Key Findings: Ensure Innocent Individuals Are Not Sent to Prison
-
The problem of false confessions is not entirely uncommon. In Austin’s infamous Yogurt Shop murders, more than 50 different individuals confessed to the crime, most of whom had nothing to do with the case.[i]
-
Eighty-two percent of Texas’ 38 wrongful convictions exposed by DNA testing were based largely or exclusively on incorrect eyewitness identifications.[ii]
-
Dallas County has had more DNA-based exonerations than any other place in the nation since 2001, when state law began allowing post-DNA testing. In Dallas County, 18 of 19 DNA exonerations involved faulty eyewitness identifications.[iii]
[i] Scott Henson, Policy Director, Innocence Project of Texas, “Juries need more, better information to prevent false convictions,” Grits for Breakfast, http://gritsforbreakfast.blogspot.com/search?q=yogurt+shop
[ii] The Justice Project, Eyewitness Identification Procedures in Texas, (November 2008), http://www.thejusticeproject.org/wp-content/uploads/texas-eyewitness-report-final2.pdf.
[iii] Associated Press, “Dallas police to participate in photo lineup study,” The Examiner, January 1, 2009, http://www.examiner.com/a-1772188~Dallas_police_to_participate_in_photo_lineup_study.html.