Key Findings:
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DNA testing has played a major role in changing the criminal justice system by providing scientific proof that our state convicts and sentences innocent people – and that wrongful convictions are not isolated or rare events. Most importantly, DNA testing has shed light on wrongful convictions, giving experts the opportunity to study causes and propose remedies that may minimize the chances that more innocent people are convicted.
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Overturning a wrongful conviction means that an innocent person is set free. It also means that an investigation can be reopened in order to determine the actual guilty culprit, which protects communities and assures that justice is served to victims.
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No preemptive measures are being taken to prevent future wrongful convictions: no formal entity currently exists to conduct inquiries into the prosecutorial mistakes that led to a wrongful conviction and subsequent exoneration. Because this entity does not exist – and because prosecutors do not have a vehicle through which they can learn lessons from previous exoneration inquiries – prosecutors will continue to make mistakes that could have been avoided. In fact, past wrongful convictions have demonstrated this in Texas and throughout the nation.[i]
[i] “The Innocence Project joins NY Assemblyman Gianaris to call for a state Innocence Commission.” The Innocence Project. 2006. 12 Dec. 2006. http://www.innocenceproject.org/case/index.php.