Generally speaking, when someone confesses to a crime, there’s little dispute about whether or not they committed that crime. By the mere fact of confessing to it, they’ve made it very clear that they are guilty of whatever it is they’ve been accused of doing.
However, due to DNA records and other types of overturned convictions, it has been shown that even people who have confessed to crimes may not have been guilty. They were falsely convicted. Why would someone ever do this? Why would they claim to have done something illegal that they didn’t even do, leading to serious charges?
Officer manipulation
In some cases, the reason is that police officers essentially manipulated the individual to get them to confess. For instance, this sometimes happens with young offenders when they are told that they can go home if they just admit what they did. These young people may not realize the serious ramifications of doing so and they will just tell the police whatever they want to hear if it means they get to go home.
Mental compromisation
In some cases, these individuals are mentally compromised at the time of their arrest. This could be due to an actual disability, whether it has been diagnosed or not. But it could also be due to stress, hunger and exhaustion, issues that often impact the people the police are seeking. Finally, the person could be under the influence of drugs or alcohol and make all sorts of claims that aren’t true.
Everyone deserves justice. Those who have been wrongfully convicted for any reason must know about all of the legal options at their disposal to improve their future.