The recent story of the man who has been released on bond after serving 26 years in prison for a crime he did NOT commit has me once again fuming with anger.
This time, two attorneys had known for 26 years they had the wrong guy in prison. They even had a written confession from the real killer. Did they come forward with the truth? No. Instead, they locked the confession in a box and hid it under their bed. Only until the real killer died did they bother to step up to the plate. Of course that was TWO YEARS AGO!
Wrongfully convicted men and women are sent to prison every day! For very few, their only hope is from the Innocence Project, a group of law students who volunteer their time and prove innocence. Unforunately, the Innocence Project can only take cases where DNA is involved. For the rest that have been wrongfully convicted, there is very little hope.
The judicial system of our country is seriously flawed. Prosecutors, Attorneys and Judges are looking for career feathers in their hats...cops are looking for anyone to pin a crime on....and juries just want to go home. I have no faith in our judicial system whatsoever....and NO, to say it is the best system we have is a crock. The moment one is accused of a crime, he or she is labeled 'guilty' in the eyes of society and promptly convicted by a jury. There is no "innocent until proven guilty" in our country....unless of course your name is O.J. Simpson, Michael Jackson or Kobe Bryant. Money buys freedom... money is power...the average person doesn't stand a chance.
Of the very few that are lucky enough to have the Innocence Project take their case and prove their innocence, will still never get the lost years back. Their lives have been ruined along with the lives of their families.
Very rarely do these stories make headlines. Wonder why? Oh my, that would be an admission of failure of the very judicial system that wrongfully convicted them.
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