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 Figure 2. The Relationship Between Forensic Science and Other Contributing Factors in Erroneous Convictions
NIJ (see reuse policy).
Description
              Figure 2 is a bar graph showing the relationship when forensic science is cited as a contributing factor along with other contributing factors — inadequate legal defense, perjury or false accusation, false confession, official misconduct, and mistaken witness identification. The most significant number of wrongful convictions in which forensic science is considered a contributing factor is attributable to eyewitness misidentification and official misconduct.

The data points shown on the bar graph are as follows:

Contributing Factor
			Number of CasesForensic Only
			3Inadequate Legal Defense
			15Perjury or False Accusation
			62False Confession
			36Official Misconduct
			77Eyewitness Misidentification
			83

Data are based on 133 cases of wrongful conviction listed by the National Registry of Exonerations.
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