Record Number of US Exonerations in 2015

The workings of the US justice system are currently big on TV: The previously less well-known case of Steven Avery (“Making a Murderer”/Netflix) and the very well -known case of O.J. Simpson (“The People v. O.J. Simpson: An American Crime Story”/FX) are talked about series centered on the question of whether justice was served?

Data collected by the National Registry of Exonerations, which is a project of the University of Michigan Law School, strongly suggests that justice isn’t in all cases served well at all: In 2015 a total of 149 cases were overturned in 29 States, D.C. and Guam. Which according to the registry is a new record high, as in 2014 ten cases less were recorded. Since 1989 a grand total of 1,773 verdicts were overturned.

Of those who were exonerated in 2015, Johnnie Savory waited the longest time for his exoneration. He was convicted of murder in 1977, when he was just 14 years old. He walked out the prison gates in 2006, paroled at the age of 44, and was exonerated last year. His guilty verdict was based on a false confession and overturned on the basis of DNA evidence.

In 26 cases DNA evidence helped to reinstate innocence 2015. The Registry of Exonerations also has the case of Steven Avery, the main protagonist in “Making a Murderer”, on file.

Published @ Huffingtonpost.co.uk