Last week I testified in the highly-publicized trial of Skylar Richardson, an Ohio teenager accused of killing her newborn baby. She was acquitted, an encouraging sign that juries are coming to understand false confessions. It was my 34th case testifying as a false confessions expert witness.
I am at work on what I hope will be a regular podcast about false confessions. Stay tuned!
Way back when, Donald Trump demanded the execution of the Central Park 5. Earlier this week, when asked about the case, Trump did not back down, noting that “they admitted their guilt.” The president is hardly a false confessions expert, but he should know better. Neither he nor anyone else should promote the dangerous and discredited idea that innocent people would never confess to a crime.
Be sure to watch the new Netflix mini-series, “When They See Us,” about an amazing case involving five false confessions.
Anyone interested in seeing riveting documentaries of cases involving false confessions should watch the Paradise Lost trilogy about the West Memphis Three — an amazing case.
California’s governor and Colorado’s legislature are both attempting to stop state-sanctioned executions. Given how many innocent people (a number of whom gave false confessions) have been on death row, these moves are welcome.
Great News that the First Step Act was passed by Congress and signed into law by the President. Among other benefits of this law, anyone wrongly convicted — based on false confessions or any other reason — will receive better opportunities. Our entire society should benefit.
