Convicting the Innocent: Death Row and America's Broken System of Justice

by Stanley Cohen

“A landmark in the fight against the death penalty. Extensively researched and brilliantly written . . . The Wrong Men is a gem.” Martin Garbus, criminal defense attorneyEvery day, innocent men across America are thrown into prison, betrayed by a faulty justice system, and robbed of their lives-either by decades-long sentences or the death penalty itself. Injustice tarnishes our legal process from start to finish. From the racial discrimination and violence used by backwards law enforcement officers, to a prison culture that breeds inmate conflict, there is opportunity for error at every turn.Award-winning journalist Stanley Cohen chronicles over one hundred of these cases, from the 1973 case of the first ever death row exoneree, David Keaton, to multiple cases as of 2015 that resulted from the corrupt practices of NYPD Detective Louis Scarcella (with nearly seventy Brooklyn cases under review for wrongful conviction). In the wake of these unjust convictions, grassroots organizations, families, and pro bono lawyers have battled this rampant wrongdoing. Cohen reveals how eyewitness error, jailhouse snitch testimony, racism, junk science, prosecutorial misconduct, and incompetent counsel have populated America’s prisons with the innocent.Readers embark on journeys with men who were arrested, convicted, sentenced to life in prison or death, dragged through the appeals system, and finally set free based on their actual innocence. Although these stories end with vindication, there are those that have ended with unjustified execution. Convicting the Innocent is sure to fuel controversy over a justice system that has delivered the ultimate punishment nearly one thousand times since 1976, though it cannot guarantee accurate convictions.

Genres: Nonfiction, True Crime, Crime, Audiobook

314 pages, Kindle Edition

Published April 5, 2016

About the author

There are more than one Stanley Cohen author.

*Stanley Cohen (1922-): USA biochemist
*Stanley Cohen (1928–2010): USA crime novelist
*Stanley Cohen (1934-): USA sport writer
*Stanley Cohen (1937-): USA biologist
*Stanley Cohen (1942–2013): South Africa-British sociologist

Reviews

[Chrissie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I listened to the audiobook, which was well narrated. For true crime fans, hearing that the US justice system is broken, racially biased, and that innocent people have been executed, may come as no surprise. These are the main reasons why I am opposed to the death penalty - you cannot raise the dead if there has been a mistake! There are a few examples in the UK of innocent people who have been hanged, but thankfully we have not had the death penalty here for decades. All that said, an informative book for crime fans.

[Kari · Rating 2 out of 5]

Though the subject matter was extremely interesting to me, the layout was a disappointment. Rather than showcasing a few compelling cases in depth to illustrate each point of faulty conviction, Cohen gives a brief synopsis of dozens of cases in each chapter making the names and circumstances blur together. I had a hard time staying engaged and would read a few here and there before skipping to the next chapter. Also, all of the cases were older - in the 80's and 90's - and I wanted more current examples and references. Are there no stats for the modern convicts on death row, have the cases not resolved yet, or have things changed so that what Cohen is portraying is no longer valid? More up to date examples seems necessary.

[Megan Hex · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a pretty important book which goes over cases of many wrongfully convicted people on death row. Most of the cases in the book were exonerated, but not all, and it's a really illuminating look at the incredibly corrupt state of the criminal justice system in the US. That said, it's quite dry and needed more information to break up the stories.

[Ardys Richards · Rating 4 out of 5]

Frightening account of our use of capital punishment. Its' application in situations where the guilt of the charged was so shoddily "proven" is horrifying. We truly have two different criminal justice systems in the U.S.--one for the poor and/or black, and a different one for the white and/or affluent.

[John Willis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short accounts of the more than 100 people who have been released from Death Row. These people were released for reasons such as corruption, snitches who had things to gain and gave false testimony, junk science, and reasonable doubt. It was very sad to read about the years that some of these Men faced on death row and also in prison. For those that think our legal system works like a well oiled machine, this would be a good book to read.

[Harry · Rating 3 out of 5]

I agree with the mindset that centering the human cost but felt like this book ended up really light on analysis

the way the examples were framed felt a little like a 'bad apples' account - while there are certainly bad apples, and the book does touch on systemic reasons for police chasing convictions in a way that prejudices the defendent, particularly given the emphasis the author places on DNA as incorruptible, a defender of the death penalty may argue that all is needed is to remove bad apples and ensure there is DNA evidence

the book also has 'inequality of justice' in the title, and again though disparity in experience between white/non-white defendents is touched on, it's not analysed particularly effective

while abolishing the death penalty is a great first step, having innocent people doing life sentences (in a system that thrives on effective slavery of prisoners) is scarcely better

tldr: reform of the system is not enough!

[David Pierce · Rating 3 out of 5]

Greatly disturbing and indicative of the problems with our judicial system. I am reading a lot on the subject matter. My opinions are quickly changing. I cannot give total credit to Cohen for it, but I can assign to him credit for further adding to my confidence that this is truth. I have gone from pro-capital punishment to opposition. Our judicial system is corrupt. I resist the notion that all players are corrupt, but the system is flawed and prejudiced and self-serving. The tragedy is that innocents are paying the price with ruined lives, and the pain wicks out to their families and communities.

[Shaun · Rating 5 out of 5]

An incredible account of many innocent people that spent decades in prison, some on death row. The book highlights many people sentenced on the flimsiest of evidence or even corruption and wrong eye witnesses.
It makes you wonder how many are still rotting away in prison completely innocent and how many have been sentenced and put to death?

[Donna · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very interesting book. It's scary to think that this happens.

[Leanna Aker · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow. If this doesn't keep you up at night, cause you to rethink our justice system (at the least, if not the death penalty), I don't know what will.

[Andréa]

Note: I accessed a digital review copy of this book through Edelweiss.

[Mini · Rating 1 out of 5]

It's just a collection of summaries of cases, very samey as a result and generally doesn't go as deep as I'd like into the system itself.

[Sabrina Bright · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book has a very interesting premise, but it was a very dry read. We do need to fix out justice system but I wish this book had made me want to care. I found it to be dry, dull and boring.

[Maria · Rating 2 out of 5]

poor layout, enlightening, comprehensive, realistic, somewhat outdated cases

[Sue · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked the individual histories but not the rhetoric and personal opinions that qualify as fillers.

[Reviewer]

I was expecting a more thorough breakdown of the system, the trials, the things which went wrong. This book became very samey very quickly. I read 40% of it and became annoyed with chapter after chapter of very skimmed stories - guy went to prison, didn't do it, got out again; guy went to prison, didn't do it... I wanted more about HOW these things go this wrong. Glad I decided to bail out and get a refund. If you want something with a bit more meat, try Mistrial.