Innocence Project - MintPress News

Six Wrongfully Convicted Of 1985 Murder in Nebraska Seek Civil Rights Damages

“The only good thing I can tell you about this case is that no one was electrocuted.”

January 10th, 2014

Six Wrongfully Convicted Of 1985 Murder in Nebraska Seek Civil Rights Damages

Almost 19 years after a 68-year-old woman was raped and murdered in her Beatrice, Neb., home, a federal jury has started hearing evidence in a civil rights case alleging law enforcement officials recklessly investigated the crime, leading to the wrongful convictions of six people.

The so-called Beatrice Six — three

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Matthew Heller

Report Recommends Ways To Reduce Wrongful Convictions

Report identified “tunnel vision” as major cause of wrongful convictions and also blamed culture of police as part of problem.

December 06th, 2013

By Katie Rucke @katierucke

Report Recommends Ways To Reduce Wrongful Convictions

The International Association of Chiefs of Police, the Justice Department’s Office of Justice Programs, and the advocacy group the Innocence Project announced the findings of a new report that examined the causes and solutions to wrongful convictions throughout the justice system at a joint

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Katie Rucke

Katie Rucke is a MintPress staff writer and investigative report specializing in the war on drugs, criminal justice, marijuana legislation, education and watchdog investigations as well as whistle-blowers. Her investigations related to the coverage of the 2010 Toyota recall scandal, and coverage of the trials of Anonymous hacker and proclaimed activist Jeremy Hammond as well as Bradley Manning have received international acclaim. Rucke has been recommended by the Wikileaks organization as a trusted journalist in 2013. Rucke has also written pieces for Yahoo! and various community magazines. Follow Katie on Twitter: @katierucke

Is Eyewitness Evidence Reliable? Scientists Weigh In

The brain doesn’t actually remember what it sees, but what it thinks it sees. So what should the justice system do about it?

August 21st, 2013

By Frederick Reese @FrederickReese

Is Eyewitness Evidence Reliable? Scientists Weigh In

Humans place a great deal of emphasis on their memories. Memorization has served for millennia to help mankind avoid dangers, identify friends, track and map resources and civilize the world. The power of memory — in conjunction with the power of intelligence — has defined humans as the dominant species on the planet.

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Frederick Reese

Frederick Reese is lead staff writer for Mint Press specializing in race, poverty, congressional oversight and technology. An award winning data journalist and creative writer for over 15 years, Frederick has written about and worked for social advocacy projects and personal awareness efforts. Frederick is a jack-of-all-trades, with work experience as a teacher, a pastry chef and a story writer. Frederick has publication credits with Yahoo!, B. Couleur, and more. A native New Yorker, Frederick graduated from Colgate University in 1999 and Johnson & Wales University in 2003. Frederick started his journalistic career writing for his university’s newspaper, “The Colgate Maroon-News,” before starting and heading his own magazine, “The Idealist.” Most recently, Frederick received a data journalism award from the International Center for Journalists for his minimum wage coverage for MintPress. Follow Frederick on Twitter: @frederickreese

Scientists Applaud FBI’s Decision To Review Reliability Of Forensic Hair Analysis

The reliability of Identifying suspects with hair comparison analysis has now been called into question.

July 25th, 2013

By Mint Press News Desk

Scientists Applaud FBI’s Decision To Review Reliability Of Forensic Hair Analysis

The FBI announced last week it would reexamine thousands of once-closed cases in which a person was convicted -- and in some cases put to death -- based on hair samples. Known as

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Nation Still Divided Over Death Penalty, But Not In Texas

In all likelihood, one Kimberly McCarthy will be the 500th person executed in Texas since the death penalty was reinstated in 1976.

June 25th, 2013

By Martin Michaels @MMichaelsMPN

Nation Still Divided Over Death Penalty, But Not In Texas

Kimberly McCarthy, an inmate convicted of murder, could hold the dubious distinction of being the 500th person executed in Texas since Gregg v. Georgia, a 1976 decision reinstating the use of the death penalty. She is scheduled to be put to death by lethal injection this Wednesday barring a last-minute stay of execution.

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Rising Rate of Prisoner Exoneration Reveals flaws in US Justice System

If only one percent of the over 2 million Americans behind bars were innocent, that would mean 20,000 people are currently serving prison sentences for crimes that they did not commit.

January 12th, 2012

By Carissa Wyant

Rising Rate of Prisoner Exoneration Reveals flaws in US Justice System

While the maxim “it’s better that 10 guilty persons go free rather than one innocent person suffer” is one which pervades the ideology behind the US criminal justice system, recent cases of innocent people being exonerated in the U.S. reveal unnerving flaws in the system itself. In 1980, Ricky Dale Wyatt, a 25-year-old African American man, was

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These People Spent Decades In Jail For Crimes They Didn’t Commit

Thanks to the work of the Innocence Network all over the world, they were finally freed.