The National Center for Reason and Justice Applauds DA Rice for Friedman Panel Selection

Roxbury, Massachusetts—November 8, 2010—Today the National Center for Reason and Justice—a non-profit legal and advisory group for the falsely accused and wrongfully convicted—applauded Nassau County (NY) District Attorney Kathleen Rice for assembling a panel of experts to review the Friedman child-molestation case. Last August, the NCRJ suggested a group of experts to DA Rice’s office. The NCRJ is especially pleased with the selection of Innocence Project co-founder Barry Sheck. Attorney Harvey Silverglate, an Advisor to the NCRJ, says: “Sheck’s presence on the panel is of extraordinary importance. He is very tough. He understands all the ways innocent people get convicted … Sheck is utterly above reproach, and very experienced.”

Criminally Innocent

Traditional Innocence Projects are great, but what happens if there’s no DNA? Fresh off the presses, Austin Chronicle reports on an imaginary crime–and on Innocence Projects’ new concern for people falsely convicted of child sex abuse.

Smith/Allen Case Going to Ohio Supreme Court

This article appeared in today’s Lorain Ohio Morning Journal: http://www.morningjournal.com/articles/2010/10/28/news/doc4cc9799d53fd3804988337.txt. Let’s hope that the Ohio Supreme Court does the right thing and lets Joseph Allen and Nancy Smith get on with their lives.

Daycare worker to have day in court October 18

While most daycare and preschool workers who were falsely accused of “satanic ritual abuse” in the panic-ridden 1980s and 1990s had their convictions overturned on appeal years ago, daycare workers continue to be falsely convicted in more recent cases that seem less bizarre but which, unfortunately, are equally irrational. NCRJ sponsors one such case, of… Continue reading Daycare worker to have day in court October 18

An In-Depth Look at False Confessions

Untrue Confessions. From Counterpunch. By NCRJ Director Emily Horowitz. How Kemwattie Bedessie was falsely convicted. And what’s wrong not just with false confessions, but with true confessions, too.

Confessing to Crime, but Innocent

From the New York Times. High-pressure interrogations like those discussed in this article have compelled confessions from some of the people whom NCRJ sponsors, most notably Jesse Friedman, who was 18 years old and under extreme duress when the police arrested and interrogated him. There are other pressures for people falsely accused of crimes against… Continue reading Confessing to Crime, but Innocent