Governor Signs Senator Leno’s Legislation to Curtail Wrongful Convictions

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On Monday, Governor Jerry Brown signed into law a measure that would help prevent wrongful convictions.  The legislation, authored by Senator Mark Leno, ensures that no judge or jury convicts a defendant, or approves an aggravating factor in a crime that allows for a stricter penalty, based solely on the uncorroborated testimony of an in-custody informant.

The bill implements a 2006 bipartisan recommendation of the California Commission on the Fair Administration of Justice – a law that former Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger had vetoed several times, despite the fact that similar laws are in effect in at least 17 other states

“I am pleased that Governor Brown signed SB 687, which helps curtail wrongful convictions in California,” Senator Leno said in a written statement on Monday.  “We know that when used properly, jailhouse informants can be a good investigative tool for prosecutors, but they can also be destructive, crime-producing and corrupting.”

The Senator added, “SB 687 ensures that in-custody informant testimony is supported by corroborating evidence that connects the accused with the crime that was committed. Without the safeguards created in this legislation, the potential for the miscarriage of justice when informant testimony is involved is just too high.”

In 2006, the California Commission on the Fair Administration of Justice, comprised of prosecutors, public defenders, victims’ rights advocates and law enforcement officials, recommended that California implement laws to protect against wrongful convictions based on jailhouse informant testimony.

SB 687 requires prosecutors to implement long-needed procedures to control improper informant testimony, something other states have already done.

It “provides that the testimony of an in-custody informant shall be corroborated by other evidence that connects the defendant with commission of the offense, the special circumstance, or the evidence offered in aggravation to which the in-custody informant testifies.”

The legislation was born out of the California Commission on the Fair Administration of Justice, which was formed to examine miscarriages of justice such as wrongful convictions and make recommendations on safeguards to ensure accuracy and fairness within the criminal justice system.

According to legislative records, a Los Angeles County Grand Jury report arose out of a scandal involving Leslie Vernon White, a Los Angeles jail inmate who made national news after detailing methods for fabricating testimony to gain lenience.

The legislation was supported by both the San Francisco and Los Angeles District Attorneys.

The Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office already, as a result of the grand jury report, has voluntarily implemented a strict policy requiring strong corroborative evidence when the testimony of an in-custody informant is utilized.

“The LA District Attorney’s policy now requires ‘strong  corroborative evidence,”‘consisting of more than the fact that the informant appears to know details of the crime thought to be known only to law enforcement.

“We have not had any problems obtaining convictions as a result of our policy and believe it has helped us to assure the reliability of witness testimony to avoid mistakes in criminal prosecutions,” said Los Angeles County District Attorney Steve Cooley. “When the wrong person is prosecuted, the guilty go free. By avoiding this consequence, SB 687 will promote justice for the people and the accused.”

“Wrongful convictions not only harm innocent individuals who then languish behind bars, but they disserve victims and the community at large, allowing the actual perpetrators to remain free to commit other offenses,” said Diane A. Bellas, Alameda County Chief Public Defender and a former commissioner on the California Commission on The Fair Administration of Justice.

She added,  “This bill takes an important step toward furthering the fair administration of justice by ensuring the veracity of jailhouse informant testimony with the requirement that such testimony be corroborated. The Legislature should take great pride in passage of this measure today, as it will ensure that fewer innocent people are wrongfully convicted in California.”

Other prosecutors have argued that there is no need for such a law, since judges already tell juries to consider an informant’s testimony with caution.

The California District Attorneys Association argued, in opposition, “The premise underlying the measure is that such evidence is inherently suspect because in-custody informants have a strong incentive to manufacture false statements. While logically true in the abstract, the concrete reality is that current criminal procedure provides adequate safeguards in every actual case.”

Instead, they argue, “The uncorroborated testimony of any witness is either evaluated by a judge, who has the wisdom and experience to evaluate such evidence; or it is evaluated by a jury, which is instructed by the judge on how to evaluate uncorroborated testimony.”

However, the Innocence Project of Northern California argued, “Informant testimony is an undeniably valuable law enforcement tool, but, as SB 687 recognizes, the use of informants, or incentivized witnesses, provides many opportunities for misuse or unfair criminal justice outcomes.”

They argue that the power of incentives has a great potential to “breed unreliable testimony since the informant is participating in a process in which he seeks to provide agreeable information to those with the authority to grant rewards.”

The research from the Innocence Project has found that testimony from jailhouse informants are a leading cause of wrongful convictions.

In more than 15% of cases of wrongful conviction overturned by DNA testing, an informant or jailhouse snitch testified against the defendant. Often, statements from people with incentives to testify – particularly incentives that are not disclosed to the jury – are the central evidence in convicting an innocent person.

“DNA exonerations have shown that snitches lie on the stand,” they argue.

They add, “What is more, wrongful convictions, including those resulting from the testimony of uncorroborated jailhouse informants, erode the public’s faith in the fair administration of justice.”

Another study, from 2005 by the Center for Wrongful Convictions at Northwestern School of Law, found that testimony from snitches and other informants is the leading cause of wrongful convictions in death penalty cases in the United States. Other research suggests that 20% of all wrongful convictions in California are the result of perjured informant statements at trial.

According to Mr. Leno, “The truth is, wrongful convictions can and do happen in California. According to research, California has sent more innocent people to prison for longer terms than any other state. No fewer than 150 and as many as 1,500 people are now in prison for life for crimes they did not commit.”

—David M. Greenwald reporting

Author

  • David Greenwald

    Greenwald is the founder, editor, and executive director of the Davis Vanguard. He founded the Vanguard in 2006. David Greenwald moved to Davis in 1996 to attend Graduate School at UC Davis in Political Science. He lives in South Davis with his wife Cecilia Escamilla Greenwald and three children.

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10 comments

  1. “According to Mr. Leno, “The truth is, wrongful convictions can and do happen in California. According to research, California has sent more innocent people to prison for longer terms than any other state. No fewer than 150 and as many as 1,500 people are now in prison for life for crimes they did not commit.”

    And Ajay Dev is one of the 1,500 people now in prison for life for a crime he did not commit!

  2. When people realize that wrongful convictions can happen within us and that our judicial system is not perfect and that the officers of the court are capable of lying to simply put yet another check mark on conviction or due to greed of Ca$h for Conviction$ railroad a defendant into wrongful conviction, then only we are truly awakened into being better citizens of this country. The right thing to do is the same officers of the court swallowing their pride and acknowledging the fact that there was a wrongful conviction. Then these officers will gain respect and trust from us ordinary people. Such has been the case of Ajay Dev and I completely agree with FAI. Even if we went with the lower bound number of 150, Ajay Dev still would be towards the top.

  3. [quote]In more than 15% of cases of wrongful conviction overturned by DNA testing an informant or jailhouse snitch testified against the defendant.[/quote]

    I’m not sure I believe this statistic, which implies that the uncorroborated testimony of a jailhouse informant was the sole reason for conviction. Nevertheless, I do think this legislation is certainly an improvement in the justice system. If the informant’s testimony is suspect to begin w, bc they will receive a lighter sentence or some such gain from their testimony, already we essentially have a form of bribery for “helpful” testimony going on – which should not be a part of the criminal justice system.

  4. “She added, “This bill takes an important step toward furthering the fair administration of justice by ensuring the veracity of jailhouse informant testimony with the requirement that such testimony be corroborated.”

    Testimony should always be corroborated, otherwise it is one person’s word against another.

  5. “According to research, California has sent more innocent people to prison for longer terms than any other state.”

    California has the largest population among all US states by quite a margin, though. A per capita figure may be more illuminating.

    “No fewer than 150 and as many as 1,500 people are now in prison for life for crimes they did not commit.”

    No doubt people have been convicted of crimes they did not commit, which is tragic. However, the top end (1500) of Sen Leno’s estimate amounts to less than 1 percent of CA’s total prison population (170K+). On the lower end (150) we are looking at a percent of .008%.

    I am in favor of reexamining the justice system and passing legislation to prevent further injustices, but one could argue that the wrongfully convicted makeup a relative few.

  6. [quote]Testimony should always be corroborated, otherwise it is one person’s word against another. [/quote]

    In an ideal world yes, but this is far from an ideal world. Sometimes eyewitness testimony is all there is, e.g. particularly w regard to the crime of rape (especially rape w condom). In some states/situations, corroboration is already required, such as corroboration if it is testimony from an accomplice to the crime.

  7. Superfluous Man: “I am in favor of reexamining the justice system and passing legislation to prevent further injustices, but one could argue that the wrongfully convicted makeup a relative few.”

    It doesn’t really matter how small or large the number is if you are the person in jail wrongfully convicted.

    If there is a way to change the justice system to minimize the chances of wrongful convictions, we need to make those changes.

  8. FAI,

    “It doesn’t really matter how small or large the number is if you are the person in jail wrongfully convicted.

    If there is a way to change the justice system to minimize the chances of wrongful convictions, we need to make those changes.”

    I agree that we must strive for a system that shrinks the number of wrongfully convicted to zero, but my point is separate from that. Posters on this site have remarked that the system unfairly favors the prosecution and jurors are either too ignorant re: how the system operates or trusting of law enforcement to seek the truth in some cases, which leads to wrongful convictions.

    Vanguard poster, Themis, wrote, “Since most people have not gone to law school, most people have no understanding of how lopsided the system is for the prosecution.”

    Which leaves me with this question: if the system is so lopsided in favor of the prosecution (which s/he never expanded on), then why have so few defendants been wrongfully convicted in CA? 150-1500 out of 750K+ is a very small percent of the prison population. It would appear that the figures suggest otherwise.

    I don’t think it’s unreasonable to conclude that either the prosecution doesn’t have quite the advantage this poster asserts and if they do the jury is able to sort out the facts fairly…over 99% of the time.

  9. I spent 10 years in California prisons and know the Pelican Bay SHU personally. I wrote a drug war novel Roll Call by Glenn Langohr to show the public the path we are on by incarcerating petty criminals is only breeding bigger ones who are displaced from society when they are released. The U.S is not the leaders of the free world; we are the leaders of the incarcerated world! I started http://www.lockdownpublishing.com when I got out of prison to help other prisoners change their lives through writing. http://youtu.be/jEQ8Gh1-bFs Here is the NY Review Kirkus Discoveries, Nielsen Business Media
    discoveries@kirkusreviews.com

    A harrowing, down-and-dirty depiction—sometimes reminiscent of Steven Soderbergh’s Traffic—of America’s war on drugs, by former dealer and California artist Langohr.

    I’m also writing over 50 California prisoners to inspire them to turn their lives around through writing. I want interviews and publicity as I am broke out of prison and can’t afford the regular channels…
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    TIME TO PROTEST THE C.C.P.O.A –Coming soon

  10. “Which leaves me with this question: if the system is so lopsided in favor of the prosecution (which s/he never expanded on), then why have so few defendants been wrongfully convicted in CA? 150-1500 out of 750K+ is a very small percent of the prison population. It would appear that the figures suggest otherwise.”

    I think that number is very low. I think it is much higher than that. But quantifying the actual number is tricky.

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