Lessons Not Learned - The Innocence Project

FALse ConFessIons oR ADMIssIons
In 25% of DNA exonerations nationwide, innocent defendants made
incriminating statements, confessed or pled guilty. The rate of false
confession or admission is even greater in New York, where it was a
factor in 10 of the 23 DNA wrongful convictions overturned by DNA.
A variety of factors can contribute to a false confession or admission
during a police interrogation. Some people falsely confess under duress
or because they fear violence. Sometimes, people are told that
they will receive a harsher sentence if they do not confess. In many
cases, people who have a diminished capacity because of mental or
physical impairments falsely confess because they do not understand
the situation or because their limited cognitive capabilities cause
them to want to please authority figures. In many false confession
cases, jurors are told that defendants knew details of a crime that only
the perpetrator could know – when, in fact, defendants learned those
details from police in the course of an interrogation or gave multiple
guesses about the details during an interrogation before giving the
“correct” answer. Wrongful convictions in New York resulting from
false confessions or admissions include:
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Douglas Warney became a suspect in a 1996 Rochester
murder after he called the police to tell them he had information
about the killing. After police interrogated him
for 12 hours and supplied him with non-public details
about the crime scene, Warney confessed to his involvement
in the murder. His confession, however, was full of
inconsistencies, such as the location of the crime, disposal
of clothing and the participation of another person who
could not have been present. Warney, who has a history
of mental issues and an eighth-grade education, was
convicted and sentenced to 25 years to life in prison. He
was released and exonerated in 2006 after DNA from the
crime scene matched the profile of a New York inmate,
who admitted that he killed the victim alone.
After supposed confessions that should have raised serious
questions by police and prosecutors, five New York
City teenagers – Yusef Salaam, Kevin Richardson, Antron
McCray, Raymond Santana and Kharey Wise – were con-
22 THe InnoCenCe PRoJeCT