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Yesterday a South Carolina judge vacated the conviction of a teenager executed for a murder he likely did not commit. The court noted that the boy’s confession appeared coerced and unreliable. The growing awareness of false confessions is encouraging.
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Earlier this week, the Supreme Court ruled that a police stop based on the officer’s false believe can lead to a legally valid search. Anything that leads to greater police discretion to detain and interrogate is apt to produce more false confessions.
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A recent article in The Economist quotes a judge in New York who believes that American prisons house numerous innocent people: “thousands, perhaps tens of thousands, confessed despite being innocent.” Most false confessions experts (including myself) agree that the several hundred proven false confessions represent only the tip of the iceberg.
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Yesterday a North Carolina judge declared innocent and released two men who, on the basis of their coerced false confessions, served 30 years for a murder and rape they did not commit. One of them was on death row much of that time.
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False confessions experts unanimously favor videotaping interrogations, but I’ve always said that it’s no panacea. Jennifer Mnookin’s op-ed in today’s New York Times (7/14) helps explain why.
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Apparently the five men who (while teenagers) gave false confessions in the Central Park Jogger case have reached a lucrative settlement with New York City. Their coerced false confessions came a quarter century ago. Better late than never.
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Last week the Pennsylvania Supreme Court held that the testimony of false confessions experts is inadmissible. Given that such experts (including myself) help educate jurors about the counter-intutiive phenomenon of false confessions, this is a regrettable decision. Contrary to the Court’s reasoning, the expert witness on false confessions does not invade the province of the…
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Yesterday’s Supreme Court decision (disallowing Florida’s IQ cut-off point for defendants to quality for execution) was a welcome development. At this point, I welcome any limitation on the imposition of capital punishment. Too many innocent people, including some who gave false confessions, have been on death row.
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The Justice Department has reversed long-time policy about recording interrogations. Henceforth, the FBI and other federal law enforcement will record most interrogations. As false confessions experts agree that such a policy is crucial, this is a most welcome development.
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Posting has been light lately, in part because of technological issues and in part because I’ve been busy with cases (among other things). Last month I testified in Montana, and the defendant was acquitted of murder. Testimony by false confessions experts can be crucial in educating a jury.
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Truth About False Confessions 