How prevalent is the phenomenon of innocent people pleading guilty? The few criminologists who have thus far investigated the phenomenon estimate that the overall rate for convicted felons as a whole is between 2 percent and 8 percent. The size of that range suggests the imperfection of the data; but let us suppose that it is even lower, say, no more than 1 percent. When you recall that, of the 2.2 million Americans in prison, over 2 million are there because of plea bargains, we are then talking about an estimated 20,000 persons, or more, who are in prison for crimes to which they pleaded guilty but did not in fact commit.
These are radical words for a sitting U.S. federal judge. Rakoff's willingness to make such ideas public suggests he has grown weary of silently witnessing an epidemic of prosecutorial abuse and overreach. Yet Loretta Lynch's first press conference as the attorney general nominee does nothing but heap praise upon a deeply flawed DOJ and vow to continue its "protection" of the public.
Perpetuating a broken Department of Justice (DOJ) appears to be Lynch's top priority. Her career of blind adherence a much maligned system of federal justice is what makes her a viable candidate for the post. President Obama who campaigned on a slogan of "hope and change," is virtually assuring a dearth of either with the selection of Lynch. Obama's selection of a "safe" successor all but guarantees that the changes required to inject more than a modicum of fairness into the DOJ will not be seen anytime soon. The policy of mass incarceration and America's preeminence as the world's leading jailer will almost certainly continue.
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