Wrongful Convictions

There are checks and balances in the criminal justice system. Unfortunately, they are not enough to stop you from a conviction for a crime you did not commit. The legal system doesn’t treat everyone equally. Thousands of convictions have been overturned after innocent people spent years in prison. Without advances like DNA testing, many of those innocent people might still be behind bars.

After a criminal conviction, defendants only have a limited amount of time to file an appeal. It can be difficult to win an appeal in a criminal case. To find out more about your legal rights after a wrongful conviction, contact a criminal appeals defense attorney.

Grounds for Overturning a Wrongful Conviction

There are limited legal grounds to overturn a wrongful conviction. The criminal appeals court may only consider an appeal if a wrongfully convicted person can show evidence of prosecutorial misconduct, newly discovered DNA evidence, or other evidence to support reopening the case.

Some causes of wrongful convictions include:

• Mishandling of evidence
• Perjury and false accusations
• Misleading forensic evidence
• False confession
• Eyewitness misidentification
• Ineffective legal defense
• Misconduct by police or prosecutors

Ineffective Defense Counsel

The Sixth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution guarantees criminal defendants the right to an attorney. As a defendant, you expect your lawyer — even if it’s a public defender — to be professional, qualified, and competent. Unfortunately, that is not always the case.

The U.S. Supreme Court determined that a criminal defendant has the right to an effective lawyer, in the 1984 case of Strickland v. Washington. To prove that a court-appointed lawyer provided ineffective assistance of counsel, a defendant has to show both that:

• Their lawyer’s performance was objectively deficient under the circumstances
• There is a reasonable probability that the result would have been different if not for the deficient performance.

Unreliable Eyewitness Identification

People like to think they are reliable with what they can see with their own eyes. However, there are several problems with relying on eyewitness identification. Problems with misidentification can include:

• The witness is distracted at the time
• The witness gets a poor view of the incident
• Faulty memory after time elapses
• Suggestive questioning when testifying

According to the Innocence Project, mistaken identification is a factor in an “overwhelming majority” of DNA exonerations. Innocent people often have to rely on forensic science and post-conviction DNA testing to overturn these wrongful convictions.

In a police lineup, the police may include a handful of people who do not match the description of the suspect. The eyewitness may mistakenly believe that one of the people in the lineup has to be the suspect. This can lead them to point to the one person who most closely matches the description even if they are not confident.

Over time, eyewitnesses may lose a clear picture of what subjects looked like. Memory can start to fade in a matter of hours. The police may also use hints and suggestive language to try and steer witnesses to picking someone who the police already suspect. For example, when presenting witnesses with a book of mug shots, police could focus on one picture and bias a witness’s choice.

Forced or False Confessions

Many people do not understand how someone could confess to a crime they did not commit. However, the stress and coercive tactics of the police can break innocent people. Police officers can pressure suspects to admit to a crime they did not commit using:

• Physical force
• Threats against the suspect or the suspect’s family
• Exploiting suspects who have a limited mental capacity
• Coercion through deprivation of sleep, food, or water

Unreliable Informants

Juries may hear from informants who claim that defendants admitted to crimes. A jury may be more likely to believe an informant before they find out about their motivations. False reports from snitches may help them get a reduced sentence in exchange for informing on a defendant. Police may also promise leniency to confidential informants in exchange for testifying against another defendant.

Misconduct by Police or Prosecutors

The Sixth Amendment also guarantees criminal defendants the right to a public trial with an impartial jury. Unfortunately, defendants do not always receive a fair trial. State prosecutors may have access to exculpatory evidence — evidence that would suggest that the defendant is innocent. If the prosecutor withholds that information, the defendant may not get a fair trial.

How Common Are Wrongful Convictions?

According to the National Registry of Exonerations, there were 233 recorded exonerations in 2022. Of those exonerations, false convictions cost them an average of 9.6 years of wrongful imprisonment. A majority of those exonerees suffered a miscarriage of justice because of official misconduct.

It can be difficult to prove actual innocence. However, new evidence of innocence can help you overturn a wrongful conviction. To understand your legal options after a wrongful conviction, talk to a criminal appeals lawyer about your case.