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To: marajade
No percentages, but I did find this:

In the first study of its kind, a Chicago Tribune analysis of thousands of court records, appellate rulings and lawyer disciplinary records from across the United States has found:

- Since a 1963 U.S. Supreme Court ruling designed to curb misconduct by prosecutors, at least 381 defendants nationally have had a homicide conviction thrown out because prosecutors concealed evidence suggesting innocence or presented evidence they knew to be false. Of all the ways that prosecutors can cheat, those two are considered the worst by the courts. And that number represents only a fraction of how often such cheating occurs.

- The U.S. Supreme Court has declared such misconduct by prosecutors to be so reprehensible that it warrants criminal charges and disbarment. But not one of those prosecutors was convicted of a crime. Not one was barred from practicing law. Instead, many saw their careers advance, becoming judges or district attorneys. One became a congressman.

- Of the 381 defendants, 67 had been sentenced to death. They include Verneal Jimerson of Illinois and Kirk Bloodsworth of Maryland, both later exonerated by DNA tests; Randall Dale Adams of Texas, whose wrongful conviction was revealed by the documentary "The Thin Blue Line;" and Sonia Jacobs of Florida, who was eventually freed but whose boyfriend, convicted on virtually identical evidence, had already been executed by the time her appeal prevailed.

- Nearly 30 of those 67 Death Row inmates -- or about half of those whose cases have been resolved -- were subsequently freed. But almost all first spent at least five years in prison. One served 26 years before his conviction was reversed and the charges dropped.

- Illinois' record for misconduct by prosecutors is particularly abysmal. Of the 381 people whose homicide convictions were reversed, 46 were tried in Illinois. That's the second-highest total and twice as many as the state that ranks third. Only New York state, which is more populous, has more cases, and its total can be partly attributed to a special rule that loosens the requirements for a conviction's reversal.

The failure of prosecutors to obey the demands of justice--and the legal system's failure to hold them accountable for it--leads to wrongful convictions, and retrials and appeals that cost taxpayers millions of dollars. It also fosters a corrosive distrust in a branch of government that America holds up as a standard to the world.

Next week, three former DuPage County prosecutors will face trial on charges of conspiring to frame Rolando Cruz, who served about 10 years on Death Row before being acquitted at his third trial on charges of murdering 10-year-old Jeanine Nicarico. The case is exceptionally rare -- not because prosecutors have been accused of concealing evidence and knowingly using false evidence, but because they have been indicted for it.

If convicted of a felony for such misconduct, it would be the first time that has happened in the United States.

Prosecutors, who are the criminal justice system's gatekeepers, hold powers and responsibilities unique in American society. The decisions they make can determine who avoids or stands trial, who is convicted or acquitted, who lives or dies. They must protect society from criminals while upholding the justice system's integrity. They are supposed to avoid underhanded tactics that can help put away the guilty but threaten to convict the innocent.

646 posted on 09/18/2002 6:31:57 PM PDT by John Jamieson
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To: John Jamieson
And do you know how many on death row? CA has thousands...
647 posted on 09/18/2002 6:47:06 PM PDT by marajade
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