The Wrong Men: Wrongful Death Row Convictions by Stanley Cohen. Hardcover

The Wrong Men: America's Epidemic of Wrongful Death Row Convictions by Stanley Cohen —————- • Hardcover • Barnes & Noble Books Condition: Excellent / No Dust Jacket ——————————————————————- Illinois Governor George H. Ryan declared that, “Our capital system is haunted by the demon of error, error in determining guilt, and error in determining who among the guilty deserves to die.” This book chronicles over one hundred cases where journalism students, grassroots organizations, families, and pro bono lawyers—armed with DNA evidence and other instruments of justice—have defeated that demon. Cohen reveals how witness error, jailhouse snitching, false testimony, racism, junk science, misconduct, and bad counsel have often been to blame. In these pages, many were arrested, convicted, sentenced to death, dragged through the appeals system, yet finally set free after proving their actual innocence. —————————————————————— REVIEW “Cohen examines some 100 cases where people sentenced to death were later exonerated. He analyzes the reasons why wrongful convictions occur. Eyewitness error is a prime factor, and DNA analysis, the book explains, has become the main vehicle for exonerating the innocent, however, in many cases, DNA evidence is not available. Cohen believes the death penalty will soon be relegated to the "dark and distant past," and this volume is a convincing argument for the unreliability of capital convictions. —— From Publishers Weekly