Racial disparities and bias have serious consequences in cases across the country.
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John —
It’s as undeniable as it is abhorrent that race plays a central role in our justice system — from an increased likelihood of being stopped and arrested to race being used as a proxy for dangerousness in the pre-trial phase, Black people are treated very differently than their white counterparts. And the disparities don’t stop there.
Though research on the role race plays in wrongful convictions has been limited, existing studies show that Black people are seven times more likely than white people to be wrongfully convicted of murder,^1 and that Black exonerees spend an average of 10.7 years in prison before they are released, compared to 7.4 years for white exonerees.^2
The reality is, eyewitness misidentification and police misconduct often lead to wrongful convictions, but it’s important to discuss the racial inequalities that exist when either of these things occur.
In 55% of cases where Black people were exonerated from murder charges, police misconduct was involved, compared to 33% of cases where white people were wrongly convicted of murder.^3 And the rate of mistaken eyewitness identifications in cases of wrongful sexual assault convictions is 79% for innocent Black defendants and 51% for their white counterparts.^4 Such identification mistakes can occur as a result of biased line-ups and other flawed procedures used by law enforcement in the identification process.
The rush to judgment and presumption of guilt is prevalent in cases where the accused is Black. These racial disparities have serious consequences, especially in capital punishment cases. Right now in Tennessee, Pervis Payne, who has an intellectual disability, is on death row for the murder of a white woman and scheduled to be executed in December, despite serious concerns that he may be innocent.
Prosecutors relied on heinous racial stereotypes to concoct a false narrative about Pervis, ultimately ending with a jury convicting him and sentencing him to death. And crucial evidence from the crime scene (which was withheld from the defense team) has never been tested for DNA.
Pervis, like 42% of defendants on death row, is Black — and like many studies have shown, because the victim was white and because he is Black, his odds of being sentenced to death were much higher.^5 If you can, take a moment to read more about Pervis’ case, then spread the word on social media. ([link removed])
The racism in our legal system is foundational and runs deep, and it continues to lead to unjust outcomes for Black people. At the Innocence Project, we are committed to continuing to fight for the innocent and combat systemic racism.
The work of freeing wrongfully convicted people is never easy, but it’s even more difficult for our non-white clients. If we want to continue the hard fight for racial justice, then we must not forget about those behind bars and challenge the reasons they got there in the first place.
Thanks,
Vanessa Potkin
Director of Post-Conviction Litigation
Innocence Project
Read more ([link removed])
1. Gross, Possley, and Stephens, 2017.
2. Free and Ruesink, 2012; Gross et al., 2005; Harmon, 2004.
3. Gross, Possley, and Stephens, 2017.
4. Gross, Possley, and Stephens, 2017; Bjerk and Helland, 2018.
5. Free, 2002; Baldus and Woodworth 2003.
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