A record 1,639 years were lost in prison by those wrongly convicted and exonerated in 2018, according to “Exonerations in 2018,” the annual report of The National Registry of Exonerations (NRE). The 151 persons exonerated in 2018 spent an average of 10.9 years wrongly incarcerated before exoneration. The report highlights milestones, trends, and the year’s specific exoneration takeaways.
For example, in September 2018 the total number of years lost by exonerees exceeded the milestone of 20,000. As of today, that number is 21,095 lost years for the 2,418 persons known to have been exonerated since 1989.
One highlight of 2018 was an extraordinary 31 defendants exonerated as a result of the scandal in Chicago stemming from an era of police corruption led by Sergeant Ronald Watts in which defendants were framed by police on drug and weapons charges. Reinvestigation of these cases — 30 of which were drug crimes — prompted the exonerations.
The Registry notes contributors to wrongful conviction in each case of exoneration. The 31 Chicago cases were included in at least 107 cases involving official misconduct, a Continue reading
Vietnam: in a recent wrongful conviction case, where a man spent 18 years in prison for a murder he did not commit (along with many of his relatives), a large compensation package has been agreed. Interestingly however, this compensation is to be paid after a ‘compensator’ agrees who was responsible for the miscarriage of justice, and how much each they must then contribute to the compensation sum. So potentially, the police and prosecutors involved in the case will have to pay – from their own pockets – towards the compensation. Some details are to be found here…
Wrongful Convictions Blog 