When someone accuses you of a crime you did not commit, everything is at risk. You could lose it all, from your reputation to your job to your friends and family; you even risk the loss of your rights, freedom, and life as you know it. Chances are, you were in the wrong place at the wrong time. It could happen to anybody, and unfortunately, it happens more often than you would expect.
A mistake by an eyewitness or a misunderstanding could lead to a wrongful conviction. You can increase your chances of finding justice for yourself and others by hiring a criminal defense lawyer.
The Facts About Wrongful Convictions
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- A survey revealed that as many as 10,000 people may be wrongfully convicted of a serious crime in the U.S. each year.
- The primary cause in 52.3% of wrongful convictions was misidentification by an eyewitness.
- The second most common cause in wrongful conviction cases, at 11%, was perjury by a witness.
- In the state of California, over 200 people have been wrongfully convicted of a serious crime since 1989.
- Nationwide, DNA testing has exonerated and released 123 people from death row since the year 1973.
- Approximately 650 death row inmates are currently locked up in California, giving this state the highest death row population of all the United States.
- A 2004 study showed that African Americans have a higher rate of wrongful convictions than any other race.
- Over 23 years, false convictions in California have led to approximately 2,345 years of wrongful imprisonment and over $282 million dollars in costs.
If you are accused of a crime, a criminal defense attorney will relentlessly defend your rights regardless of the nature of the crime. After doing some research, it would be wise for you to find an attorney at law who has experience defending cases similar to yours. When you are truly innocent, and a criminal defense attorney is able to have your charges dismissed, she may advise that you then file a counter-suit against the individual who brought the wrongful allegations against you.
Hopefully, you never find yourself in this distressing situation. However, it is important to know the facts in order to better protect yourself.