Preventing Wrongful Convictions

3 cr · Undergraduate

This course examines the causes of wrongful convictions, how to avoid them, detection mechanisms and remedies that should be provided under international instruments when a miscarriage of justice has occurred. The course starts by examining the environmental factors that nurture a miscarriage of justice, including the adversarial system of criminal justice. It then examines the role of the various players in the criminal justice system, and how each can inadvertently feed into a wrongful conviction - individually, or in combination with other factors. Further, cultural insensitivity is considered with respect to the overrepresentation of marginalized individuals, including Indigenous accused persons. Cognitive bias and unreliable evidence are also considered. May not be held with LAW 3980 when titled “Preventing Wrongful Convictions.”