Netflix has dropped a new docuseries, “The Innocence Files,” which follows the stories of eight innocent men who were led to be wrongly convicted under an unreliable, and sometimes corrupt, criminal justice system in America.
At the heart of the nine-hour series is the Innocence Project, the New York-based nonprofit that works to overturn false convictions. Lawyers there break down how throughout the legal process forensic evidence can be mishandled, eyewitness testimony can be wrong and prosecutors can mislead under three categories, “The Evidence,” “The Witness,” and “The Prosecution.” It’s explained that about half of the cases the Innocence Project takes on are ones where evidence had been mishandled.
The show also explains how exactly relying solely on witness testimony can turn disastrous for a defendant, when even a well-intentioned person can be wrong.
When they do win a case, lawyers in the series then help the wrongly accused reenter society, and fight for new laws to prevent wrongful conviction.
The series was created by award-winning executive producers Alex Gibney, Liz Garbus, and Roger Ross Williams.
“We get flooded with letters from all over the country. They’re human beings who are claiming to be wrongly convicted,” says the trailer.