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The Complicity of Judges in Wrongful Convictions
Loaded on Aug. 15, 2004
by Hans Sherrer
published in Prison Legal News
August, 2004, page 1
The Complicity of Judges In Wrongful Convictions
Filed under:
Judicial Misconduct,
Commentary/Reviews,
Wrongful Conviction.
Location:
United States of America.
by Hans Sherrer
I. Introduction
Wrongful convictions do not occur in a vacuum of judicial indifference. Every wrongful conviction results from a deliberative process involving law enforcement investigators, prosecutors, and one or more trial level and appellate judges. Although prosecutors, police investigators, defense …
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More from this issue:
- The Complicity of Judges in Wrongful Convictions, by Hans Sherrer
- Washington Persistent Prison Misbehavior Statute Upheld
- Exporting the American Way of Crime
- Federal DNA Statute Not Challengeable in Criminal Appeal
- From the Editor, by Paul Wright
- Texas Boot Camp Denied Immunity for Ignoring Serious Medical Needs
- Habeas Hints, by Kent A. Russell
- Montana BMPs Are Cruel and Unusual Punishment, by Mark Wilson
- Former Texas Prison Guard Awarded $275,000 in Race Discrimination Suit
- Illinois Appeals Court Overturns Warden's Reckless Homicide Convictions
- Local Officials Tell Prisoners: "You don't live here", by Peter Wagner
- CCA Medical Contract Doesn't Violate 8th Amendment
- No Qualified Immunity for Florida Jail Guards in Prisoner Murder
- New Jersey Civil Commitment Hearings Secret, Biased, by Michael Rigby
- Rape of Women Prisoners Rampant in Ohio, by Michael Rigby
- Facts Contained in Administrative Remedies Not Automatically Deemed Facts Alleged in Complaints
- Executions Rose in 2002; Texas Led in Number of Deaths
- California Prison Guards Organize to Sue Assaultive Prisoners
- No Qualified Immunity for Prison Officials on Tobacco Smoke Complaints
- Florida's Felon Disenfranchisement Law Under Spotlight, by David Reutter
- California Guard's Obscene Behavior Towards Prisoner Is Actionable, by Marvin Mentor
- California No-Parole-Policy Suits For Damages And Injunctive Relief Fail, by John E Dannenberg
- Denial of Dentures States Eighth Amendment Claim
- Ohio Supreme Court Holds Some Sex Predators Not Required to Register
- Permanent Injunction Against California Book Ordering Restrictions Affirmed, by John E Dannenberg
- Georgia Sheriff as "Arm of the State" Entitled to Eleventh Amendment Immunity, by Bob Williams
- Washington Court Establishes Procedures for Community Placement Violation Hearings
- Tenth Circuit Holds Prisoner Has Burden Under PLRA To Plead Administrative Exhaustion, by John E Dannenberg
- Hearsay Testimony of Prison Officials Found Inadmissible in Criminal Prosecution and Probation Revocation
- Mailbox Rule Applied To Administrative Forfeiture Proceeding, by Bob Williams
- California Credit Restoration Denial Ruled Ex Post Facto, by John E Dannenberg
- Mentally Ill Texas Prisoner Not Entitled to Hepatitis Treatment
- Tennessee: Staph Outbreak, Delayed Treatment, Death Highlight Prison Healthcare Problems, by Michael Rigby
- Two Courts Interpret Provisions of Federal Appellate Rule 4; Prisoner Appeals Dismissed as Untimely
- 2004 Supplement to the California State Prisoners Handbook, by John E Dannenberg
- PLRA Indigency Provision Inapplicable When Filing Fee Paid
- No Qualified Immunity in Jail Suicide Attempt
- Washington Agencies Must Explain Reasons for Denying Public Disclosure Requests
- Intentional Delay to Prevent Prisoner's Suicide Precludes Qualified Immunity
- News in Brief
- Virginia SCC Without Jurisdiction to Hear Prisoner Phone Rate Challenge
More from Hans Sherrer:
- Tulia Undercover Deputy Tom Coleman Convicted of Perjury, Nov. 15, 2005
- The Complicity of Judges in Wrongful Convictions, Aug. 15, 2004
- Report Downplays Wrongful Convictions in U.S., March 15, 2003
- Tulia Travesty Settled for $6 Million, March 15, 2003
- A Sentence of Their Own, Nov. 15, 2002
- Prisoner's Guerrilla Handbook to Correspondence Programs in The United States and Canada , 2 nd Ed., Aug. 15, 2002
- Snitch Culture: How Citizens Are Turned into the Eyes and Ears of the State, Sept. 15, 2001
- Washington Radiation Suit Settled for $2.4 Million, Nov. 15, 2000
- Discovering America As It Is, April 15, 2000
- Prison-Industrial Complex Conferences Are Spreading the Word, Aug. 15, 1999
More from these topics:
- $11 Million Paid by Boston to Exonerated Prisoner for 37-Year Wrongful Incarceration, Sept. 1, 2026. Settlements, Wrongful Conviction, Wrongful Imprisonment, Monell Liability, Withholding of Exculpatory Evidence.
- Detroit Pays $5.8 Million to Former State Prisoner Exonerated of Murder After 15 Years, Aug. 1, 2026. Wrongful Conviction, Qualified Immunity, 42 U.S. Code § 1983, civil action for deprivation of rights, Eyewitness Identification, Evidence - Failure to Disclose.
- $13 Million Awarded to Exonerated Illinois Prisoner Tortured to Confess by Corrupt Cops, Aug. 1, 2026. Police Misconduct, Wrongful Conviction, Certificate of Innocence, False Imprisonment, Confessions - Coerced.
- Louisiana Supreme Court Announces Framework Governing Factual Innocence Claims in First Application of La. C.Cr.P. Art. 926.2, Holding Second-Step Review Encompasses All Relevant Evidence, Aug. 1, 2026. Wrongful Conviction, Forensic Sciences, Actual Innocence/Claim of Innocence, Expert and Opinion Testimony, Scientific Testimony or Evidence.
- Conviction Tossed for Former Alabama Prisoner Paroled After 42 Years, July 1, 2026. Sex Offender Registration, Wrongful Conviction, Forensic Sciences, Eyewitness Identification, Brady Rule violations.
- Your DNA Was at the Scene, But You Weren’t: How Touch DNA Is Convicting the Innocent, June 1, 2026. DNA Testing/Samples, junk science, Wrongful Conviction, DNA Evidence, Evidence - Admissibility, Claim of Innocence.
- Jury Awards Over $24.4 Million to Kentucky Prisoner Exonerated After 22 Years, Bringing Total Payout for Him and Co-Defendant to Almost $45 Million, June 1, 2026. Police Misconduct, Wrongful Conviction, Monell Liability, Fabrication of Evidence, Failure to Disclose.
- Sixth Circuit Upholds $10 Million Wrongful Conviction Verdict for Exonerated Michigan Prisoner, June 1, 2026. Wrongful Conviction, 42 U.S. Code § 1983, civil action for deprivation of rights, Immunity - Absolute and Qualified, Damages - Compensatory, Failure to Disclose.
- Murder Convictions Tossed for Three Pennsylvania Prisoners After 28 Years, June 1, 2026. Wrongful Conviction, witness misidentification, Forensic Sciences, Evidence - Integrity/Reliability of, Expert and Opinion Testimony.
- New York Prisoner, Paroled After 25 Years, Exonerated of Crime, June 1, 2026. Wrongful Conviction, Wrongful Imprisonment, Evidence - Failure to Disclose, Prosecutorial Threats, Brady/Giglio/Jencks Act Issues.

