TFLYTSNBN wrote:The very small number and percentage of prior convictions that have been overturned by DNA fingerprinting is extremely strong evidence that the false conviction rate was never significant.
I know you're suffering from a form of dyscalculia that makes it hard for you to understand statistics, but: Out of all criminal convictions that happened prior to DNA testing being a thing that could have been materially affected by DNA testing (i.e. all cases where no or few other conclusive pieces of evidence exist to connect the crime to the person convicted for committing it), how many were retested afterwards?
Like, you're using the fact that only very few convictions from the 1950s and 60s were overturned because of DNA evidence as evidence that policing was better back then. But that's not the only hypothesis that fits the data; After all, if someone falsely convicted of a crime wasn't able or willing to contest the conviction once this new evidentiary methodology was solid enough to do so (because they're dead, or because they don't have the funds to hire a lawyer to go through the process, or because they don't care to do so), you'd never find out about it, would you?
Perhaps you are presuming that the false conviction rate in the US was very high because of your bigoted prejudices that Americans are all abunch of ignorant rednecks who would falsely convict the innocent out of spite?
Anyone willing to go along with the GOP or its various sub-sects is certainly ignorant and very likely bigoted and prejudiced, while also not averse to inflicting hurt on innocent people, but that's beside the point.
Anyway, no, my original assumption was that the low rate of convictions from the 50s and 60s being overturned by subsequent DNA testing has more to do with the overall rarity of such cases being reexamined than with any change in the quality of investigations or trials.
Annachie wrote:Fly's little eviction story from the 16 yr olds voting thread, would have been major news here in Australia.
Maybe even to a national level.
Would it have gotten even one line if Fly's hometown?
It would've been major news in pretty much any sane country. Maybe not national news, but certainly a story on regional TV.