It is well known that no system is perfect. this unfortunately also includes the justice system in the united states. An estimated five percent of the people in U.S. prisons today are innocent. They are there for various reason such as Eyewitness identification, improper forensic science, false confessions among other things. There is a way to prove the innocence of these people and it is called DNA exoneration.
Exoneration is what happens when evidence is reviewed using DNA profiling and it is proved that the person incarcerated is innocent. Since DNA profiling was developed in the 1980's it has been used to prove many people innocent. The innocence project is dedicated to using DNA profiling to exonerate 318 people.Now that we have DNA profiling we are able to tell with much more certainty who the perpetrator was in homicides and sex crimes.
DNA exoneration is a very good tool to have to determine the guilt of people suspected of crimes such as murder or rape. It is much easier to trust hard facts of a persons DNA than it is to trust the word of a man accusing another. Not only can people lie in these cases but improper forensic science can contribute as well. DNA profiling takes out all these variables so it is much easier to tell who committed the crime. If DNA sample is found on the victim and a DNA sample from a suspect can be collected to find a match it is a much more reliable way to convict someone of a crime.
