In theory, the criminal legal system is designed to find the truth of a matter. In reality, the legal system has been sometimes intentionally and sometimes unintentionally constructed to be as efficient as possible while maintaining its institutional integrity. From plea deals to Executive Clemency, the legal system is often cruelly efficient at convicting the innocent and keeping the innocent looked in prison for decades. Why is that?

 

 

Today, Hunter sat down with Professor of Law, Daniel Medwed, to discuss his book Barred: Why the Innocent Can't Get Out of Prison to answer that question. At every step of the legal system, there are policies, procedures, and legal doctrines that work in concert to keep the innocent locked up as long as possible. Join us for a fascinating and frustrating examination of the legal machine that is so regularly disinterested in finding the truth and freeing the innocent.

Guest:

Daniel Medwed, Professor of Law, Northeastern University School of Law

Resources:

Buy Barred

https://www.basicbooks.com/titles/daniel-s-medwed/barred/9781541675902/

Follow Daniel Medwed on Twitter

https://twitter.com/danielmedwed?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor

Arizona v Youngblood

https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/488/51/

West Virginia Law Review Article on Arizona v Youngblood

The Youngblood Success Stories: Overcoming the "Bad Faith" Destruction of Evidence Standard (wvu.edu)

 

Contact Hunter Parnell:

[email protected] 

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