The relationship between law enforcement and prosecutors, which goes hand-in-hand, can’t be overlooked. Evidence of a crime that detectives and law enforcement discover is as equally important as a good trial on part of the prosecution. If detectives aren’t able to find good solid evidence – that case usually isn’t bothered in being pursued. Several years ago, in the late 80’s, there was a murder case in Southeastern Oklahoma which now serves as a tragic example to the need for honest, constitutional work in the criminal justice system. Disreputable investigative procedures, fraudulent sources, and bad evidence were the foundation of this case that shattered innocent lives. I wanted to look at the investigative and criminal procedures following the arrest of an alleged criminal and the powerful effects via testimonies and evidence (or lack thereof) it can have on a case.There is an importance of the courts in regards to crime that can’t be over looked. The primary function of the criminal justice system is to uphold the established laws, which define what we understand as deviant in this society. It all started on the evening of December 7, 1982. A young waitress in her twenties, named Debbie Carter, had taken off of her shift early at a local Ada bar. She proceeded to enjoy a few drinks with several old high school friends before heading home shortly after midnight. Debbie was last seen having a confrontation with a man who was a regular at the bars as she got into her vehicle. The waitress’s friends had asked her to come join a group of them going to back to one of the friend’s houses to continue the hanging out; Debbie declined, but about 2:30a.m., her friend, Gina received two calls back to back from Debbie. Through all the n... ... middle of paper ... ... fair to say that Williamson’s conviction and death sentence resulted from a combination of mental illness, junk science, political pressure, unscrupulous police work, and incompetent counsel.” (Coyne) Works Cited Coyne, Randle. "Dead Wrong in Oklahoma." Tulsa Law Review 42 (n.d.): 211-16. Coyne, Randall T. Tulsa Law, 2006. Web. 23 Nov. 2013. Harris, George C. "Testimony for Sale: The Law and Ethics of Snitches and Experts." Pepperdine Law Review (2000-2001): 28. Online. http://heinonline.org/HOL/LandingPage?handle=hein.journals/pepplr28&div=8&id=&page= Garrett, Brandon. Convicting the Innocent: Where Criminal Prosecutions Go Wrong. Cambridge, MA: Harvard UP, 2011. 86. Print. Paul C. Giannell Kassin, Saul M. Why confessions trump innocence. American Psychologist, Vol 67(6), Sep 2012, 431-445. doi: 10.1037/a0028212 http://psycnet.apa.org/journals/amp/67/6/431/
Swanson, C. R., Chamelin, N. C., & Territo, L. (2012). Criminal investigation. New York: McGraw-Hill Higher Education.
Hickey, T. J. (2010). Taking Sides: Clashing Views in Crime and Criminology, 9th Edition. New York, NY: The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
Convicting the Innocent: A Critique of the Theories of Wrongful Convictions. Criminal Law Forum, 20(2/3), 173-192. Crime in the United States. (n.d.) Retrieved from http://www.fbi.gov/ Friedman, S. (2014, March 10).
The New York Times bestseller book titled Reasonable Doubts: The Criminal Justice System and the O.J. Simpson Case examines the O.J. Simpson criminal trial of the mid-1990s. The author, Alan M. Dershowitz, relates the Simpson case to the broad functions and perspectives of the American criminal justice system as a whole. A Harvard law school teacher at the time and one of the most renowned legal minds in the country, Dershowitz served as one of O.J. Simpson’s twelve defense lawyers during the trial. Dershowitz utilizes the Simpson case to illustrate how today’s criminal justice system operates and relates it to the misperceptions of the public. Many outside spectators of the case firmly believed that Simpson committed the crimes for which he was charged for. Therefore, much of the public was simply dumbfounded when Simpson was acquitted. Dershowitz attempts to explain why the jury acquitted Simpson by examining the entire American criminal justice system as a whole.
Steve Bogira, a prizewinning writer, spent a year observing Chicago's Cook County Criminal Courthouse. The author focuses on two main issues, the death penalty and innocent defendants who are getting convicted by the pressure of plea bargains, which will be the focus of this review. The book tells many different stories that are told by defendants, prosecutors, a judge, clerks, and jurors; all the people who are being affected and contributing to the miscarriage of justice in today’s courtrooms.
Pollock, J. M. (2012). Crime and justice in America: An introduction to criminal justice. Amsterdam: Elsevier.
Rosen, Jeffrey. “The Wrongful Conviction as Way of Life”. 26 May 2011. The New York Times. 12 July 2011. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/29/books/review/book-review-convicting-the-innocent-where-criminal-prosecutions-go-wrong-by-brandon-l-garrett.html.
Dating back to 1923, Judge Learned Hand said that the American judicial system “has always been haunted by the ghost of the innocent man convicted” (Jones, 2010). Wrongful convictions weren’t really the center of attention until a professor from Yale University published a book called Convicting the Innocent in 1932. This book shined light on 65 cases, pointed out legal reasons and presented ideas to bring upon reform.
Despite the prominence and success of over sixty innocence projects in United States, there is no literatures discussing how these organizations operate, what resources or factors contribute to their success and what challenges they much overcome (Krieger, S.A 2007). The Innocence Project’s groundbreaking use of DNA technology to free innocent people has provided irrefutable proof that wrongful convictions are not isolated or rare events but instead arise from systemic defects (Innocence Project, 2014). The innocence project is a nonprofit organization that is being run by attorneys w...
Innocent or guilty courtroom decisions are often high-stakes. However, the precise consequences of the verdict is unknown in U.S. judicial systems when the guilt versus innocence decision is being made. Dixit and Nalebuff (1991) explain that this order of decision-making "can mean the difference between life and death, or even between conviction and acquittal" (p.
Lyman, D. Michael; Criminal Investigation, The Art and Science; 3rd edition, 2002 Prentice Hall. Pgs. 188-200.
As crime in America seems to be decreasing, reports from law enforcement experts state that: violent crimes are expected to increase (Butterfield 6). Many people feel that the American Judicial System treats the criminal as a victim, therefore, favoring the criminal. The American judicial system, however, has taken an attitude that “Perpetrators not only deserve blame but are worthy of it, in the fullest, most human sense of the word” (Reidinger 98). Despite the popular belief that the American Judicial System favors the criminal, in reality, this system imposes strict penalties in the majority of criminal defense cases in this country.
Forensic evidence can provide just outcomes in criminal matters. However, it is not yet an exact science as it can be flawed. It can be misrepresented through the reliability of the evidence, through nonstandard guidelines, and through public perception. Forensic science can be dangerously faulty without focus on the ‘science’ aspect. It can at times be just matching patterns based on an individual’s interpretations. This can lead to a miscarriage of justice and forever alter a person’s life due to a perceived “grey area” (Merritt C, 2010) resulting in a loss of confidence in the reliability of forensic evidence.
Time may pass and personal morals may change, but one of the strengths of the United States of America is its unwavering dedication to justice. Throughout time, this country’s methods and laws have grown and adapted, but the basis of the law enforcement’s work has remained the same: the safety and interest of the people.
Murphy, E. (2007). The New Forensics: Criminal Justice, False Certainty, and the Second Generation of Scientific Evidence. California Law Review, 2007, 95(72), 721-745