March 04, 2011 (Press-News.org) Cornelius Dupree Jr. was recently released from prison after DNA testing revealed that he could not have committed the crime. After being convicted of rape and robbery, Dupree was sentenced to 75 years in prison in 1980. He spent 30 years maintaining his innocence. He would have been paroled had he admitted committing the crimes, but he refused. Finally, DNA testing of evidence cleared him of any wrongdoing.
Dupree's story is all too familiar in Texas. Dallas County leads the nation in DNA exonerations. The county has released 21 individuals who were convicted of crimes, accounting for almost half of all exonerations in Texas. According to the Innocence Project, the average prison sentence served prior to release is 13.5 years. The most common reason for the wrongly accused getting convicted? Misidentification. Roughly 80 percent of those who have been cleared by DNA at the national level were incorrectly identified by victims or witnesses.
Victims are under a lot of pressure after a crime has been committed. They want to help police solve the crime. Witness or victims will see either photo or in-person suspect lineups, and may be steered toward an individual who is the main focus of the investigation. The more confident police seem in a suspect, the more a victim may believe that this particular person actually committed the crime.
The main reason that DNA has been used so often in Dallas County is the fact that the county has preserved the evidence from so many crimes. In many other jurisdictions, inmates are unable to have DNA tests conducted simply because the evidence has been lost or destroyed. This may mean that dozens of wrongly convicted persons will remain behind bars for crimes that they did not commit.
Many proponents of DNA testing have called for procedures to be put in place nationwide to ensure that those imprisoned are actually guilty of the crimes. Also, law enforcement agencies have started to implement improvements in lineups, such as showing photos of suspects one at a time or having officers not connected to the case running the lineups.
If you or a loved one has been charged with a crime, contact an experienced criminal defense attorney in your area. You need to protect your rights, because it can be difficult to get a conviction overturned if you are innocent. Taking the proper steps early in the process will help build a strong defense to the charges against you.
Article provided by Rush & Gransee, L.C.
Visit us at www.southtexaslawfirm.com/CM/Custom/TOCCriminalDefense.asp
Texas County Leading the Nation in DNA Exonerations
Dallas County leads the nation in DNA exonerations. The county has released 21 individuals who were convicted of crimes, accounting for almost half of all exonerations in Texas.
2011-03-04
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
College students surveyed on guns on campus
2011-03-04
HUNTSVILLE -- Students from two university campuses in Texas and Washington recently were surveyed on allowing concealed handguns on campus.
According to research led by Dr. Jeffrey Bouffard at Sam Houston State University's College of Criminal Justice, more students were uncomfortable with concealed weapons on campus than those at ease with guns on college grounds. The study will be presented at the Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences Meeting in Toronto this month.
"To date, little effort has been made to assess students' opinions about whether concealed handgun carrying ...
For birds, the suburbs may not be an ideal place to raise a family
2011-03-04
There comes a time in life for every bird to spread its wings and leave the nest, but for gray catbirds, that might be the beginning of the end. Smithsonian scientists report fledgling catbirds in suburban habitats are at their most vulnerable stage of life, with almost 80 percent killed by predators before they reach adulthood. Almost half of the deaths were linked to domestic cats.
Urban areas cover more than 100 million acres within the continental the United States and are spreading, with an increase of 48 percent from 1982 to 2003. Although urbanization affects ...
New findings on drug tolerance in TB suggest ideas for shorter cures
2011-03-04
New findings on how tuberculosis (TB) bacteria develop multi-drug tolerance point to ways TB infections might be cured more quickly.
The study will be published April 1 in the journal Cell. The results identify both a mechanism and a potential therapy for drug tolerance that is induced in the TB bacteria by the host cells they infect.
Currently, TB treatment requires a complex, long-term curative regimen of at least six months, explained the senior author of the study, Dr. Lalita Ramakrishnan, University of Washington (UW) professor of medicine, microbiology and immunology. ...
Global Corporate Travel Agency, Teplis Travel, Recently Attended the Concur Fusion 2011 No Limit Conference in Las Vegas
2011-03-04
Teplis Travel, a premier corporate travel agency, recently attended the Concur Fusion 2011 No Limit conference. Held February 15-18, 2011 at The Cosmopolitan Hotel Las Vegas, this event brought together Concur clients, partners, and employees to exchange ideas and knowledge on products and services available to easily manage corporate travel and expenses.
Fusion 2011 session highlights included:
- Reviewing top expense features companies should be using
- Going global with travel
- Delivering value through integration with suppliers, customers and mobile applications
- ...
Humans give prey the edge in food web
2011-03-04
A new paper by University of Calgary researchers, published today in PLoS ONE, demonstrates the edge given to prey in the "space race" by human activity.
The research was conducted by two University of Calgary students, a University of Calgary Post-Doctoral Fellow and two University of Calgary professors from the Faculty of Environmental Design, Department of Geomatics in the Schulich School of Engineering and the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine. The research looked at how predator-prey interactions and use of space were influenced by human activity.
The team deployed ...
Topshop Announces the Inspiration Behind Their Unique Collection for Autumn/Winter 2011
2011-03-04
Topshop has announced the inspiration behind their autumn/winter 2011 Unique collection
For AW11, Topshop Unique journeys back to early 1930s America. Drawing on the culture of luxury and status of the Industrial Age, prints are bold and boastful and the silhouette is overall sleek and refined.
Prints are key in the collection and the recurring motif of the dog and car reflect the importance of social status during the decade. Automobiles with headlights streaming are appliqued onto down-sized luggage bags, and printed on satin shoes. Whippets, Grey Hounds and Dalmatians ...
Mapping food deserts
2011-03-04
EAST LANSING, Mich. — Maps are great for showing where things are. They're also good for showing where things aren't.
Two Michigan State University professors have developed interactive maps that offer a visual perspective of urban food deserts. By using GIS (geographic information systems) technology, they are showing, rather than simply telling, how urban residents are losing access to fresh produce and balanced nutrition.
Phil Howard, assistant professor of community, agriculture, recreation and resource studies, and Kirk Goldsberry, assistant professor of geography, ...
Will loss of plant diversity compromise Earth's life-support systems?
2011-03-04
Biodiversity around the world is increasingly threatened by global warming, habitat loss, and other human impacts. But what does this loss of species mean for the functioning of ecosystems that humans depend on for goods and services? Can ecosystems around our planet survive and maintain their primary functions with fewer species in them? After decades of research on many issues pertaining to life on Earth, are scientists any closer to attaining these answers?
In a Biodiversity Special Issue of the American Journal of Botany, to be published in March, many of the world's ...
Prudential Research Finds Most New Pensioners Considering Working Beyond Retirement
2011-03-04
According to figures from the latest Prudential Class of 2011 research, 62% of those who had planned to retire in 2011 would consider postponing their pension and continuing to work in order to boost their retirement income.
Of those considering putting off their retirement, 46% said they will definitely have to continue to work in order to supplement their pensions or build up their savings further.
Prudential's Class of 2011 study surveyed people intending to retire during the forthcoming year. The findings highlight the growing trend for part-retirement in the ...
Solving a traditional Chinese medicine mystery
2011-03-04
Researchers at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine have discovered that a natural product isolated from a traditional Chinese medicinal plant commonly known as thunder god vine, or lei gong teng, and used for hundreds of years to treat many conditions including rheumatoid arthritis works by blocking gene control machinery in the cell. The report, published as a cover story of the March issue of Nature Chemical Biology, suggests that the natural product could be a starting point for developing new anticancer drugs.
"Extracts of this medicinal plant have been used to treat ...
LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:
Insulin resistance is linked to over 30 diseases – and to early death in women, study of people in the UK finds
Innovative semaglutide hydrogel could reduce diabetes shots to once a month
Weight loss could reduce the risk of severe infections in people with diabetes, UK research suggests
Long-term exposure to air pollution and a lack of green space increases the risk of hospitalization for respiratory conditions
Better cardiovascular health in early pregnancy may offset high genetic risk
Artificial intelligence method transforms gene mutation prediction in lung cancer: DeepGEM data releases at IASLC 2024 World Conference on Lung Cancer
Antibody–drug conjugate I-DXd shows clinically meaningful response in patients with extensive-stage small cell lung cancer
IASLC Global Survey on biomarker testing reveals progress and persistent barriers in lung cancer biomarker testing
Research shows pathway to developing predictive biomarkers for immune checkpoint inhibitors
Just how dangerous is Great Salt Lake dust? New research looks for clues
Maroulas appointed Associate Vice Chancellor, Director of AI Tennessee
New chickadee research finds cognitive skills impact lifespan
Cognitive behavioral therapy enhances brain circuits to relieve depression
Terasaki Institute awarded $2.3 Million grant from NIH for organ transplantation research using organs-on-a-chip technology
Atoms on the edge
Postdoc takes multipronged approach to muon detection
Mathematical proof: Five satellites needed for precise navigation
Scalable, multi-functional device lays groundwork for advanced quantum applications
Falling for financial scams? It may signal early Alzheimer’s disease
Integrating MRI and OCT for new insights into brain microstructure
Designing a normative neuroimaging library to support diagnosis of traumatic brain injury
Department of Energy announces $68 million in funding for artificial intelligence for scientific research
DOE, ORNL announce opportunity to define future of high-performance computing
Molecular simulations, supercomputing lead to energy-saving biomaterials breakthrough
Low-impact yoga and exercise found to help older women manage urinary incontinence
Genetic studies reveal new insights into cognitive impairment in schizophrenia
Researcher develops technology to provide cleaner energy and cleaner water
Expect the unexpected: nanoscale silver unveils intrinsic self-healing abilities
nTIDE September 2024 Jobs Report: Gains in employment for people with disabilities appear to level off after reducing gaps with non-disabled workers
Wiley enhances NMR Spectral Library Collection with extensive new databases
[Press-News.org] Texas County Leading the Nation in DNA ExonerationsDallas County leads the nation in DNA exonerations. The county has released 21 individuals who were convicted of crimes, accounting for almost half of all exonerations in Texas.