In the United States, a defendant has the right to remain silent, to retain an attorney and to receive a fair trial. Those rights were put in place to make sure that everyone accused of committing a crime is treated fairly. Unfortunately, quite a few lawyers and judges today are not taking the last two rights seriously. There have been some cases where prosecuting lawyers, driven by the desire to protect their reputations, have withheld key DNA evidence that could clear the defendants.
The intriguing part is there are already laws written to prevent this kind of thing from happening. They are called the laws of disclosure. It is the prosecutor’s responsibility to disclose every single piece of evidence that will be presented in court. Otherwise, a mistrial could result. The defendant and his lawyer have the right to question the witnesses and review their testimony. They are also allowed to examine the physical evidence in its entirety, including a DNA test result. Basically, the prosecutor is not allowed any surprises. But it is apparent that various lawyers totally ignore the laws of disclosure and throw people in “the big house” for crimes they did not commit. Fortunately, a truly wonderful organization called the Innocence Project is around to try to right these wrongs and free people convicted of crimes they did not commit.
The Innocence Project is an organization that helps people who have been wrongly accused of crimes. Founded in 1992, it has been responsible for the exonerations of over 200 people. They mainly deal with cases that could easily be solved by DNA testing, but there have been a few times where they used other types of evidence to clear someone’s name.
A recent case taken on by the Innocence Project is ongoing. Back in 2011, Joseph A. Buffey was accused of robbing and raping an 83 year-old woman. He pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 70 plus years in prison. During the eighteen months following his conviction, Buffey told anyone who would listen that the officials pressed him into his confession and a plea deal. It was not until very recently that the DNA evidence was disclosed. It showed that Buffy had not had sex with the woman. His case is now being reviewed and another trial is scheduled. Barry Scheck, owner of the Innocence Project, was the one responsible for this new development.
Another case involved a man named Marvin Anderson back in 1982. He was convicted for raping and sodomizing a young woman. It all started when the victim identified Marvin in a series of pictures of possible suspects. A lineup ensued. But the investigators brought in a series of new suspects in addition to Anderson without telling the victim. Therefore, she identified him again. During his trial, Anderson testified that his bike was stolen a half-hour before the rape happened. The victim said that the rapist was riding a bike where she was walking and then raped her. Anderson tried to get the court to examine that piece of evidence but the counsel refused. The all-white jury convicted him and sentenced him to 200 years in prison. Later, another man by the name of Jon Lincoln came forward confessing that he was the one responsible and that Anderson was innocent. But the court dismissed him as a liar. Fifteen years later, the Innocence Project took up Anderson’s case. They found DNA evidence collected from the victim, which pointed to Jon Lincoln, clearing Anderson’s name.
These miscarriages of justice are happening for two reasons. The first is the fact that the government is in control of the science. “Science doesn’t belong to the government,” said Steven Benjamin who is the president of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers. “But they act like it does.” The prosecutors also operate under the philosophy, ‘We’ve got to convict someone. Who’s it going to be if it’s not him?’ The second reason is the fact that post-conviction DNA testing is not a Constitutional right. In fact, there are only nine states that give defendants access to DNA evidence databases. So, God help you if you are accused of a crime in the U.S. But the good news is, the Innocence Project is here to help.
