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A review by taylorcali
You Might Go to Prison, Even Though You're Innocent by Justin Brooks
5.0
Written by the California Innocence Project founder, headquartered here in San Diego, I can only hope to run into this author one day. This book is full of the rewarding work he and his colleagues do to try to free those truly innocent in our justice system.
It appears a lot of people (and people of color, at that) in this day and age ended up in prison post–War on Drugs declaration from Reagan in the 1980s. Especially those with priors. And before our DNA evidence was technologically advanced like it is today. Before that, people were convicted and sentenced based on ONE lineup identification by an eyewitness. Crazy. So there's how the "you might go to prison even though you're innocent" comes into play for this book (not that you'd just be plucked off the street and thrown into prison, which is perhaps how this title could be interpreted).
The author talks about stories of people he's freed and offers in the end possible reforms that could help keep innocent people out of prison. One of those is doing away with the jury trials altogether—something I never realized was unique to the United States/Western culture. (Also something I don't think will ever happen in our lifetime.) Reforms to lineups could also help—telling possible eyewitnesses the suspect may or MAY NOT be in this lineup, and showing them a second lineup saying the same thing.
On and on we could go, but it seems a lot of it starts with the police and how they handle investigations and eyewitnesses, leading to convictions of innocent people, as the jury will put all their weight into this one witness's identification.
Anyway, this was well done and kept my attention the entire time. And if the California Innocence Project ever needs an editor, I'm available. That, or maybe I should just go to law school already.
It appears a lot of people (and people of color, at that) in this day and age ended up in prison post–War on Drugs declaration from Reagan in the 1980s. Especially those with priors. And before our DNA evidence was technologically advanced like it is today. Before that, people were convicted and sentenced based on ONE lineup identification by an eyewitness. Crazy. So there's how the "you might go to prison even though you're innocent" comes into play for this book (not that you'd just be plucked off the street and thrown into prison, which is perhaps how this title could be interpreted).
The author talks about stories of people he's freed and offers in the end possible reforms that could help keep innocent people out of prison. One of those is doing away with the jury trials altogether—something I never realized was unique to the United States/Western culture. (Also something I don't think will ever happen in our lifetime.) Reforms to lineups could also help—telling possible eyewitnesses the suspect may or MAY NOT be in this lineup, and showing them a second lineup saying the same thing.
On and on we could go, but it seems a lot of it starts with the police and how they handle investigations and eyewitnesses, leading to convictions of innocent people, as the jury will put all their weight into this one witness's identification.
Anyway, this was well done and kept my attention the entire time. And if the California Innocence Project ever needs an editor, I'm available. That, or maybe I should just go to law school already.