In addition to pro bono legal service, Palmetto Innocence strives to be a bi-partisan resource for lawyers, law enforcement, and policy makers in terms of best practices in preventing wrongful convictions. We believe those partnerships are key to a better criminal justice system that protects the rights of the accused.
Preventing wrongful convictions means understanding how they occur. The Innocence Project experience has demonstrated that there are numerous causes of wrongful conviction. Some of the most common causes include:
- False Confession
- Mistaken Identity
- Jailhouse Snitch Testimony
- Ineffective Assistance of Counsel
- Bad Science
- Prosecutorial or Police Misconduct