Post by thinkinkmesa on Mar 11, 2011 21:32:54 GMT -5
Petro fighting for the wrongly convicted
In a new book that underscores his stunning change of heart, former Republican Attorney General Jim Petro argues that thousands of people are wrongfully convicted in this country - and that police and prosecutorial misconduct is partly to blame.
Writing in False Justice - Eight Myths that Convict the Innocent, Petro and his wife and co-author, Nancy Petro, conclude that the justice system "convicts innocent persons far more frequently than most imagine and that most Americans, if more fully informed, would consider this a national travesty."
Although they cite several reasons for this, the Petros found that many times, police and prosecutors "lose their way" because of "corruption; unlawful tactics; misplaced motivations; arrogance; and abuses of power."
Petro, 62, was attorney general from 2002 to 2006, when he ran unsuccessfully for the GOP gubernatorial nomination won by J. Kenneth Blackwell.
Before that, he was state auditor for two terms, a state lawmaker and a Cuyahoga County commissioner.
Petro surprised political colleagues and opponents in 2005 when he joined the Innocence Project in arguing that a Canton-area man, Clarence Elkins, was innocent of raping and murdering his mother-in-law in 1998.
Eventually, with assistance from Petro, DNA evidence proved Elkins' innocence, and another man was convicted for the crime.
The wrongful conviction in the Elkins case haunted Petro.
"How did this happen? How often does it happen? How many innocent people are in America's prisons?" Petro wrote.
After researching hundreds of cases, many involving DNA evidence, the Petros said they found eight myths about how the criminal justice system operates.
For example, they say that, contrary to popular belief, not everyone in prison claims innocence, nor does the justice system always convict the right person.
Also false are assumptions that only the guilty confess, eyewitnesses are always reliable and that all mistakes in the criminal justice system are because of "innocent human error" and eventually are found and corrected, they said.
Petro also addressed the argument that it "dishonors" victims to challenge a conviction.
Allowing the "real perpetrators" to avoid conviction serves to increase crime and create more victims, he wrote. "How does that honor victims?"
Petro championed reforms in the DNA law spurred by a 2008 Dispatch series of stories, Test of Convictions.
He said further changes are needed, including videotaping interrogations, providing better defense attorneys for the indigent and encouraging prosecutors to "seek justice, as does the law."
Ohio Public Defender Tim Young said the eight issues outlined by Petro "are ones that I have expressed for most of my career to any of those in power who will listen to make a better criminal justice system. ... I think it's bold and I congratulate him for saying so."
Petro is an appointed member of the state Public Defender Commission.
John Murphy, head of the Ohio Prosecuting Attorneys Association, declined to comment because he had not seen the Petros' book.
More;
www.dispatchpolitics.com/live/content/local_news/stories/2011/01/13/copy/petro-fighting-for-the-wrongly-convicted.html?adsec=politics&sid=101
In a new book that underscores his stunning change of heart, former Republican Attorney General Jim Petro argues that thousands of people are wrongfully convicted in this country - and that police and prosecutorial misconduct is partly to blame.
Writing in False Justice - Eight Myths that Convict the Innocent, Petro and his wife and co-author, Nancy Petro, conclude that the justice system "convicts innocent persons far more frequently than most imagine and that most Americans, if more fully informed, would consider this a national travesty."
Although they cite several reasons for this, the Petros found that many times, police and prosecutors "lose their way" because of "corruption; unlawful tactics; misplaced motivations; arrogance; and abuses of power."
Petro, 62, was attorney general from 2002 to 2006, when he ran unsuccessfully for the GOP gubernatorial nomination won by J. Kenneth Blackwell.
Before that, he was state auditor for two terms, a state lawmaker and a Cuyahoga County commissioner.
Petro surprised political colleagues and opponents in 2005 when he joined the Innocence Project in arguing that a Canton-area man, Clarence Elkins, was innocent of raping and murdering his mother-in-law in 1998.
Eventually, with assistance from Petro, DNA evidence proved Elkins' innocence, and another man was convicted for the crime.
The wrongful conviction in the Elkins case haunted Petro.
"How did this happen? How often does it happen? How many innocent people are in America's prisons?" Petro wrote.
After researching hundreds of cases, many involving DNA evidence, the Petros said they found eight myths about how the criminal justice system operates.
For example, they say that, contrary to popular belief, not everyone in prison claims innocence, nor does the justice system always convict the right person.
Also false are assumptions that only the guilty confess, eyewitnesses are always reliable and that all mistakes in the criminal justice system are because of "innocent human error" and eventually are found and corrected, they said.
Petro also addressed the argument that it "dishonors" victims to challenge a conviction.
Allowing the "real perpetrators" to avoid conviction serves to increase crime and create more victims, he wrote. "How does that honor victims?"
Petro championed reforms in the DNA law spurred by a 2008 Dispatch series of stories, Test of Convictions.
He said further changes are needed, including videotaping interrogations, providing better defense attorneys for the indigent and encouraging prosecutors to "seek justice, as does the law."
Ohio Public Defender Tim Young said the eight issues outlined by Petro "are ones that I have expressed for most of my career to any of those in power who will listen to make a better criminal justice system. ... I think it's bold and I congratulate him for saying so."
Petro is an appointed member of the state Public Defender Commission.
John Murphy, head of the Ohio Prosecuting Attorneys Association, declined to comment because he had not seen the Petros' book.
More;
www.dispatchpolitics.com/live/content/local_news/stories/2011/01/13/copy/petro-fighting-for-the-wrongly-convicted.html?adsec=politics&sid=101