In response to the national reckoning we’re having around police violence and racism, we’ve seen an overwhelming number of people join this fight to free the innocent, and we just want to say thank you.
Protests across the country have been calling for an end to police violence and highlighting the need for more police accountability and transparency.
While the fight for racial justice continues each day, it’s important for us to recognize how the same justice system that subjects Black people to police violence contributes to wrongful convictions. Over 60% of people exonerated by DNA identify as Black.
Current laws prevent the public from knowing the extent of the wrongdoings committed by police.
Oftentimes when police misconduct is uncovered in a wrongful conviction case, a subsequent review of that officer’s other cases reveals more wrongful convictions and a litany of complaints against them.
Yet laws in half of our states allow the disciplinary history of law enforcement to remain confidential. By the time this history of misconduct is discovered, communities may have endured preventable abuse from these officers for years, and many others may have been wrongfully incarcerated.
If we want real reform and accountability for police, it’s critical that lawmakers who are engaged in police reform efforts ensure that their proposals make certain that police disciplinary records are made publicly available. As long as information about misconduct is kept from us, the disturbing pattern of police abuse, torture, and wrongful convictions will continue unabated.
The Innocence Project exonerates the wrongly convicted through DNA testing and reforms the criminal justice system to prevent future injustice. www.innocenceproject.org
