Timothy Cole died in prison in 1999 while serving a 25 year sentence for a crime he did not commit. He has finally had his name cleared.In 1985, Cole was convicted of raping Michele Mallin, who identified his photo and later, in a lineup. Identification was not without the aid of the police, though.
a photo lineup was faulty because Cole's picture - a Polaroid - was different from the other photos used.Mother pleads in court to have son posthumously exonerated | State | Star-Telegram.com
She testified that initially she wasn't positive in selecting Cole's picture, but she became more convinced based on comments and actions of police and prosecutors. She now thinks that they misled her.
The part of this story that really bothers me though, is the fact that 24 years after having to experience the horror of being raped, she is still having to relive the details in court.
In the courtroom of Judge Charlie Baird Friday afternoon, Mallin, now 44, faced Jerry Johnson, the man who confessed to the rape.Texan who died in prison cleared of rape conviction - CNN.com
A system that is fueled by rage and retribution, a system that feels the pressure so powerfully to find the perpetrators of such awful crimes that it pushes a rape victim to misidentify her attacker, a system such as this is no longer fulfilling even it's own need for revenge. What they are accomplishing, and what they are committing is victimization. Of the wrongfully convicted man, of the wrongfully convicted man's family and loved ones and of the rape victim herself. 24 years later, she is still being victimized by a system that is so vocal about punishment for the guilty. A system that told her to report her crime, and they would take care of everything.
As a rape victim myself, I cannot begin to verbalize how horrifying this is. So many people out there think the justice system in the USA is "soft on crime". This phrase casts a shadow on the campaigns and careers of any politician it has been uttered about. And because these politicians, judges, lawyers, never want to be labeled "soft on crime" they feel the pressure to convict whenever possible. Reasonable doubt is cast aside for hasty convictions and guilty verdicts.
What I don't understand, is how the name-calling public doesn't see that convicting an innocent man, letting the real rapist go free, and forcing a rape victim to relive her trauma 24 years later after helping the wrongfully convicted man's family clear his name, how do people not see that this is anything but "soft on crime". This is heinous, vicious terrorism.
To learn more about wrongful convictions, visit innocenceproject.org
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