Abstract

Previous literature has found extensive statistical evidence on the racial biases that occur and cloud the judgment of our criminal justice system. This has influenced the decision making of both police officers and sentencing judges, leading innocent individuals to be prosecuted and wrongfully convicted by the system, the same system that is supposed to protect the innocent. In this study, I examine racial bias, racial stereotypes and the type of evidence that was used to prosecute exonerated individuals. Utilizing The National Registry of Exonerations database, a database that studies false convictions and conducts empirical studies of the process of exonerations and the factors that lead to wrongful convictions. I aim to better understand how race affects wrongful conviction and exonerations in the criminal justice system. The database consists of detailed information of 2557 exoneration cases in the United States from the years 1956-2019. Results from a mixed-method design of quantitative data analysis and content analysis indicate that race has a major impact on wrongful convictions and exoneration cases. Individuals of color were more likely to be found guilty of a crime they did not commit and spend more years in jail before being exonerated as compared to white individuals. Results also indicated many flaws in our criminal justice system when it comes to analyzing evidence. Exonerees were all wrongfully convicted either by improper testing of evidence, misconduct by the justice system or many other types of evidence.