O DNA da Justiça

So it's approximately 5:00 am and I should be sleeping but instead I feel compelled to submit a review for this incredible docuseries. While I appreciate the submission of other reviews, I think many missed the mark in describing the impact of these wrongful convictions. The distortion of evidence was a big part of the series, but I think the overriding message was how reputation and ego were more important than the truth in virtually every case. Not to mention that a strong case could be made that many of these convictions came down to ole fashioned bigotry as well. Corruption on the prosecutorial level is given a close look and scrutinized. Corruptive tactics are widely known to have been used by police in the 80s/90s. However, to see prosecutors aiding and abetting alongside those corruptive tactics was sickening to say the least. Its truly shocking as a viewer and aspiring lawyer to see how flawed our criminal justice system can be. I think a strong case can also be be made that prosecutors should not be granted immunity for their role in wrongful convictions but instead should be punished for their ineptitude / complacency. It's encouraging to see some changes have been made since these convictions were handed down, e.g. the new Philadelphia District Attorney, but there's so much more that needs to be done on a federal level to make sure these types of situations simply cannot happen. The only thing preventing me from giving the series a 10 is I felt the pacing could have been faster. Some of the episodes seemed drawn out and could have been condensed into shorter versions without losing information.

This is in response to the person who discounted this documentary (and The Innocence Project, in general, I guess) entirely because ex-O.J. Defense Atty. Barry Scheck is the cofounder and Director of The Project. Here's what a lot of observers, me included, think about that. This doc series is about how unreliable certain forensic evidence (e.g., bite-mark analysis) and eyewitness testimony is, and how innocent people have been wrongly convicted as a result. Now Scheck is justly (in)famous for popularizing the phrase "cesspool of contamination" to describe the Crime Lab in L.A., and thereby helping O.J. (who the majority of people, me included, still think was guilty of 1st Degree Murder) be acquitted. Assuming these opinions are true, that essentially means Scheck used the unreliability of certain forensic evidence to help acquit a guilty person. But some of us believe he started The Innocence Project to use some of the same legal (and scientific) arguments to go back in history and get truly (and as some watching this doc, including me, would say, OBVIOUSLY) innocent people released from long prison sentences, incl. on Death Row. Also part of this, the theory would be, is that Scheck may still feel some guilt over his role in the Simpson acquittal, and this is a way to atone, at least in part. Does this lessen the relevance or impact or validity of the points made in The Innocence Files documentary? I'd submit o you: No. It doesn't. So watch it and judge for yourself it's significance. As for me, I'd give it a solid 8 out of 10!

My big take away from this documentary was that it was kind of scary, these people went to jail for many years based on bogus science and circumstantial evidence. It certainly makes you think how many people incarcerated are innocent, and how many people have gotten away with murder.

I knew nothing about this doc before I began watching, although I am very familiar with the work that Innocence Project does. It is incredibly well done, and it's very involving right from the start.

Although we all know about how miscarriages of justice occur, I have to admit that I was still shocked by the behavior of both police officers and prosecutors that dealt with these cases. The lengths that a some of these people, in what are usually fine and noble professions, will go to to make a conviction almost defies belief.

I felt so many emotions watching this series, and it was a very satisfying experience indeed. I feel very comfortable recommending this to anyone who has interest in the law, police procedure, the human condition, or all three.

If you really lile true crime documentaries.. watch the series but sometimes you can get a bit boring due to long lines of narrative..