Assignment.

Assignment

[Name of the Writer]

[Name of the Institution]

Assignment

Question 1

There is no doubt that a number of people are seen going to prison on a daily basis. However, the fact of the matter is that not all of them are criminals. One thing that must be taken into consideration is that a large number of innocent people are sentenced to death due to false accusations. The reason for that is the lack of efforts by the government. Although, it's true that it's not each case, still even if a single person is hanged, and later on it is found that the person was innocent, it results into the failure of government.

The matter of fact is that the rate of innocent defendants who are seen serving their lives in the prison is quite high as compared to those on death row. It has been estimated roughly that more than 2 million people are behind bars in the United States which leads to the fact that the wrongful conviction rate would translate to about 20,000 people that are punished for crimes that are in reality not done by them (Cassell, 2018).

It can simply be concluded that it is quite common to see individuals in the 21st century to wrongly convicted in the criminal justice system. However, when it comes to the previous centuries, then there is no doubt that the wrongfully convicted individuals' rates is quite low in the current century. However, the undeniable fact is that whether a single person is convicted falsely or ever, ten people are convicted falsely, it is always unfair.

Question 2

In the United States, the notion of wrongful conviction is often referred to as an "unreal dream." There is no doubt that a large number of people are sentenced to either death or convicted falsely in the United States. Numberless examples are seen where people are behind bars for the crimes that they didn't commit. However, one thing that must be taken into consideration is the fact that the American government has tried its best in the past to overcome this big issue and save the lives of innocent people. The best example, in this case, would be the Innocence Protection Act.

Statistics have shown that the factual rate of wrongful conviction in America is as high as 5 percent in the cases related to rape-murder. It can simply be concluded that the U.S. court system tries its best to judge in a fair manner when it comes to the wrongful conviction, but still, there are a number of cases where innocent people are seen suffering from the sentence and for the crimes that they didn’t commit.

Question 3

There are multiple reasons behind this major issue of wrongful conviction. In most of the cases, innocent people are held accountable for the crimes that were not actually done by them, because of their issues with someone. The enemies tend to play the bribe game, and offer money to the higher authority as well which makes it more difficult for innocent individuals to get out of the situation. In such cases, there is an involvement of the government employees which results in making the case of that person more weaker, and it results in the decision which is against him (Leo, 2017).

In most of the cases, the reason a person is held accountable for the false accusation, and the entire situation turns into putting him behind bars is none other than the failure of the court system. The judge, police, and all the authorities involved in the entire case are the only ones on which the life of that person is dependent. There is a high need for the officers-on-duty to look up into such matter more deeply, and understand the entire case, so that it may avoid wrongful conviction in the future.

For the government to avoid any such issues in the future, there is a high need to propose some policies that can act as an opposing force to the wrongful conviction. There must be proper training for the authorities involved in taking the decision of conviction, and a proper committee must be established that should be fully responsible for the decisions.

Question 4

In the current scenario, there isn't as such adequate protection in place that is required to minimize the risk that innocent people could be convicted and later on punished. It must be taken into consideration that there isn’t as such protection that can serve in avoiding the wrongful conviction (Garrett, 2017). However, there are some ways to prevent it in the future such as the establishment of certain policies. Moreover, there can be proper training for the authorities involved in taking the decision of conviction, and a proper committee must be established that should be fully responsible for the decisions.

Question 5

Wrongful convictions are the topics on the debate in a number of countries apart from the U.S. as well. Countries like Canada and Australia are also seen to face the issue of wrongful conviction to a very high extent. So, it is clear that the wrongful convictions are undoubtedly not only common to the United States, but there are other states too that fall under the category of the victims being suffered from this issue. Many people are put behind bars, and even sentenced to death for the crimes that are not done by them in reality. One thing that must be taken into consideration is the fact that it is quite common to see individuals in the 21st century to wrongly convicted in the criminal justice system.

References

Cassell, P. G. (2018). Overstating America's Wrongful Conviction Rate: Reassessing the Conventional Wisdom about the Prevalence of Wrongful Convictions. ARIz. L. REv., 60, 815.

Garrett, B. L. (2017). Actual Innocence and Wrongful Convictions.

Leo, R. A. (2017). The criminology of wrongful conviction: A decade later. Journal of contemporary criminal justice, 33(1), 82-106.