Jailhouse snitches (Graphic): "30 Years of Jailhouse Snitch Scandals."... ProPublica (Reporters Katie Zavadski and Moiz Syed.) reveals, in a rather telling graphic, that, "More than 140 people have been exonerated in murder cases involving jailhouse informant testimony since the U.S. Supreme Court signed off on its constitutionality in 1966. Yet informant testimony is still allowed nationwide, and the limited reforms that exist have yet to prove effective."

PUBLISHER'S NOTE: In response to  the stunning number of exonerations  enabled by DNA evidence,  one of the most common explanations has been that all too often police and prosecutors  are tempted to use devious, dangerous techniques in the absence of  scientific evidence which can neatly provide a conviction. (A wrongful conviction at that. HL);  One of these techniques - in addition to rigging the statement and identification processes - is by 'buying' the evidence of prison informants, commonly referred to as ‘jailhouse snitches." unfettered use of snitches.  Top-notch investigative journalists Pamela Colloff and Mike White  have dived deeply into the  dangers posed by jailhouse snitches - from the USA to New Zealand - and their work has been evidenced by multiple posts on this Blog. Harold Levy: Publisher: The Charles Smith Blog. ------------------------------------------------------------ GRAPHIC: : "30 Years of Jailhouse Snitch Scandals," by reporters (Reporters Katie  Zavadski and Moiz Syed), published by ProPublica on December 4, 2019. (Katie Zavadski is ProPublica’s research editor. She oversees the research team, works on the Trump, Inc. podcast and runs ProPublica’s Emerging Reporters program. Moiz Syed is a journalist, designer and developer on ProPublica's news apps team, covering the federal government. Previously he worked at The Intercept as a data journalist.)
1989 scandal Prolific jailhouse informant Leslie Vernon White appears on “60 Minutes” and demonstrates on camera how he fabricates testimony. The previous year, the Los Angeles Times had written about White demonstrating to law enforcement how he could manufacture testimony, prompting legal groups in California to call for a grand jury to investigate. Defense attorneys compiled a list of over 200 cases in the preceding 10 years in which jailhouse informants testified. exonerations Between 1980 and 1989, 49 people nationwide are wrongfully convicted of murder in cases in which jailhouse informants played a role, according to the National Registry of Exonerations. The registry only logs individuals who have been exonerated, making this likely only a fraction of the overall number of people who have been wrongly convicted in such cases. 1990 scandal A California grand jury report blasts the use of jailhouse informants by prosecutors and police. It calls for sweeping reforms, including the creation of a centralized database of informants that would list any benefits they received, the number of times they testified and all favorable actions taken on their behalf. The reforms are not implemented. exonerationsBetween 1990 and 1999, 53 people are wrongfully convicted of murder in cases in which jailhouse informants played a role, according to the National Registry of Exonerations. 1994 Among the Released Eric Jackson-Knight Convicted 1980 Sentence 25 to Life State New York 1999 Among the Released Dennis Fritz Convicted 1988 Sentence Life State Oklahoma Ronald Williamson Convicted 1988 Sentence Death State Oklahoma Ellen Reasonover Convicted 1983 Sentence Life State Missouri scandal The dangers of jailhouse informant testimony are highlighted as part of a Chicago Tribune series on Illinois’ death penalty. Reporters spotlight jailhouse informant Tommy Dye, a known liar whose testimony helped put an ex-Chicago police officer on death row. The officer was later exonerated when Dye refused to testify at a retrial. The Tribune found that at least 46 inmates were on Illinois’ death row because of cases that involved jailhouse informant testimony. 2000 reform An Oklahoma appeals court institutes new rules for jailhouse informant testimony that require prosecutors to disclose key facts before trial: an informant’s full criminal history, any promises made in exchange for the testimony, other cases in which the informant testified and any recantations the informant has made. The court also mandated jury instructions on how to weigh the reliability of informant testimony. exonerations Between 2000 and 2009, 30 people are wrongfully convicted of murder in cases in which jailhouse informants played a role, according to the National Registry of Exonerations. 2003 reform Illinois adopts vast death penalty reform laws, including one requiring pretrial reliability hearings for jailhouse informants testifying in death penalty cases. The reforms only apply to death penalty cases, allowing informants to testify wihtout such hearings in other serious cases. Among the Released Joseph Amrine Convicted 1986 Sentence Death State Missouri Nicholas Yarris Convicted 1982 Sentence Death State Pennsylvania 2004 scandal The Center on Wrongful Convictions at the Northwestern University School of Law releases a report titled “The Snitch System,” which documents the toll of false informant testimony. The report claims that cases involving informants — many of them jailhouse snitches — were responsible for 45.9% of death penalty exonerations since the punishment was reinstated in the 1970s. scandal Cameron Todd Willingham is executed in Texas for the 1991 deaths of his three young children, who perished in a house fire. Jailhouse informant Johnny Webb, who testified that Willingham confessed to him, later recants his testimony. Among the Released Harold Hall Convicted 1990 Sentence Life State California 2008 Among the Released Alberto Sifuentes Convicted 1998 Sentence Life State Texas Jesus Ramirez Convicted 1998 Sentence Life State Texas 2010 exonerations Since 2010, at least five people have been wrongfully convicted of murder in cases in which jailhouse informants played a role, according to the National Registry of Exonerations. Fewer wrongful convictions have surfaced in this decade compared with previous ones because it can take years, and even decades, for wrongful convictions to come to light. Experts say this number will likely grow in the years to come. 2011 reform California passes a law that says that the uncorroborated testimony of a jailhouse informant can't be used against a defendant at trial. A court later weakens these protections by saying accomplices and informants may corroborate each others’ accounts. 2012 scandal The Florida Innocence Commission recommends providing jurors with instructions on how to weigh the reliability of informant testimony and other reforms, such as clarifying disclosure rules. Among the Released Clinton Potts Convicted 2009 Sentence Life without parole State Oklahoma 2013 Among the Released David Boyce Convicted 1991 Sentence Life State Virginia 2014 Among the Released Lorenzo Montoya Convicted 2000 Sentence Life without parole State Colorado scandal A public defender in a high-profile murder case in Orange County, California, claims that his client’s constitutional rights were violated through the use of a long-standing jailhouse informant program. Orange County’s top prosecutors and law-enforcement officials are implicated, and according to a pending ACLU lawsuit against the county district attorney’s office and sheriff’s department, as many as 140 cases may be affected. Other murder cases are retried as a result. reform The Florida Supreme Court requires prosecutors to disclose a summary of jailhouse informants’ criminal histories; any previous history as an informant; and the compensation they expect to receive. 2016 Among the Released Jack McCullough Convicted 2012 Sentence Life State Illinois Justin Chapman Convicted 2007 Sentence Life State Georgia 2017 scandal An Orange County, California, grand jury asserts that the existence of an organized informant program run by the DA’s office and sheriff’s department “does not stand up to factual validation.” While it acknowledges wrongdoing in individual cases, its report dismisses claims that there was any sort of organized jailhouse informant program in place. reform Texas passes a law requiring prosecutors to track informant testimony and disclose any benefits the informants received, such as compensation and sentence reductions. 2018 Among the Released Alfred Swinton Convicted 2001 Sentence 60 years State Connecticut David Robinson Convicted 2001 Sentence Life without parole State Missouri reform Illinois passes a law requiring pretrial reliability hearings for jailhouse informants testifying in murder, arson and sexual assault cases. It also includes other disclosure requirements. 2019 scandal The California Attorney General’s Office closes its investigation into the Orange County jailhouse informant scandal. No one is publicly disciplined. reform Nebraska enacts legislation mandating that defense attorneys be notified of an informant's criminal history, any benefits they will receive, any past history as an informant and any recantations. reform Twenty-nine years after a Los Angeles County grand jury recommended the creation of a centralized database to track jailhouse informants, Connecticut — not California — passes such a law. The entire graphic can be accessed  at:  https://projects.propublica.org/graphics/jailhouse-informants-timeline?utm_source=pardot&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=navy  ———————————————————- PUBLISHER'S NOTE: I am monitoring this case/issue. Keep your eye on the Charles Smith Blog for reports on developments. The Toronto Star, my previous employer for more than twenty incredible years, has put considerable effort into exposing the harm caused by Dr. Charles Smith and his protectors - and into pushing for reform of Ontario's forensic pediatric pathology system. The Star has a "topic"  section which focuses on recent stories related to Dr. Charles Smith. It can be found at: http://www.thestar.com/topic/charlessmith. Information on "The Charles Smith Blog Award"- and its nomination process - can be found at: http://smithforensic.blogspot.com/2011/05/charles-smith-blog-award-nominations.html Please send any comments or information on other cases and issues of interest to the readers of this blog to: hlevy15@gmail.com.  Harold Levy: Publisher: The Charles Smith Blog; ----------------------------------------------------------------- FINAL WORD:  (Applicable to all of our wrongful conviction cases):  "Whenever there is a wrongful conviction, it exposes errors in our criminal legal system, and we hope that this case — and lessons from it — can prevent future injustices." Lawyer Radha Natarajan: Executive Director: New England Innocence Project; ---------------------------------------------------------------