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Juvenile Interrogations and the Exonerated Five: An Examination of Wrongful Convictions
The Exonerated Five, formerly the Central Park Five, exemplifies the dire consequences of wrongful juvenile interrogations. In 1989, Kevin Richardson, Raymond Santana, Antron McCray, Yusef Salaam, and Korey Wise, Black and Latino teenagers, were unjustly accused and imprisoned for a crime they did not committhe brutal assault and rape of a Central Park jogger.
The case of the Exonerated Five gained national attention due to its racial undertones, the intense media scrutiny surrounding the trial, and the age of the accused. At their arrest, the five teenagers, aged between 14 and 16, were subjected to grueling interrogations that ultimately led to false confessions. The wrongful convictions underscored systemic problems within the criminal justice system and prompted worries regarding how juvenile suspects are treated during interrogations.
One of the most alarming aspects of the Exonerated Five case was the coercive nature of the interrogations (Webb et al., 2020). The teenagers were subjected to lengthy, high-pressure interrogations without their parents or legal counsel present. The tactics used by law enforcement officers, such as deceptive promises of leniency and threats, pushed these vulnerable young individuals into making false confessions (Webb et al., 2020). Research has...…teens as "wilding" criminals. This racial bias tainted both public opinion and law enforcement's handling of the case. Recognizing how racial stereotypes exacerbate wrongful convictions, especially among minority youth, is crucial.
The Exonerated Five case sparked critical legal reforms in the criminal justice system. In 2002, Matias Reyes, a serial rapist, confessed to the Central Park jogger's attack, and DNA evidence corroborated this. These revelations led to the exoneration of the five individuals who had served their sentences. The case prompted changes in New York's interrogation practices, requiring video recording and juvenile counsel presence. However, these reforms came too late for the…
References
Webb, P., Savard, D., & Delaney, A. (2020). The color of confinement: examining youth exoneration decisions and the critical race theory. Journal of Ethnicity in Criminal Justice, 18(3), 206-237. https://doi.org/10.1080/15377938.2020.1754990
Wrongful Conviction Review: Henry James Wrongful convictions are convictions where "factually innocent people are convicted of crimes" (Acker & Redlich, 2011, p.3). There are a number of ways that wrongful convictions can occur. Two of these ways are no crime convictions and wrong man convictions (Acker & Reclich, 2011, p.7-8). No crime convictions occur when someone is convicted of a crime, generally murder, and then it is later discovered that no
Wrongful Conviction of James Henry Henry James was only 19 years during his conviction for rape that he did not commit. It is after thirty years imprisonment that the realization of his innocence emerges thereby keeping it free. This case is a good example of the importance of evidence in the proceedings of a case. The imprisonment of the innocent man arose because of the little evidence that he had against
The over-enthusiasm associated with the extensive and unrestrained caution which the prosecutors avail gives birth to the settings in which a prosecutor is able to cause the conviction of an innocent individual. Besides, the mixture of over-enthusiasm and unimpeded discretion on one side and regular non-adversarialness on the other outcomes in an irregular playing field in majority of the defendants either guilty or innocent. (Griffin, 1274) The apparent cases of
Why would somebody confess to a crime they did not commit? According to professor Kassin, Saul, there are several types of people who falsely confess: compulsive type-attention seeker -- confesses to gain a piece of the fame, impress others, or to get attention compulsive type-homeless -- confesses as a way to get off the streets compulsive type-fugitive -- confesses to avoid being prosecuted for a crime elsewhere with stiffer penalties compulsive
Wrongful Convictions Based on Eyewitness Accounts Imagine if you will this hypothetical scenario -- you are walking to your car in a parking garage after a long day at work. You are tired and thinking of what is waiting for you on your desk tomorrow and what you will have to eat when you get home. Suddenly, a man jumps out from behind a parked car and points a gun at
(iv) misconduct by the police or unintentional mistake, together with the application of suggestive identification procedures, pressuring of a confession or inculpatory declaration by a suspect, not carrying out other channels of investigation following initial detection of a powerful suspect, and being unsuccessful to give the prosecutor enough proof which is able to point to an individual other than the defendant as the person behind the act. (v) Mistake