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False confessions often play a role in convicting the innocent. Marty Tankleff's is such a case. Here's a summary of Marty Tankleff's case from Fortress Innocence:
Marty Tankleff had just turned 17 years old when he was arrested for the murder of his parents in their Long Island home. After hours of aggressive interrogation by a detective with a questionable background, a dubious and unsigned "confession" lead to Marty's conviction. He was sentenced to 50 years to life in prison, with the possibility of parole in 2040. "Wrongful convictions are an epidemic in our justice system, and people need to become educated on the rampant corruption that is a threat to all of us," says Marty.
After more than 17 years in prison, Marty's conviction was vacated by the New York State Appellate Division in December of 2007. On July 22, 2008, a judge signed off on a motion by Attorney General Andrew Cuomo to dismiss all charges against Marty. Cuomo announced he would not retry Marty, citing insufficient evidence to prove his guilt. A State Supreme Court Justice dismissed all charges against Marty Tankleff in the murder of his parents, and a report is still pending from the NY State Commission of Investigation about Suffolk County law enforcement for its conduct in Marty's wrongful conviction.
For more, see Marty's interview with Opra:
1 comment:
In truth, there is very, very little that can be done concerning false confessions.My young son signed a confession after constant badgering by detectives. He was, of course, told false information by the detectives in order for the detectives to retrieve their golden ticket. The detectives behaved in the exact manner they crucify the suspects for. Lying. Double standards.
My son did not have effective counsel either. He was told to 'admit' to 2 more confessions to plea bargain. Total - 3. In other words, the public defender didn't want to put extra effort into the case. The prosecution brought in an 'expert' witness, and the public defender stood and told the court he did not know in advance that the prosecution was pulling one. Ignored by the judge. This also went against the constitutional rights of my son and against the rule of law concerning exchanges of information between the prosecution and defense.
Upon sentencing, my son was accused by the judge of committing 14 offenses total. This is inappropriate conduct considering the deceptive practioners had my son in handcuffs for 3 charges only.
When new evidence was brought before the judge for a 35b (after hiring a private attorney), it was denied. Although the judge recognized that had this crucial information been brought before the court during the original sentencing, he would have considered the information. Then, practically in the same remark on the 35b denial, he admitted to dismissing the new information because my son signed a (false) confession.
False or not, signing anything is incriminating. Truth is not honored. The 'confession' sticks. End of subject.
Corruption and deception reign in our courts. It is long overdue for an overhaul. These people work for US, not us for THEM. However, the system has become a mockery of true justice due to ignorance or apathy. Either way, it will only get worse if people don't recognize the dicatorship in the judicial system and demand integrity in the law.
Our Constitution is being shredded. WE THE PEOPLE are, by not demanding honor and justice in the courtrooms, the shredding mechanism.
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