Counterintuitive Spring 2024

Forgetting Things Can Make Us Experience More in Life

We have all experienced a time when we’re trying to remember something and can’t recall the memory or specific details we’re looking for. Although these memory blocking moments may seem like a nuisance, memory actually works in favor of us for many reasons. If people were able to remember every painful detail and emotion associated with a traumatic event, we wouldn’t want to experience many things twice. However, we’re able to remember enough of an event to learn from the experience.

If you were to ask a woman what child birth felt like, she might describe the experience as the most painful experience of her life. The soreness after birth, may remind a woman of the pain she went through during her time in labor. However, as time goes by and soreness fades, the memories of a painful childbirth begin to be forgotten. Therefore, a woman may want more children afterwards. If a woman was able to remember every moment of childbirth and the intense pain associated with the process, she may not want to go through the experience of a tough labor again with another child. A year after giving birth, the woman may describe the experience as “not so bad,” where weeks after the birth, she described the experience as “the most painful experience of her life.” It’s important to not completely block out or forget painful memories though, because those memories shield us from making mistakes again.

An example could include a child accidentally touching a hot stove. The boy doesn’t feel a burning sensation or sharp pain when he thinks about the experience of touching the stove. He also doesn’t feel pain when he walks by the stove. However, he remembers the act of hurting himself  and needing to put ice on his wound. Therefore, the child’s memory has taught him to keep his hands away from stoves without adult supervision and to be more careful next time. He remembers the pain and experience, but doesn’t endure physical pain when recalling the event.

Work Cited

Hammond, Claudia. “Why Painful Memories Linger with Us.” Future. BBC, 12 Mar. 2015. Web. 6 Apr. 2015. <http://www.bbc.com/future/story/20150311-can-we-edit-out-painful-memories&gt;.

Heroin Leads To Crime

Giving the addicts free heroin stops them from committing crime

Heroin is a very addictive and dangerous drug. This drug is now flooding the streets of Vancouver and they are trying to get rid of it. Vancouver decided to give heroin addicts free heroin in hopes that the drug crime rate will lower. The people over at Insite claim that “If you give these people doses of heroin every day and keep them comfortable and keep them docile and keep the sort of demons of heroin addiction at bay, then those people are much less likely to end up in an alley, dead with a needle in their arm, or much less likely to sell themselves sexually for money to buy drugs, or much less likely to break into somebody’s car to steal something, or to shoplift or to strong-arm rob or to whatever. So the harm that they can cause to themselves and society is reduced if you simply give them the drug” (Campbell). Through out the city drug related crimes have become a problem. Addicts will do everything and anything to obtain their next fix. “The use of illegal drugs is often associated with murder, rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary, larceny/theft, serious motor vehicle offenses with dangerous consequences, arson and hate crimes” (NCADD). The users become dependent on the drug. All the money they earn goes to heroin and nothing else, which leads to them ending up living in the streets. For those addicts that are in those situations are now able to go to Insite and get heroin so now they can use their money and time doing something else. Now that they don’t have to look on the streets for drugs the crime rate in Vancouver will hopefully lower

Work cited

“Vancouver Combats Heroin by Giving Its Addicts the Best Smack in the World.” Public Radio International. N.p., n.d. Web. 06 Apr. 2015. <http://www.pri.org/stories/2015-02-04/vancouver-combats-heroin-giving-its-addicts-best-smack-world&gt;.

“Drugs and Crime.” NCADD. N.p., n.d. Web. 04 May 2015. <https://ncadd.org/learn-about-drugs/drugs-and-crime>.

Heroin use leads to crime.

Heroin use does in most cases lead to crime but for reasons you might not think. When people start using heroin it begins to be the only thing they worry about. All of their money goes to heroin. Instead of paying for rent or their electric bill they’ll pay for their heroin first. Sooner than later these people run out of money and have to begin committing crimes in order to pay for heroin, that’s why heroin use ends up leading to crime. Using heroin everyday doesn’t make you a criminal, stealing things and robbing people makes you a criminal. The clinics that are being established in Vancouver are taking the crime part out of heroin use. These addicts that resort to stealing things to sell, robbing people, and even selling their bodies to get their fix now have the opportunity to stop that part of their life. In Vancouver the use of heroin is increasing and so are the crime rates. In an effort to reduce crime rates the heroin clinics offer free heroin to give the addicts a guaranteed fix. Without having to worry about getting heroin or committing a crime it opens the door for the addicts to get their lives back and get a real job instead of doing things like petty theft or prostitution. By providing heroin for free to these addicts, Vancouver is stopping the problem with what is causing the problem.

Work Cited

“Drugs and Crime.” NCADD. N.p., n.d. Web. 05 Apr. 2015. https://ncadd.org/learn-about-drugs/drugs-and-crime

Why Euthanize?

Its pretty basic, the effect of euthanasia is always going to be death. That isn’t a brain busters that people are trying to wrap their heads around. The real question that people struggle to grasp is what causes people to want to be euthanized. To most people, the thought of ending their own life is foreign, they have trouble grasping why anyone would want to do it, and tell themselves that the thought would never cross their mind. For the terminally ill that qualify for euthanasia, this is not only a thought for them, it is a serious option. Not only would legalizing euthanasia help those with terminal illnesses to end their suffering, it would empower the human race.  With current laws, things like assisted suicide and euthanasia are strictly illegal.  That takes aways peoples freedoms and jurisdictions over their own life and body.

The desire of euthanasia can be the effect of years of dealing with the constant pain that certain terminal diseases can cause a patient. The argument is made that with enough medicine, there is no such thing as “unbearable pain” and the patient won’t feel a thing. Not only does this method of dealing with the pain become very expensive, it can create a loss of dignity. First, constant sedation of a patient becomes very costly.  Whether the patient has insurance or paying out of packet, it is going to cost someone a lot of unnecessary money. Second, when a patient is being kept alive by heavy doses of medicine, they lose their sense of independence. The patient becomes confined to a hospital bed, their only outside contact is those who come to visit them. The patient can begin to feel like a burden on their loved ones, and euthanasia would reduce stress from the family. All of these struggles causes the patient to want their lives to come to an end.

Not only could euthanasia ease a lot of pain and suffering, it could also empower the terminally ill.  Euthanasia does more than offers a way out for those who can no longer deal with pain and suffering, it offers them a choice.  For many cases, a choice might be all a patient needs to gain the strength to continue fighting their illness.  A choice can give them the piece of mind that the end can always be insight.  With assisted suicide and euthanasia being illegal, there is a limited number of things that patents can do to fight their illness. Sure, they can take medicine or sign up for experimental surgery, but those are only short term fixes.  They don’t have the freedom of choice when it comes to their own life.  For a country that prides itself on the freedom it gives to its citizens, it takes away freedom from the one thing people should have complete control over, their life.

Work Cited

Guy, Maytal. “The Desire for Death in the Setting of Terminal Illness: A Case Discussion.” NCIB.gov. Primary Care Companion, 12 Feb. 2006. Web. 5 Apr. 2015.

The push and pull between happiness and meaning and which is more fulfilling can be debated back and forth but when it comes down to it there is cause and effect to each scenario. Superficial aspects tend to be associated with happiness without meaning, therefore superficial results in despair. Devotion and commitment are related to meaning and how ones life takes on a deeper role when happiness is gained through meaning. This is why commitment and devotion result in happiness.

Superficial aspect result in despair. Desperation is not a good way to live ones life. When someone yearns for something they can not receive or will not receive this is portrayed as desperation. As stated in previous papers the Real Housewives of Atlanta are a perfect example of showing women who yearn for unnecessary, materialistic items to try to gain happiness.Their superficial pursuit results in a race for who can have the most and who can gain it the quickest.The cause in this demonstration, to gain “happiness” through the newest and best objects money can buy. The effect is a life that is unfulfilling due to the constant disappointment that maybe the best of everything is unattainable.

Devotion and commitment are related to meaning in ones life. Dedication to someone or something can go a long way in ones life and bring prosperous results along with it. When a person is committed to something the strive makes the task worth something. It transforms from just a meaningless act to something that was worked at, achieved, and finally earned. When a person is devoted to a cause the meaning makes the happiness worth something much greater then objects or material items.

Works Cited

http://www.overcomingbias.com/2013/07/happiness-vs-meaning.html

http://aeon.co/magazine/psychology/do-you-want-a-meaningful-life-or-a-happy-one/

Grewal. “A Happy Life May Not Be a Meaningful Life.” Scientific American Global RSS. N.p., 2014. Web. 01 Mar. 2015.

“Happiness.” PBS. PBS, n.d. Web. 19 Feb. 2015.

” Http://search.proquest.com/docview/1534304114?pq-origsite=summon. N.p., 8 June 2014. Web. Feb. 2015.
Smith, Emily Esfahani. “Meaning Is Healthier Than Happiness.” The Atlantic. Atlantic Media Company, 01 Aug. 2013. Web. 03 Mar. 2015

Everyone Receives

The director of migration of the Dominican Republic, Jose Ricardo Taveras, says that everything is ready to initiate the deportation process, after the completion of the National Plan of Regularization of Foreigners, in June. Taveras expressed that the process deportation expects to deport:

“First the foreigners of other nationality in the country to leave voluntarily; then, who does not leave voluntarily, through various mechanisms established by law, will be referred to their country of origin.”

The International Court of Human Rights (IACHR) is organ of the Organization of American States (OAS), whose mandate is of the OAS Charter and the American Convention on Human Rights. The IACHR had found the Dominican Republic as “guilty to alleged violations of foreigners and Dominicans of Haitian descent were deported to Haiti without guaranteeing their rights,” in 1999-2000. Now ask the Dominican Republic to,

“Take steps to rescind any rules of any kind action, constitutional, legal, regulatory, administrative, or any practice or decision or interpretation that establishes or has the effect that the illegal residence of parents foreign motivate the denial of Dominican nationality to girls and boys born in the territory of Dominican Republic.”

“Adopt domestic legal measures necessary to prevent the Constitutional Court TC / 0168-13 of September 23, 2013 and the provisions of Articles 6, 8 and 11 of Law 169-14, issued on 23 May 2014, continue to produce legal effects.” In other words, everyone born in the Dominican Republic will be a Dominican.

“Adopt legislative measures, including, if necessary, constitutional, administrative and other measures necessary to regulate a procedure for birth registration should be accessible and simple, so as to ensure that all persons born on its territory they can be registered immediately after birth, regardless of their ancestry or origin and immigration status of their parents. “

Also commands the Dominican State to “pay the compensation for pecuniary and non-pecuniary damages, reimbursement of expense and expenses.”

With the process of deportation the Dominican Republic will not follow the petitions made by the IACHR, which stated that in case of not following such petitions “undermine the protection that persons subject to the jurisdiction of the Dominican State have before international bodies for the protection of human rights.”

With the deportations the Dominican economy is also being thrown into the game. According to former Haitian diplomat and government official, Edwin Paraison, “Dominican Republic is the most caring in the world to his neighbor, Haiti, for the contributions in health and education, while Haiti is a country on the planet that most contributes to the economic life of its counterpart.” Paraison implies that the Dominican Republic is attempting against its own benefit with the anti-Haitian concept. Dominican markets on the border benefit from the food dependency of Haiti, more important, these trades are crucial for producers and Dominican families. Haiti not only represents a market of about 2 billion annually to the Dominican Republic but it provides substantial capital whose amount, according to the Science and Arts Foundation, since 2007 over one billion. At the moment, according to Paraison, with the “new projects in the hotel, catering, real estate land and air transport, free zone and distribution of petroleum products among others” the capital should be doubled for the Dominican Republic.

Haitians being the most current passengers on the Joaquin Balager airport in the Dominican Republic and one of the top five passengers who travel in the other airports in the country, contributed to the 5.6 billions of dollars that the Dominican Republic made in 2014.

Of course the Dominican Republic is an Independent country that can make its own decisions. Nonetheless, the protection of human rights should be priority for the country. Additionally, the trades with its major consumer should be secured because in case that the Haitian country makes treated with other producers a lot of Dominican families and businesses will be in danger.

Works Cited

“CIDH Condena Sentencia Del Tribunal Constitucional De República Dominicana.” CIDH Condena Sentencia Del Tribunal Constitucional De República Dominicana. Ed. OEA. N.p., 6 Nov. 2014. Web. 19 Apr. 2015. <http://www.oas.org/es/cidh/prensa/comunicados/2014/130.asp>.

Leclerc, Isabel Leticia. “Migración Está Lista Para Deportaciones Cuando Concluya El Plan De Regularización.” Listindiario.com. Listin Diario, 15 Apr. 2015. Web. 19 Apr. 2015. <http://www.listindiario.com/la-republica/2015/4/14/363424/Migracion-esta-lista-para-deportaciones-cuando-concluya-el-Plan-de>.

Paraison, Edwin. “La Realidad Insular.” Acento. N.p., 11 Mar. 2015. Web. 19 Apr. 2015. <http://acento.com.do/2015/opinion/8229908-politica-y-economia-la-realidad-insular/>.

Vargas, Lauterio. “La CIDH Condena a RD Y Le Ordena Anular Sentencia.” El Caribe. N.p., 23 Oct. 2014. Web. 19 Apr. 2015. <http://www.elcaribe.com.do/2014/10/23/cidh-condena-ordena-anular-sentencia>.

It Isn’t Happiness

Happiness by today’s standards is an ever changing idea.  People have different ideas and opinion’s about happiness, but who is right?  The truth is that nobody knows.  There is no real formula for happiness, all we can do is what we think is right, and the rest will follow.

Emily Smith wrote an article claiming that happiness and meaning are not the same thing when it comes to living life.  The evidence behind her article comes from her citations of renowned psychologist Viktor Frankl.  In his life, he chose to choose a more meaningful life by comforting his parents in Nazi concentration camps rather than pursue a happy life with his wife and family in America(Smith).  Throughout the article she attempts to prove the point that life needs more than just happiness, “Gallup also reports that 60% all Americans today feel happy…4 out of 10 Americans have not discovered a satisfying life purpose” (Smith).  Having a satisfying life purpose doesn’t necessarily prove that someone would be happier.  She makes the claim that “Research” shows that a life purpose does provide more satisfaction in life but fails to provide any specific examples of research conducted on the topic.  Take an oncologist who only works with terminally ill patients as an example.  They have found that it is absolutely their purpose in life to help their patients deal with the diagnosis and oversee their treatments until they die.  While it is a truly noble purpose, they cannot possibly maintain happiness while witnessing the inevitable death of their patients month after month.  Someone could have a genuinely noble purpose in life but if it detracts from their happiness, they inevitably will not be happy.

Making decisions that will lead to personal happiness doesn’t mean their selfish.  In Emily Smith’s article she makes the argument that being a “taker” is associated with a happy life, meaning selfish decisions would make a person happier overall.  Her evidence comes from the Journal of Positive Psychology where the authors state, “Happiness without meaning characterizes a relatively shallow, self-absorbed or even selfish life” (Journal of Positive Psychology).  While it is apparent that being unhappy doesn’t mean one is leading a meaningful life, it doesn’t draw the absolute conclusion that being happy without meaning is ultimately selfish.  Someone could draw pleasure from the simplest gesture that couldn’t be characterized as selfish or selfless.  If someone is merely happy reading the morning paper with a cup of coffee, that person is hardly an image of selfish greed.  Therefore the claim that being happy without meaning condemns one to be selfish is harsh and hollow.

The truth is that how can people accurately decide that life needs more than happiness.  Millions of people everyday go through their lives leading selfish albeit happy lives.  These people don’t necessarily have feelings of discontent, and the evidence behind what would make them more happy is inconclusive.  The problem with dissecting and proving what makes people happy is incredibly complex due to the simple fact happiness means something different for everyone.  People who lead selfish lives and are happy about it, wouldn’t be more happy or fulfilled if they sacrificed their happiness for meaning.

Works Cited

Smith, Emily E. “There’s More to Life Than Being Happy.” The Atlantic. Atlantic Media Company, 09 Jan. 2013. Web. 30 Mar. 2015.

 “The Journal of Positive Psychology Ad-Hoc Reviewers 2008.” The Journal of Positive Psychology 10.3 (2015): n. pag. Web.

Nastiest Show on Earth

Most circuses, including Ringling Bros. Greatest Show on Earth, claim that they treat elephants and all animals in the circus in a humane and loving way. On the Ringling Bros. website they explain the care of the animals as, “the animal care professionals at Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey® believe that a positive, healthy environment is the only acceptable and successful method of working with animals” (Ringling Bros. 2015). They claim the only way to get the animals to perform successfully is to allow them time spent with their mother and reward them with positive phrases as they train. “Trainers teach animals routines that showcase their physical abilities and beauty, as well as their distinctive behaviors. Our training methods are based on reinforcement in the form of food rewards and words of praise” (Ringling Bros. 2015). They are very clear when they explain that each of the animals in the circus are thoroughly cared for and not abused in any way. When the circus trainers teach they young calves the routines they are “tailored to each animal’s natural abilities and individual preferences which we observe during their playtime” (Ringling Bros. 2015). Basically, Ringling Bros. is claiming that each of the elephants routines are only enforcing their acts that they would normally perform in the wild as well.

If elephants are treated like family and only trained through humane tactics why do they not allow fans to watch the training process? This would surely be much more entertaining for viewers than watching elephants stand on one leg. There has to be something circuses are hiding from the public. Ringling Bros. makes a strong case that positive phrases and treats may successfully train some animals like dogs, or cats. Elephants on the other hand are wild animals that are meant to roam up to thirty miles a day and be close with their family of elephants. Some elephants that perform in the circus can weigh up to 7,000 pounds and usually tower over any trainer trying to dominate the animal. When circus handlers attempt to train animals of that immense size solely positive phrases and treats simply just do not cut it. Elephant trainers are constantly being accused of abusing the elephants by bounding their legs with chains and using bullhooks to get the elephants to cooperate. This makes more sense because to get the elephant to follow the routine they must be abused because of their immense size and nature. “The wild animals fare the worst, and elephants top the list in the inherent cruelty that circus animals experience, simply because their size makes transport and housing so confining and unnatural for them. Their training protocols are geared to ensure that the public will never see the underlying abuse, and therefore circus owners remain assured of their wide profit margin after each city stopover” (Humane Review 2012). It is inevitable for circuses to train elephants in harsh ways due to their size, this is the reason that elephants need to be kept out of shows.

A former Ringling Bros. employee, Archele Hundley, speaks out after viewing years of circus trainers mistreating the animals. Hundley teamed up with PETA to make a change when he could not take hearing the agonizing screams from the elephants as they were beaten bloody with bullhooks on a daily basis. He explains to PETA, “I saw handlers deliver a beating … for 30 minutes. She was covered with bloody wounds. I’ll never forget her agonizing screams…Please, never take your children to a Ringling Bros. circus” (Hundley 2015). Knowing an employee quit his job and felt it necessary to speak out to put an end to the circus shows just how powerful and cruel these beatings are. It is also disheartening that these beatings are not just once in a while, or when the animal acts out. The beatings are administered daily from a range of people, “The abuse was not just once in a while—it occurred every day,” says Hundley. “The elephants, horses, and camels were hit, punched, beaten, and whipped by everyone from the head of animal care down to inexperienced animal handlers hired out of homeless shelters” (Hundley 2015). These animals do not have a voice and can not stand up for themselves, this is why we must be their voice.

What circus owners do not tell the public is how each individual elephant is “broken” in order to learn each routine. Trainers “positively” use abusive tactics in order to break the elephant. An animal activist group explains this process as, “All four of their legs are tied together so that all they can do for up to 23 hours a day for up to six months is stand on a concrete floor…this is emotionally and physically devastating to a young elephant” (Peta 2015). By tying the elephant’s legs together it is preventing the elephant’s natural desire to walk and roam. This is the opposite of the Ringling Bros. claim which states that their acts only enforce the elephants natural acts. Also, Ringling Bros. claims that elephants stay with their mothers for the first two years of their life to adjust to the world. Animal Rights activists prove that claim wrong when they expose the heart wrenching process that goes into the birth of a elephant calf. They explain, “the very young babies taken from their mothers early so that they can learn the fear of humans and the pain that human handlers can inflict at a very early age, while our species is still able to dominate them” (Humane Review 2012). This is the only way that the circus trainers can implement dominance over the young elephants, and maintain it throughout their lives.

If Ringling Bros. along with any other circus used humane tactics to train these wild gigantic animals they would feel no need to hide the training process from the public. They claim they use positivity to train and domesticate the animals simply for the profit the circus shows bring in. When in reality elephants are being tortured on a daily basis to perform unnatural acts. We are feeding into it by attending and giving our money to circuses and zoos, this is why the public needs to be aware of the brutality that goes on behind the scenes so that elephants can be free to roam in the wild at last.

Works Cited

“The Circus — A Nightmare for Elephants.” The Circus – A Nightmare For Animals (2012): 1-4. Humane Review. 2012. Web. 28 Mar. 2015.

“Animal Care FAQ.” Animal Care FAQ. N.p., 2015. Web. 29 Mar. 2015.

Sheridan, Judy L. “Ringmaster Defends Elephant Care: Kelly Miller Circus Comes to Aledo.” Weatherford Democrat. N.p., 16 Mar. 2015. Web. 28 Mar. 2015.

PETA. “Former Ringling Bros. Employee Speaks Out Against Abuse.” PETA. Web. 20 Apr. 2015.

Prosecutors Insist on the Reliability of Eyewitness Testimony

Prosecutors are the most powerful figures in the American criminal justice system.  They have authority to investigate persons, grant immunity to witnesses, accused criminals, and plea bargain with defendants. Prosecutors decide what criminal charges to bring when and where a person will answer to those charges. Courts rarely second-guess the decisions of a prosecutor, and all courts presume that a prosecutor has acted appropriately. However, that is not always the case.

Many people end up on death row after being convicted of horrible crimes they did not commit. With the exception of the extremely lucky ones who are exonerated while they are still alive. In 1973 a club was formed called, the “macabre club,” that has over 152-death row inmates whom were exonerated.

Most of the cases below were all convicted based on faulty eyewitness identification.

• Freddie Pitts Florida Conviction: 1963, Pardoned: 1975 (right) Although no physical evidence linked them to the deaths of two white men, Lee and Pitts’ guilty pleas, the testimony of an alleged eyewitness, and incompetent defense counsel led to their convictions. The men were sentenced to death but maintained their innocence. After their convictions, another man confessed to the crime, the eyewitness recanted her accusations, and the state Attorney General admitted that the state had unlawfully suppressed evidence. The men were granted a new trial (Pitts v. State 247 So.2d 53 (Fla. 1971)) but were again convicted and sentenced to death. They were released in 1975 when they received a full pardon from Governor Askew, who stated he was “sufficiently convinced that they were innocent.” (Florida Times-Union, 4/23/98).
• Kirk Bloodsworth Maryland Conviction: 1984, Charges Dismissed: 1993 Bloodswoth was convicted and sentenced to death for the rape and murder of a young girl. Despite alibi witnesses, he was convicted primarily on the basis of faulty eyewitness identification. When it was discovered that the state failed to disclose exculpatory evidence, Bloodsworth received a new trial, at which he was convicted and given a life sentence. He was released after subsequent DNA testing confirmed his innocence.
•  Larry Hicks Indiana Conviction: 1978, Acquitted: 1980 Hicks was convicted on two counts of murder and was sentenced to death. Two weeks prior to his scheduled execution, with the help of a volunteer attorney, Hicks received a stay. The Playboy Foundation became interested in this claim of innocence and supplied funds for a reinvestigation after he passed lie detector tests. At retrial, Hicks was acquitted and released after evidence established Hicks’s alibi and showed that eyewitness testimony against him at his original trial was perjured.
•  Levon “Bo” Jones North Carolina Conviction: 1993, Charges Dismissed: 2008 The state of North Carolina dropped all charges against Levon Jones, and he was freed May 2, 2008 after spending 13 years on death row. U.S. District Court Judge Terrence Boyle overturned Jones’s conviction two years ago, but he was held in prison awaiting a possible retrial until prosecutors announced that they were dismissing all charges. Judge Boyle criticized Jones’s defense attorneys for “constitutionally deficient” performance, noting their failure to research the history and credibility of Lovely Lorden, the prosecution’s star witness. The judge noted, “Given the weakness of the prosecution’s case and its heavy reliance on the testimony of Lovely Lorden, there is a reasonable probability that, but for counsel’s unprofessional errors, the result of the proceeding would have been different.” In April, Jones’s new defense team filed an affidavit in which Lorden said, “Much of what I testified to was simply not true.” She also stated that a detective coached her on what to say. Additionally, she collected $4,000 from the governor’s office for offering the clues that led to the arrest of Jones. Jones’s retrial was set to begin May 12th, 2008. Duplin County District Attorney Dewey Hudson decided to ask the judge in the case to drop all charges. Jones was originally convicted of robbing and shooting a bootlegger named Leamon Grady.

The latest case was Anthony Hinton, he walked out of an Alabama prison on April 3, 2015.

• Anthony Hinton Alabama conviction: 1985, Charges Dismissed: 2015  Anthony Ray Hinton was exonerated after spending nearly 30 years on Alabama‘s death row. He was released on April 3, 2015. Hinton was convicted of the 1985 murders of two fast-food restaurant managers based upon the testimony of a state forensic examiner that the bullets in the two murders came from a gun found in Hinton’s house. The prosecutor, who had a documented history of racial bias, said he could tell Hinton was guilty and “evil” just by looking at him. Hinton was arrested after a victim in a similar crime identified him in a photo lineup, even though Hinton had been working in a locked warehouse 15 miles away when that crime was committed. Hinton’s lawyer did not know the law and mistakenly believed that funding to hire a qualified firearms expert was not available.  Instead, he hired an expert he knew to be inadequate, and as a result failed to present any credible evidence to rebut the state’s claim that the bullets were fired from Hinton’s gun. In 2002, three top firearms examiners testified that the bullets could not be matched to Hinton’s gun, and may not have come from the a single gun at all. In 2014, the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously held that Hinton had been provided substandard representation and returned his case to the state courts for further proceedings.  Prosecutors decided not to retry him after the state’s new experts said they could not link the bullets to Hinton’s gun. Bryan Stevenson, Hinton’s lead attorney, said, “Race, poverty, inadequate legal assistance, and prosecutorial indifference to innocence conspired to create a textbook example of injustice. I can’t think of a case that more urgently dramatizes the need for reform than what has happened to Anthony Ray Hinton.”

The remaining innocent citizens remain locked up for life in cold concrete cells. Some died of natural causes; some cases inmates who were almost certainly innocent were put to death.

Innocent people get convicted for many reasons, false confessions made under duress, bad lawyering, mistaken identifications and the pressure of prosecutors needing to win a case.   With advances in DNA analysis the pace of exonerations has increased, it has also become clear that prosecutorial misconduct is at the heart of an alarming number of these cases.

In the past year alone, nine people who had been sentenced to death were released and in all but one case, prosecutors’ wrongdoing played a key role.

On May 21, the University of Michigan Law School, in conjunction with the Center on Wrongful Convictions at the Northwestern University School of Law, released the first-ever National Registry of Exonerations. The searchable online database is the most credible and comprehensive resource on wrongful convictions in the United States. Peter Neufeld, the co-founder and co-director of the Innocence Project, has called it the “Wikipedia of Innocence.” The registry, which can be viewed at exonerationregistry.org, currently counts 891 cases since 1989, the year of the first exoneration achieved using DNA.

As of March 2015, the Registry included 1,555 exonerees:

• Sex: 91% men; 9% women.
• Race: 47% black; 40% white; 11% Hispanic; 2% Native American or Asian.
• Trials and Guilty Pleas: 80% convicted by juries; 7% convicted by judges; 12% pled guilty.
• Crimes: 45% falsely convicted of homicide; 29% of sexual assault (includes 11% convicted of child sex abuse); 13% of other violent crimes; 14% of non-violent crimes.
• DNA: 25% were exonerated at least in part by DNA evidence; 75% without DNA evidence.
• Time served: All told, these exonerees spent nearly 14,429 years in prison–on average 9 years each. Almost all were imprisoned for years; 40% for 10 years or more; 61% for at least 5 years.
• Contributing factors that led to their wrongful convictions (many cases have multiple factors):
  • Perjury or False Accusation: 56%
  • Official Misconduct: 46%
  • Mistaken Witness Identification: 34%
  • False or Misleading Forensic Evidence: 23%
  • False Confessions: 13%

Among exonerations in specific crime categories:

• The rate of Perjury or False Accusations is highest in child sex abuse cases (80%) and homicide cases (67%).
• The rate of Official Misconduct is highest in homicide cases (60%) and child sex abuse (44%).
• The rate of Mistaken Identifications is highest in adult sexual assault cases (72%).
• The rate of False or Misleading Forensic Evidence is highest in adult sexual assault cases (32%) and child sex abuse cases (23%).
• The rate of False Confessions is highest in homicide cases (21%

The above captioned data speaks volumes of how corrupt our legal system is and how many innocent people are convicted of crimes they didn’t commit.

Work Cited

“152 Innocents, Marked for Death.” The New York Times. The New York Times, 12 Apr. 2015. Web. 19 Apr. 2015.

“How Many Innocent People Have We Sent To Prison?” How Many Innocent People Have We Sent To Prison? N.p., n.d. Web. 19 Apr. 2015.