Background Information
The Department of Justice’s mission statement states that the United State’s judicial system strives to provide just punishment for those who have broken the law. However, sometimes people are convicted for crimes they did not commit. Use the following sources to learn more about wrongful convictions, the American Criminal Justice System, and the laws surrounding incarceration and exoneration.
- CQ Researcher This link opens in a new windowSearch for “wrongful convictions” and you will find an excellent overview of this topic. CQ Researcher is great for background information about a topic, and gives information about both sides of an issue. Check the bottom of the page for a list of references which might be useful to your topic.
- Credo Reference This link opens in a new windowCredo reference is like a more trustworthy (and professor-friendly) version of Wikipedia. It’s a great place to look for background information. Searching for “wrongful convictions” will bring up several encyclopedia articles from different sources.
- Encyclopedia of Race and CrimeProvides reference material and an introduction to historical and contemporary race and crime topics.
- West's Encyclopedia of American LawProvides current information on thousands of legal topics, definitions of legal terms, and articles on important court cases.