The Innocence Project

This week's TIME Magazine profiles Barry Scheck's involvement with The Innocence Project, which is controversial despite its success rate: 254 post-conviction exonerations through DNA testing.

The article claims that Scheck's efforts on behalf of incarcerated people who were found guilty have contributed to the rise of "The Innocence Agenda," but that not all people are happy about it. Scheck is often perceived as either a threat or a nuisance.

But Scheck points out that while DNA is basically infallible, all other forms of evidence are NOT incontrovertible. It's ironic that the idea of innocence could in itself become a debate in the legal system. Isn't everyone fighting for the same thing? To exonerate the innocent? Scheck's project seems to have exposed some ironies within the labrynthine court system--not everyone is in it to prove innocence.

On the website, The Innocence Project offers ways that the average citizen can get involved to help those who are imprisoned for crimes they never committed.