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Wrongful Convictions In Capital Cases

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Since 1930, 90 percent of individuals executed for rape have been African Americans. This issue has faced multiple controversies due to the belief of “complete confidence” of the criminal justice system (Harmon, 2004). Wrongful convictions have historically occurred due to the races of the defendant versus the race of the victim. This is an in issue because these cases impair the integrity and reliability of the court system (Harmon, 2004). Wrong convictions are not as uncommon as believed by the public. Though the “complete confidence” stigma exists around the system, there are still a wide variety of errors that occur. Racial discrimination represented in early research shows the primary reason for error in conviction for capital cases (Harmon, 2004). Between 1900 and 1985, more than 350 wrongfully convicted individuals were sentenced and of these, 23 were wrongfully executed. Forty-three percent of the 350 defendants were African American’s which is suggestive evidence to support that race can increase the likelihood of conviction (Harmon, 2004). Potentially capital crimes are …show more content…

A severe issue with the reliability of the legal system is the large amounts of cases in which individuals that are falsely convicted on capital crimes facing punishment by death (Harmon, 2004). Upon further investigation, the discovery was made through extensive research about the increased pressures in the courtrooms due to the races present. While the race of the victim plays a substantial role in the discrimination process of the courtroom, it is also an issue of who is facing the capital penalties. Officials on cases are influenced by the pressures in the courtroom including the amount of evidence identifying the defendant, but in some cases, a nonwhite defendant is convicted on less evidence presented than a white defendant (Harmon,

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