Stop Blaming the Prosecutors: The Real Causes of Wrongful Convictions and Rightful Exonerations, and What Should Be Done to Fix Them

57 Pages Posted: 19 Apr 2015 Last revised: 15 May 2015

See all articles by Charles MacLean

Charles MacLean

Metropolitan State University School of Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice

James Berles

Indiana Tech - Law School

Adam Lamparello

Georgia College and State University; Assistant Professor of Public Law

Date Written: April 18, 2015

Abstract

Wrongfully convicted and rightfully exonerated criminal defendants spent, on average, ten years in prison before exoneration, and the ramifications to the defendants, the criminal justice system, and society are immeasurable. Prosecutorial misconduct, however, is not the primary cause of wrongful convictions. To begin with, although more than twenty million new adult criminal cases are opened in state and federal courts each year throughout the United States, there have been only 1,281 total exonerations over the last twenty-five years. In only six percent of those cases was prosecutorial misconduct the predominant factor resulting in those wrongful convictions. Of course, although prosecutorial misconduct is not the driving force behind wrong convictions, prosecutors can – and should – be part of a comprehensive solution that reduces the likelihood of wrongful convictions. This article proposes a number of solutions to reduce the number of wrongful convictions in our criminal justice system, and to ensure that criminal trials are conducted in a manner that is consistent with due process of law.

Keywords: criminal law, criminal procedure, due process of law, ineffective assistance of counsel, prosecutorial misconduct

JEL Classification: K14

Suggested Citation

MacLean, Charles and Berles, James and Lamparello, Adam and Lamparello, Adam, Stop Blaming the Prosecutors: The Real Causes of Wrongful Convictions and Rightful Exonerations, and What Should Be Done to Fix Them (April 18, 2015). Hofstra Law Review, Vol. 44, No. 1, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2596072 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2596072

Charles MacLean

Metropolitan State University School of Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice ( email )

700 East Seventh Street
St. Paul, MN 55106
United States

James Berles

Indiana Tech - Law School

1600 East Washington Blvd.
Fort Wayne, IN 46803
United States

Adam Lamparello (Contact Author)

Georgia College and State University ( email )

Milledgeville, GA 31061-0490
United States

Assistant Professor of Public Law ( email )

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