The Cause Exemplified

As a subscriber to the Innocence Project’s e-mail updater, I recently read this article and felt this case to be just one of many cases that could serve as a ‘poster-child’ case, exemplifying the need for and true justice underlying reform efforts within the criminal justice/prison system. After having served 20 years wrongfully convicted for the rape and murder of a 14 year-old girl, Steven Barnes has been released following Judge’s orders. A joint motion between the District Attorney’s Office and the Innocence Project was granted showing that a review in this case was appropriate. The two organizations worked together throughout the review process in which DNA evidence was examined and found to not match that of Mr. Barnes. He had been convicted on a ‘shaky’ eyewitness testimony and scientifically invalid forensic evidence including: jean pattern imprinting and soil comparison.

Bellow is the link to the Steven Barnes Walks Free Gallery

http://photos.syracuse.com/gallery/4456/Steven%20Barnes%20Walks%20Free

As part of my efforts to educate myself and any viewer of this blog, I have found a compelling side-topic of prison reform inherently related to the issue of wrongful convictions. The established disparity in numbers of people convicted based on racial profiling and other illegal and unconstitutional classifications have perpetuated a demographic highly concentrated by minorities, and more significantly African Americans.

Despite an exponentially lower concentration within the free society, African Americans comprise of 9x the number of Caucasians within the prison system, according to May 2000 findings of the Human Rights Watch.* Racial disparity in the justice system has been a problem as far back as United States history reaches. And regardless of the major breakthroughs and movements toward a society of equality, we still have a justice system that sees in black and white, says every statistic reviewed.

For additional insight check the above book out at your local library. Race to Incarcerate: The Sentencing Project by: Marc Mauer

*http://www.hrw.org/reports/2000/usa/