The National race and Registry of wrongful Exonerations convictions African Americans African Americans (13%) Known (47%) U.S. Population exonerations Murder Sexual Assault Drug Cases Black people are 7 times more likely to be A black prisoner serving time for sexual assault is 3.5 Innocent African Americans are 12 times more likely wrongfully convicted of murder than white people. times more likely to be innocent than a white sexual to be convicted of drug possession than innocent assault convict. The major cause is misidentification white people. of black defendants by white victims. African Americans imprisoned for murder are more likely to be innocent if they were convicted of killing white victims. 4 2 3 5 Murders with white Wrongfully convicted In Harris County, Texas, 133 defendants pled guilty victims (15%) of murdering a white to drug possession, but lab tests later showed they person (31%) had no illegal drugs African-American murder African -American Black Black convictions murder exonerees In half of all sexual assault exonerations where exonerees residents mistaken identification is a factor, the defendant was (62%) (20%) black and the victim was white. Harris County drug Harris County Sexual assault exonerations where mistaken identification is a factor crime guilty plea population = including police = without police exonerations misconduct misconduct black defendant, white victim Murder exonerations with white defendants This combination only occurs in about 11% of all Since 1989, more than 1,800 defendants have been sexual assaults in the US cleared in “group exonerations” that followed 15 Murder exonerations with black defendants All sexual assaults in the United States large-scale police scandals in which officers systematically framed innocent defendants. The great Black defendant, white victim majority were African-American defendants who were framed for drug crimes that never occurred. On average, black murder exonerees spend 3 years African-American sexual assault exonerees spent 4.5 longer in prison before release than white years longer in prison than white sexual assault exonerees. exonerees.