Dahlia Lithwick discloses an astounding situation in the state of Virginia…and it's not a stretch to presume this is happening other places, as well. People are convicted of crimes. Many years later, DNA testing proves their innocence. And no one tells them.
The practice of wrongful conviction doesn't seem to bother many people. I suspect that if a lot of folks think about it at all, their attitude is that if you're poor (and in some cases, if you're a racial minority) and you get thrown in jail, you're probably guilty of something. So it's no big deal if you're convicted of the wrong something. Never mind that every wrongful conviction means that our justice system is sloppy and that someone got away with The Perfect Crime. I mean, if you commit an act of violence and someone else goes to prison for it, they really aren't looking for you.
Anyway, I find it troubling that so many innocent people are convicted…and troubling that so few people seem to care.