wrongful conviction

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Student Journos in Court Over Murder Investigation

Northwestern's acclaimed Innocence Project under fire

(Newser) - A group of Illinois journalism students found themselves in court yesterday, accused of flirting with and paying off sources during a 2003-2006 investigation for the Medill Innocence Project. The Northwestern students claim to have uncovered evidence exonerating Anthony McKinney, convicted in 1982 of murdering a security guard. Both sides went...

Lawsuits Raise Stink Over Police Dogs' 'Scent Evidence'

(Newser) - Recent lawsuits are bringing the reliability of police dogs’ noses into question, USA Today reports. Since 2004, three men have been released after wrongful convictions based partially on scent evidence, and two current federal suits target a well-known Texas deputy who works with his dogs across the nation. “It’...

Texas Could See First-Ever Posthumous Exoneration

DNA evidence vindicates dead convict

(Newser) - A hearing this week could result in Texas’ first-ever posthumous exoneration based on DNA evidence, the AP reports. Tim Cole, who died of a heart attack in prison in 1999, was convicted in the 1985 rape of a Texas Tech student. But an imprisoned rapist’s recent admission of guilt,...

Dallas DA Makes Waves by Overturning Convictions

DA makes waves with quest to root out wrongful convictions

(Newser) - Craig Watkins is becoming famous for something rather unusual for a district attorney: getting people out of jail, the Wall Street Journal reports. The Dallas County prosecutor is painstakingly going through hundreds of convictions secured by his predecessors, using DNA evidence to overturn wrongful convictions. His Conviction Integrity Unit has...

Man Granted Retrial After 26 Years Behind Bars

Confession of actual gunman finally released after his death

(Newser) - Alton Logan tasted freedom yesterday for the first time in 26 years after being granted a new trial, reports the Chicago Tribune. The Illinois man was locked up in 1982 for killing a security guard. Another man confessed to the killings but his attorneys, prevented from coming forward by attorney-client...

FBI Pays Out $101M in Mob Suit
FBI Pays Out
$101M in
Mob Suit
Jul 26, 2007 4:54 PM CDT

FBI Pays Out $101M in Mob Suit

Record award for four men wrongfully sent to prison for 1965 murder

(Newser) - A federal judge ordered the government to pay $101.7M after the FBI withheld evidence related to a 1965 murder in Boston that sent four men to prison for three decades. "This case is about intentional misconduct, suborning of perjury" and "the framing of innocent men," said...

Wronged Ex-Cons: Why Some Get Payday, Some Don't

(Newser) - How much is a year of jail time worth if you're falsely convicted? The potential awards vary widely, the American Prospect reports. Some states fix rates, with exonerated Wisconsinites claiming $5,000 per year in the clink while those from Alabama get $50,000. Twenty-two states have no laws guaranteeing...

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