearly impossible. In addition, starting life over again is very difficult for the exonerees in the 26 states that require no compensation for their time spent in prison.

Increasing the integrity of the system

Prison Fellowship calls for immediate action so that no more men and women are punished unjustly. In order to make witness identifications more accurate, police officers administering lineups should be unaware of the suspect’s identity so as not to influence witnesses’ decisions, should ask witnesses to assess their level of confidence in their identifications, and should videotape the entire process. Defendant confessions should also be videotaped. This protects against coercion by officers trying to prove guilt.

Prosecutors using jailhouse informants should disclose all information that could compromise the informants’ credibility. Only the best forensics science practices should be used to decide guilt. Because DNA testing is the most reliable test for evidence, all states should guarantee inmates’ access to crime scene DNA and should preserve this evidence for the entire length of the prison term. Prosecutors should undergo training on ethical practices and the causes of wrongful conviction.

States should maintain teams of proficient defense attorneys that are able to devote the necessary time to each defendant. Also, all states should enact compensation statutes that provide enough money for exonerees to put their lives back together. These practical steps can reduce the chances of wrongful convictions and increase our justice system’s integrity.

CONNECT WITH PRISON FELLOWSHIP

Sign up to receive our weekly eNewsletter, which highlights stories of transformed lives and second chances, as well as resources and information from around the ministry.

SIGNUP TODAY

PARTNER WITH US

Join our advocacy network by signing the Justice Declaration to receive news, event invites, and action alerts from the Prison Fellowship advocacy team about justice reform in your state and Congress.

JOIN NOW

JOIN OUR ONLINE COMMUNITY

FACEBOOK
TWITTER
INSTAGRAM
YOUTUBE
LINKEDIN
PF®
PFM®

RECOMMENDED LINKS

  • Ways to Donate
  • Inspirational Stories
  • Angel Tree Program
  • Prison Fellowship Academy
  • Justice Reform

RESOURCES

  • For Families & Friends of Prisoners
  • For Churches & Angel Tree Volunteers
  • For Media Outlets

JOIN RESTORATION PARTNERS AND WITNESS GOD RESTORE LIVES

Restoration Partners give monthly to bring life-changing prison ministry programs to incarcerated men and women across the country.

 

JOIN NOW
  • CONTACT US
  • EMPLOYMENT
  • PRIVACY
  • FINANCIALS
© 2023 PRISON FELLOWSHIP®

Angel Tree®, Angel Tree Camping®, Angel Tree Sports ClinicTM, Angel Tree Sports CampsTM, and Warden Exchange® are programs of Prison Fellowship®.