What Do We Owe the Wrongfully Convicted?
Tuesday 04 May 2010
(Photo: sssteve.o)
On April 28th, 46-year-old Frank Sterling became a free man after spending 18 years in prison for a crime he didn’t commit. Sterling was cleared of a 1988 murder after another man confessed to the killing. Sterling said he confessed to the murder because of sleep deprivation and coercion. He fought for years to get evidence at the scene tested for DNA, which eventually led to the man who confessed. Sterling said walking out of jail was like heaven.
The injustice suffered by Frank Sterling is not an exception - he is the 253rd person exonerated through DNA evidence and according to the Innocence Project, he will not be the last. The Innocence Project is a non-profit legal clinic dedicated to exonerating wrongfully convicted people through DNA testing. The first DNA exoneration in the U.S. was in 1989.
Each individual exonerated through DNA is unique. Their convictions were different, and their experiences after exoneration vary. The Innocence Project says collectively, they illustrate the criminal justice system’s failings and the need for reform.
On Your Call, we’ll speak with three men who collectively spent almost 55 years behind bars. They were released because of DNA evidence. What does society owe these men? Compensation is crucial, but beyond that, where’s the justice and accountability? What will it take to reform the system?
Press play to listen to "Your Call" with Rose Aguilar:
Press play to listen to "Your Call" with Rose Aguilar:
Guests:
- Seth Miller, executive director of the Innocence Project of Florida
- James Bain was released from prison in December 2009 after serving 35 years for a crime he didn't commit
- Rick Walker was released from prison in 2003 after serving 12 years in prison for a crime he didn't commit
- Kirk Bloodsworth was released from prison in 1993 after serving almost nine years in prison for a crime he didn't commit. He spent two years on death row
Your Call is daily call-in show on KALW 91.7 FM in San Francisco and 88.9 FM in Santa Cruz.
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Comments
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Prison is nasty and
Thu, 05/06/2010 - 09:14 — Anonymous (not verified)Prison is nasty and barbaric, another reason to rid the world of this type of violence. "Other ways" are already well known if it is our desire to "rehabilitate people", Just like an oil tanker trying to turn on a dime, human folly can't be instantly corrected, the granite in place will take a mighty effort.
We can't warehouse societies problems, and those that have been falsely attacked should win the "lottery" - a punishing set of fines directed at the infrastructure that helped destroy a life, that was somehow determined to be of "little worth" by power..
One has to wonder how many
Thu, 05/06/2010 - 10:52 — Anonymous (not verified)One has to wonder how many wrongfully convicted people in the US have been executed. The politicians, prosecutors, law enforcement officials and others continue to work tirelessly to suppress any and all information that would expose these atrocities.
Should this not be considered criminal, and when exposed, are the perpetrators not jointly and severally guilty of murder themselves?
all Prosecutors shall
Thu, 05/06/2010 - 10:56 — Anonymous (not verified)all Prosecutors shall surrender to all defence attorneys all exculpatory evidence ,failure to do so shall require charges being brought ,conviction shall include mandatory jail time,,,fabrication of evidence by expert witnesses shall be a crime punishable with mandatory jail time,,,police officers upon request shall surrender financial statements and thier wealth shall be supported by past emoluments failure to do so require dismissal;;;jail house snitch testimony shall be unlawful,,,to conduct an active surveillance using informants involved in ongoing criminal enterprise shall be unlawful,,,all dna evidence found at a crime scene shall be processed and published to record immediately,,approximately 6 to 10 % of all convictions are wrongful we cannot repay what they they have suffered
What about wrongfully
Thu, 05/06/2010 - 13:04 — Carl (not verified)What about wrongfully arrested? For example, my ex-wife was arrested for possession of meth because she had a small plastic bag of cooking spice in her car. She was booked, spent the night in jail, then released. Testing showed the bag contained "a legal spice."
When she applied for citizenship it was rejected because of her arrest record for drugs. I think all Americans will agree that arrest records should be deleted if charges are dropped.
The real criminals are on
Fri, 05/07/2010 - 11:47 — radline9 (not verified)The real criminals are on wall street and government and running the country. As to the man wrongfully convicted, I think the justice system should give him about a quarter of a million.
I think that a wrongfully
Fri, 05/07/2010 - 18:34 — Anonymous (not verified)I think that a wrongfully convicted prisoner should be paid the same hourly rate as the DA in the location he or she was convicted. This would be done for every hour they were in jail/prison. Furthermore, the money should come from the Judge, arresting officer, and prosecuting attorney's salary, savings, property, and pension.
Furthermore, if evidence was altered or suppressed, torture was used, or false testimony was used in the conviction then those responsible should receive the exact same sentence as the victim of the false prosecution.
It's about time our constitution stood for something!