Anatomy Of A Wrongful Conviction: State V. Dedge And What It Tells Us About Our Flawed Criminal Justice System

<p><span>A single case, <i>State v. Dedge</i>, illustrates the myriad problems and manifest injustices in our criminal justice system. Armed only with grossly inconsistent eyewitness testimony, combined with unreliable microscopy evidence, prosecutors never should have brought the case in the first place, notwithstanding the understandable desire for justice. Indeed, the decision to prosecute Dedge on this scant evidence not only led to his wrongful conviction, but it put an end to any further investigation of the crime, ensuring that the real perpetrator would never be apprehended. The real rapist still walks among us.</span></p> <p><span>The <i>Dedge</i> case may be egregious, but it is by no means unique. Although Dedge’s case has led to changes in Florida’s law, Florida and numerous other states continue to erect impossible hurdles to the wrongfully convicted, particularly with regard to the testing and introduction of DNA evidence. As one commentator explains, “[e]mpirical proof suggests that prosecutors have consented to DNA tests in less than fifty percent of the cases in which testing later exonerated the inmate.” As a result, thousands of wrongfully convicted prisoners across this country continue to struggle to secure the preservation, testing, and introduction of biological evidence that could set them free.</span></p>