DNA has helped exonerate 172 people

By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

DNA evidence has been used to clear 172 people wrongly convicted of crimes in 31 states since 1989. Some details from the Washington-based advocacy group The Innocence Project about DNA exonerations:

-The technology has helped overturn convictions for 98 blacks, 45 whites, 17 Latinos, one Asia-American, and 11 of unknown races.

-Fourteen people cleared by DNA evidence were at one time sentenced to death or served time on death row. The average time served by these people was 11.5 years.

-The true suspects and/or perpetrators were identified in more than a quarter of the DNA exoneration cases.

-Twenty-one states, the federal government and the District of Columbia have passed laws to compensate people who have been exonerated. Awards under these statutes vary greatly.

-At least 33 DNA exonerations involved false confessions or admissions.

-At least 37 of the DNA exonerations in the U.S. involved homicides. In two thirds of those cases, false confessions or incriminating statements were used to obtain the conviction.