Center on Wrongful Convictions

In most police and courtroom dramas, crimes are solved as soon as a character confesses. However, as a new book shows, a confession is sometimes only the beginning of the real story.

Even when there is compelling evidence of actual innocence, it can be almost impossible to shake a mistaken but firmly held belief in a convicted person's guilt.

You might think that judges would be willing to review convictions based on testimony that was later recanted, but in fact courts frequently ignore recantations.