Full Description
Surviving prison as an innocent person is a surreal nightmare no one wants to think about. But it can happen to you.
Justin Brooks has spent his career freeing innocent people from prison. With You Might Go to Prison, Even Though You're Innocent, he offers up-close accounts of the cases he has fought, embedding them within a larger landscape of innocence claims and robust research on what we know about the causes of wrongful convictions.
Putting readers at the defense table, this book forces us to consider how any of us might be swept up in the system, whether we hired a bad lawyer, bear a slight resemblance to someone else in the world, or are not good with awkward silence. The stories of Brooks's cases and clients paint the picture of a broken justice system, one where innocence is no protection from incarceration or even the death penalty. Simultaneously relatable and disturbing, You Might Go to Prison, Even Though You're Innocent is essential reading for anyone who wants to better understand how injustice is served by our system.
Contents
Foreword by Barry Scheck
Introduction
1. You Hired the Wrong Lawyer (Pleas with No Bargain)
2. You Live in the Country or the City
3. You Are in a Relationship and Live with Someone Who Is Murdered
4. You (Kind of) Look like Other People in the World
5. You Get Confused When You Are Tired and Hungry, and People Yell at You
6. You Have or Care for a Sick Child
7. You Got a Jury That Was Blinded by "Science"
8. You Work with Children or Let Them in Your House
9. Someone Lies about You
10. You Are Poor and/or a Person of Color
Conclusion
Notes
Index
