When Innocence Is Not Enough
eBook - ePub

When Innocence Is Not Enough

Hidden Evidence and the Failed Promise of the Brady Rule

  1. English
  2. ePUB (mobile friendly)
  3. Available on iOS & Android
eBook - ePub

When Innocence Is Not Enough

Hidden Evidence and the Failed Promise of the Brady Rule

About this book

Finalist, Colorado Book Award

A gripping work of narrative nonfiction, told across time, that exposes what’s at stake when prosecutors conceal evidence—and what we can do about it

The Brady rule was meant to transform the U.S. justice system. In soaring language, the Supreme Court decreed in 1963 that prosecutors must share favorable evidence with the defense—part of a suite of decisions of that reform-minded era designed to promote fairness for those accused of crimes. But reality intervened. The opinion faced many challenges, ranging from poor legal reasoning and shaky precedent to its clashes with the very foundations of the American criminal legal system and some of its most powerful enforcers: prosecutors.

In this beautifully wrought work of narrative nonfiction, Thomas L. Dybdahl illustrates the promise and shortcomings of the Brady rule through deft storytelling and attention to crucial cases, including the infamous 1984 murder of Catherine Fuller in Washington, DC. This case led to eight young Black men being sent to prison for life after the prosecutor, afraid of losing the biggest case of his career, hid information that would have proven their innocence.

With a seasoned defense lawyer’s unsparing eye for detail, Thomas L. Dybdahl chronicles the evolution of the Brady rule—from its unexpected birth to the series of legal decisions that left it defanged and ineffective. Yet Dybdahl shows us a path forward by highlighting promising reform efforts across the country that offer a blueprint for a legislative revival of Brady’s true spirit.

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Yes, you can access When Innocence Is Not Enough by Thomas L. Dybdahl in PDF and/or ePUB format, as well as other popular books in Law & Criminal Law. We have over one million books available in our catalogue for you to explore.

Information

Publisher
The New Press
Year
2023
eBook ISBN
9781620977781
Edition
0
Topic
Law
Subtopic
Criminal Law
Index
Law

Table of contents

  1. Cover
  2. Title Page
  3. Dedication
  4. Contents
  5. Foreword by Sr. Helen Prejean
  6. Introduction
  7. 1: Love, Death, and the Birth of Brady
  8. 2: The Woman in the Alley
  9. 3: Setting Brady’s Borders
  10. 4: Prisoners of Their Hunch
  11. 5: The Battle for Brady’s Heart
  12. 6: The Biggest Murder Trial in DC History
  13. 7: An Epidemic of Violations
  14. 8: The Long Way Home
  15. 9: The Failure and the Hope
  16. Epilogue
  17. Acknowledgments
  18. Notes
  19. Index
  20. About the Author
  21. Publishing in the Public Interest
  22. Copyright