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Actual Innocence: Five Days to Execution, and Other Dispatches From the Wrongly Convicted
by Barry Scheck, Peter Neufeld, Jim Dwyer
Product Group: Book
Publisher: Doubleday (2000-02-15)
ISBN: 038549341X
EAN: 9780385493413
Dewy Decimal #: 347.7312
Hardcover: 320 pages
Edition: 1
SKU: 08080086
Condition: Like New Like New
Comments: Hardcover. Like new cover and text. Remainder mark on bottom edge. Like new dust jacket with very minor shelfwear. Near Fine condition. Beautiful book.
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Editorial Reviews
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Amazon.com Review
The Innocence Project is a pro bono civil rights organization that helps innocent people who have been unjustly imprisoned win their freedom through DNA testing. Run by Barry Scheck and Peter Neufeld (known for their roles in the O.J. Simpson murder trial), the project has thus far managed to free 43 wrongly convicted people and has taken on the cases of over 200 more. In Actual Innocence, Scheck, Neufeld, and Pulitzer-winning columnist Jim Dwyer tell the stories of 10 of the men they have helped. How did these men wind up in prison--some on death row--for rapes and murders they didn't commit? The causes range from mistaken identification by the victims to sloppy police work--and, in some cases, outright dereliction of duty or fabrication of evidence. Far too often, cops lock on to their suspect early and decide that their instincts can't possibly be wrong--an attitude that can persist even after the falsely accused has been exonerated. "If he is innocent," says one investigator of a man who spent seven years in prison, "I wish him a good life, but I will have no remorse for him. I have no remorse for anyone that I have ever arrested." Though the writing is not always graceful, what matters in Actual Innocence is not the quality of the prose but the importance of the Innocence Project's work. Scheck and Neufeld's commitment to justice is evident in each of these stories, and the problems they force us to address--not just concerning the imprisonment of innocent people but in restoring their lives upon release--cannot be ignored.
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Product Description
Extraordinarily powerful stories of ordinary people locked up for crimes they did not commit, and how they were freed against great odds.
A nightmare from a thousand B-movies: a horrible crime is committed in your neighborhood, and the police knock at your door. A witness swears you are the perpetrator; you have no alibi, and no one believes your protestations of innocence. You're convicted, sentenced to hard time in maximum security, or even death row, where you await the executioner's needle.
Tragically, this is no movie script but reality for hundreds of American citizens. Our criminal justice system is broken, and people from all walks of life have been destroyed by its failures. But science and a group of incredibly dedicated crusaders are working to repair the damage.
In the last ten years, DNA testing has uncovered stone-cold proof that sixty-five completely innocent people have been sent to prison and death row. But even in cases where there is physical evidence, the criminal justice system frees prisoners only after a torturous legal process. Incredibly, according to many trial judges, "actual innocence" is not grounds for release from prison.
At the Innocence Project, Barry Scheck and Peter Neufeld have helped to free thirty-seven wrongly convicted people, and have taken up the cause of hundreds more. Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist Jim Dwyer has been covering innocence cases for a decade. In Actual Innocence, Scheck, Neufeld, and Dwyer relate the harrowing stories of ten innocent men--convicted by sloppy police work, corrupt prosecutors, jailhouse snitches, mistaken eyewitnesses, and other all-too-common flaws of the trial system--and tell of the heroic efforts to free them.
Intense, startling, and utterly compelling, Actual Innocence is a passionate and fascinating journey through the looking glass of the American criminal justice system.
Tragically, this is no movie script but reality for hundreds of American citizens. Our criminal justice system is broken, and people from all walks of life have been destroyed by its failures. But science and a group of incredibly dedicated lawyers are working to repair the damage.
In the last decade of this century, DNA testing has uncovered stone-cold proof that fifty-five completely innocent people were sent to prison and death row. At the Innocence Project, Barry Scheck and Peter Neufeld have managed to free forty-three wrongly convicted people and have taken up the cause of two hundred more. Pulitzer Prize winning columnist Jim Dwyer covered this courthouse revolution from its very first days. In Actual Innocence, Scheck, Neufeld, and Dwyer relate the harrowing stories of ten of these individuals--convicted by sloppy police work, corrupt prosecutors, jailhouse snitches, mistaken witnesses, inept lawyers, and other all-too-common flaws in the trial system--and tell of the heroic efforts to free them.
Intense, harrowing, and compelling, Actual Innocence is a passionate argument for sanity in our courtrooms and a fascinating journey through the looking glass of the American criminal justice system. -->
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Customer Reviews
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A scathing verdict on the U.S. criminal justice system.
Rating  (5)
Date: 2006-08-30
5 out of 5 customers found this reveiw helpful
"Our procedure has been always haunted by the ghost of the innocent man convicted." -- U.S. v. Garsson, D.C., 291 F. 646, 649 (1923) (Judge Learned Hand)
While you may find "Actual Innocence" in the "true crime" section of your bookstore, this is not your typical fare of a more or less well-written and soon-to-be-TV-movie account of a harrowing crime, or series of crimes. And while the book undeniably shows the hands of two lawyers who know how to craft a closing argument, and a Pulitzer Prize winning journalist, this is at heart, as the authors point out - and disturbingly so - a "work of nonfiction."
"Actual innocence" is an account of the work of Scheck's and Neufeld's "Innocence Project," describing some of the Project's most prominent and successful cases, and a scathing condemnation of the shortcomings of the American system of criminal justice - particularly, under the Supreme Court's holding in Herrera v. Collins, 506 U.S. 390, 404 (1993) (Rehnquist, C.J.) that "a claim of 'actual innocence' is not itself a constitutional claim." Under Herrera and the cases following it, a federal court can reject a defendant's petition for relief even if it is based on proof of innocence, even if that proof is, as in the cases represented by the Innocence Project, of a scientific nature (DNA evidence showing that the defendant cannot have committed the crime he has been convicted of), and even if the deadlines for submitting that proof are so short that it is virtually impossible for a defendant to present evidence obtained post-conviction in time for a consideration at least in the state court system, which review has to precede a review by the federal courts.
In Herrera, the Supreme Court upheld a Texas death sentence after the defendant had missed the state law's 30-day deadline to get a new trial based on new evidence. And while that particular case involved questions of the reliability of circumstantial evidence, admissions of guilt and eyewitness identifications (briefly, at night and without live testimony by one of the witnesses), these exclusionary rules apply regardless of the type of evidence presented. In the cases that Scheck, Neufeld and Dwyer describe here, this sometimes meant that DNA evidence which, due to scientific advances, had only become available years after the conviction, was not admitted, even if it conclusively proved that the wrong person had been convicted. The defendants were left to petition for executive clemency, which is discretionary and frequently depends on the amount of political pressure exercised.
It is often argued, particularly by proponents of the death penalty, that the criminal justice system functions well, and that even in the best system, regrettable errors cannot be prevented. The authors of "Actual Innocence" make a compelling case for the contrary. Even if a lawyer's shortcomings in the representation of his client may, in theory, lead to the reversal of a conviction, the bar here is almost as high as that for the presentation of proof of innocence. In Texas, e.g., not even a lawyer sleeping during the trial or showing up drunk is considered ineffective and, like in other states, most mistakes made out of inexperience with the handling of murder/felony trials will not be enough to support a reversal, either. Moreover, scientific evidence, such as a "DNA fingerprint," is often not available to indigent defendants, who are most likely to be hurt by inefficient trial attorneys because they lack the means to hire counsel experienced and sophisticated enough to handle a trial of that nature. These more often than not are the ingredients of a cocktail which, without timely and forceful intervention, can be as lethal as the death penalty itself; even if there is not, in addition, abuse on the prosecutorial side - failure to fully investigate and/or disclose the evidence available in the case (including exculpatory evidence), racial bias in the jury selection, misconduct by scientists acting as the government's experts, etc.
American TV often broadcasts reports on persons released from prison, sometimes only days before their execution, based on belated proof of their innocence. All of these cases expose, in differing ways, the inherent weaknesses of the country's criminal justice system. While I did not practice in the U.S. long enough to echo the verdict handed down by the Scheck, Neufeld and Dwyer, who declare the American criminal justice system "a shambles," many facts recounted by them ring true to me as well. I also stop to consider if not only a Democratic president (Clinton) imposes a moratorium on the death penalty but a Republican governor, a declared proponent of capital punishment, takes the same action and orders an investigation because "since the reestablishment of the death penalty in Illinois in 1977, there have been persistent problems in the administration of the death penalty as illustrated by the thirteen individuals on death row who have had their death sentences and convictions vacated by the courts" and "the number of death sentences and criminal convictions being vacated or overturned has raised serious concerns with respect to the process by which the death penalty is imposed." (Former Illinois Governor H. Ryan, Executive Order Creating The Governor's Commission On Capital Punishment, May 4, 2000).
Of course, not every claim of innocence is justified. But any criminal justice system should be able to allow for the presentation of conclusive proof of innocence, regardless how belatedly. And while questions of guilt or innocence were not at the forefront of the case of Timonthy McVeigh - before "9/11" to many people, even those otherwise opposed to the death penalty, the poster child for its application - I am not exactly comfortable with the assessment by President George W. Bush, who in 6 years as governor of Texas oversaw more than 150 executions, that McVeigh was "lucky to be an American. This is a country that will bend over backwards to make sure that his constitutional rights are guaranteed, as opposed to rushing his fate." (N.Y. Times, May 12, 2001.)
Also recommended:
Wrongly Convicted: Perspectives on Failed Justice
Dead Man Walking: An Eyewitness Account Of The Death Penalty In The United States
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True Crime Stories
Rating (5)
Date: 2005-09-23
6 out of 6 customers found this reveiw helpful
"Actual Innocence" is a legal term that refers to the wrongfully convicted. Being 'actually innocent' is not grounds for a release from prison in the criminal justice system without a new trial (Sheppard vs. Ohio). This decision must be made in a court of law, not in some laboratory. The 'Preface' tells of the beginning of the "Innocence Project" which uses DNA tests to free convicts who were innocent (p.xiv). This has "exposed a system of law that has been far too complacent about its fairness and accuracy" (p.xv). It can be due to: mistaken eyewitnesses, racism, rigged lab tests, inattentive defense lawyers, lying prosecutors. [We know how DNA evidence can be forged or fabricated, like fingerprints. There is no limit to human error.] But DNA tests only work with biological evidence, and they wonder how many were wrongfully convicted in other crimes? "Eyewitness error remains the single most important cause of wrongful convictions. If the prosecution holds back the evidence for DNA tests, a conviction prevents the right to have them done" (p.xvi). William Rehnquist agreed! Government statistics do not keep track of the number of innocent persons who are convicted (p.xvii).
Eyewitness testimony was known to be unreliable in the 19th century (Mass. vs. Borden), especially when the people are not well-known to each other. Are false confessions the obverse of misidentification? Chapter 4 explains why you should never talk to the police without your lawyer present. Police are rewarded for closing cases not leaving them open. Prosecutors are also responsible for false convictions (p.101), especially in this case (p.105). Chapter 5 discusses "scientific evidence"as it has been presented in far too many cases. How many other cases has prosecutorial perjury been passed for science (p.116)? This will continue until there are independent laboratories that are reliable. [See the book "Tainting Evidence".] Chapter 6 has examples of prosecutorial perjury. Could hairs be planted for evidence (p.151)? Page 157 tells of safeguards against false information. Chapter 7 deals with the "junk science" of hair analysis and its weaknesses (p.162). There is a need to regulate crime laboratories (p.170). Chapter 8 tells of "harmless error", deliberate misstatements used to convict suspects (pp.174-175). A prosecutor can't be sued for knowingly allowing perjured testimony (p.180)! Are Federal prosecutors exempt from ethical rules (p.181)?
Chapter 9 shows the need for capable defense lawyers. Does the low pay for indigents' lawyers in Texas result in a higher number of executions (p.189)? President Clinton and Speaker Newton Gingrich made it easier to convict the innocent (p.190)! Public defenders are overworked and underpaid (p.191). Chapter 10 tells how "Race" can result in the conviction of a man later found innocent by DNA evidence. Chapter 11 shows how a heinous crime demands a conviction. The need to cover the face of a suspect is to avoid false witnessing (p.215). Page 217 tells how an innocent comment can be twisted into a sign of guilt. One out of eight condemned to death is later freed as totally innocent (p.218)! Chapter 12 tells of the problems facing the wrongly convicted. The test for counterfeiting evidence is on pages 236-237. Sometimes people see what they believe, not the other way around (p.237). Chapter 13 has lessons from crimes. Conviction of an innocent may mask a serial murderer (p.244). If DNA tests were done right away it could eliminate suspects (p.245). [Unless a blood sample would be used to frame a suspect.] No state has an Innocence Commission to review convictions (p.246).
Appendix 1 has a short list of reforms to protect the innocent.
Erle Stanley Gardner and the "Court of Last Resort" pioneered investigations into the wrongfully convicted around 1948 (p.249). Gardner's advocacy for the use of forensic science educated generations of his readers. His books outsold the totals of his competitors. "Potboilers"? Shame on the authors!
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Unjustly imprisoned
Rating (5)
Date: 2004-03-26
8 out of 9 customers found this reveiw helpful
Actual Innocence is a very deep and detailed book that i am sure anyone would enjoy reading. We are talking about real cases of men who were put in jail for many years, being accused of crimes that they never did. Some were even send to death row,luckly the innocence project was able to help these men by testing their DNA. Reading these stories made me mad because how can someone be left in jail for so many years when they are innocent. I learned that many of these cases occurr because of mistaken eyewitness. The victim will accuse someone else that they think is the one. I really liked the book because i lets you know many things that go on in these types of cases. The best part of all is that now there is DNA that can prove someone guilty and hopefully this injustice can end.
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BUY THE PAPERBACK
Rating  (4)
Date: 2003-11-29
9 out of 12 customers found this reveiw helpful
I am primarily offended that the authors and Amazon publish the almost the exact same book in both hardback and paperback with different titles in order to sucker folks into buying both. Amazon outright recommends the purchase of both books - but you should only buy the paperback. It has all the text of the more expensive hardback plus one additional chapter.The book graphically displays some of the problems with the justice system; it fails, however, to examine the proponents' take on the death penalty. By failing to make such an examination, people with little or no opinion or those who are pro-death penalty will likely make changes to their political thought without the necessary logical underpinnings.
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So true
Rating (5)
Date: 2003-07-30
5 out of 5 customers found this reveiw helpful
this was a good book because it's so true. we always hear about the victims' side but it is seldom considered to hear the other side. i never understood how much DNA has revolutionized forensics and something that really shocked me was how unreliable eyewitness are.
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