• For the Innocent: A Podcast About Wrongful Convictions, Legal Failures, Prison, True Crime, Forensic Science, and Criminal Justice

  • By: Legal Talk Network
  • Podcast

For the Innocent: A Podcast About Wrongful Convictions, Legal Failures, Prison, True Crime, Forensic Science, and Criminal Justice

By: Legal Talk Network
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  • Summary

  • Hosted by The Innocence Center’s Executive Director Michael Semanchik, For the Innocent features heartbreaking first-person accounts of exonerees like NFL football player Brian Banks and loving father Zavion Johnson about their experiences of being wrongfully convicted. Hear emotional stories of unfair trials revolving around crimes not committed, devastating memories of incarceration and the journey these men and women took to receive freedom through exoneration. Throughout the series, you’ll hear from legal and criminal experts, forensic scientists, and prominent judges who will help us understand what went wrong. Expert guests provide insights about our criminal justice system and how wrongful convictions become a terrible reality. Learn why innocent people falsely confess, what causes misidentifications, and how junk science like bite marks, shaken baby syndrome and DNA can be used to convict people. With its compelling storytelling and dedication to uncovering the truth, For The Innocent serves as a poignant reminder of the importance of fighting for innocence, while also highlighting the tireless efforts of activists and lawyers working to right these injustices and holding institutions accountable for their mistakes. Season One and Two are now available.
    Legal Talk Network
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History Social Sciences True Crime
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Episodes
  • Evidence Preservation: Who’s Responsible and What Happens When It’s Lost or Destroyed

    Evidence Preservation: Who’s Responsible and What Happens When It’s Lost or Destroyed
    Sep 26 2024
    At the moment of conviction, the incentive to safeguard evidence diminishes in the eyes of the Criminal Justice System. That’s why it is critically important to act quickly to ensure evidence remains available for future appeals. Without it, your fight for freedom could be over before it even begins. In this episode, host Michael Semanchik is joined by Raquel Barilla, former Staff Attorney and Volunteer Coordinator at the California Innocence Project; Alissa Bjerkhoel, former Litigation Coordinator at the California Innocence Project; and Alex Simpson, former Associate Director and Resident Expert for Evidence Preservation at the California Innocence Project. Together, they discuss methods for preserving evidence. Tune in to learn what to do if the unthinkable happens.
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    40 mins
  • The Luis Vargas Story: Misidentified as the “Teardrop Rapist”

    The Luis Vargas Story: Misidentified as the “Teardrop Rapist”
    Sep 12 2024
    Luis Vargas was wrongfully convicted after three separate witnesses misidentified him as the “Teardrop Rapist.” Sixteen years later, DNA linked to the uncaught serial sex offender was found in one of the victim’s clothing from the crime. But for that evidence being preserved, Luis Vargas would have spent the rest of his life behind bars. This is his story.
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    32 mins
  • Eyewitness Misidentifications

    Eyewitness Misidentifications
    Aug 29 2024
    In the first 325 DNA exonerations, false identification accounted for 72% of the wrongful convictions. But how is that possible? The simplest explanation is that we are not as good at identifying each other as we think. Add to that a frightening encounter with someone of a different race with no time for the mind to process and you have the perfect formula for getting it all wrong. Host Michael Semanchik sits down with retired Los Angeles Detective Greg McKnight, Distinguished Professor of Psychology John Wixted, and California Innocence Project Founder Justin Books to discuss the science of misidentifications and why so many people who were so sure got it so wrong.
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    40 mins

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