Wrongful Convictions

Wrongful Convictions: Cases and Materials is the first legal textbook to explore the complex and fascinating legal and scientific issues involved in wrongful convictions and the exoneration of the innocent. This exciting area of the law is developing at a rapid pace as we learn more about the causes of wrongful conviction with each exoneration. The book is designed to teach about procedure related to the cases, as well as give a broad overview of the causes of wrongful convictions including false eyewitness testimony, false confessions, ineffective assistance of counsel, police and prosecutorial misconduct, and false forensic evidence. In this fourth edition, there have been significant updates to the cases from the previous edition, including an additional chapter on wrongful conviction civil suits. Justin Brooks is a Professor of Practice at University of San Diego School of Law where he teaches criminal procedure, criminal law, evidence, and wrongful convictions law. He was the Co-Founder and Founding Director of the California Innocence Project from 1999-2023, and under his direction the project freed 40 innocent people from prison. He has been recognized several times by the Los Angeles Daily Journal as one of the Top 100 Lawyers in California, and in both 2010 and 2012, California Lawyer Magazine honored him with the "Lawyer of the Year" award.

Professor Brooks travels around the world training lawyers and law students and initiating innocence organizations. He was named "International Lawyer of the Year" by the California Bar International Section in 2020, and in the same year was named "Champion of Justice" by the National Association of Criminal Defense Attorneys. In 2024, he was awarded the Ohtli Award for his work freeing innocent Latinos and assisting in launching 35 innocence organizations in Latin America. The Ohtli award is the highest award given by the Mexican government to foreigners.