To the Point
The French Election and the Conviction of Innocents
With 200 criminal convicts exonerated by DNA testing, a look at new efforts to guarantee justice for all. Also, France's new president, and destruction in Kansas.
By Warren Olney • • 1h 0m ListenTwo hundred criminal convicts have now been exonerated by DNA testing, some after long prison terms and even sentences to death. In 75% of those cases the major flaw was eyewitness identification. We'll hear what 20 states and some 500 local jurisdictions are doing in a new effort to guarantee justice for all. Plus, widespread destruction in Kansas, and the challenges facing France's President-elect Nicolas Sarkozy.
Photo: Christopher Furlong, Getty Images
In this episode
3 storiesKansas Hit by Deadly Tornado, More Heavy Rains
Greensburg, Kansas, a town of 1500 people, was 90% destroyed or damaged over the weekend by the most powerful tornado to hit the US in 8 years. Today, heavy rains have caused flooding there and in other parts of the region. Reporter Roy Wenzl is following the story for the Wichita Eagle .
Read the story6 minWill a New President Mean a New Order for France?
Nicolas Sarkozy has been a polarizing figure in France, but as President-elect he is promising not only reform but unity. Current President Jacques Chirac has been no friend to George Bush, especially because of his opposition to the war in Iraq. Sarkozy does not support the war either, but he's looking for a kinder, gentler relationship.
Read the story16 minDNA Testing and the Exoneration of the Innocent
Since 1989, some 200 criminal convicts have been exonerated by DNA testing, some within days of execution. In 75 percent of those cases, the major flaw was eyewitness identification. Many of those exonerated were the result of the work of the Innocence Project at the Benjamin Cardozo Law School at New York’s Yeshiva University.
Read the story27 min
