Wrongful Conviction Reforms in the United States and the United Kingdom: Taking Stock

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Abstract

The past few decades have seen a growing interest in, and concern about, the problem of wrongful convictions and miscarriages of justice in many common law jurisdictions. This interest is reflected in scholarly research, in public opinion polls, and in reforms designed to prevent such miscarriages of justice. Although this trend is clear, there has been less progress in cross-national research focusing on how wrongful convictions occur in different criminal justice systems and what those nations are doing to reduce such errors. This paper discusses the problem of wrongful convictions in the United States and the United Kingdom. It provides an analysis of the effectiveness and shortcomings of recent reform efforts and offers recommendations for future reforms.

Authors

• C. Ronald Huff, University of California, Irvine

• Michael Naughton, University of Bristol