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Brandon L. Garrett is the inaugural L. Neil Williams, Jr. Professor of Law at Duke University. He is author, most recently, of The Death Penalty: Concepts and Insights (with Lee Kovarsky); End of its Rope: How Killing the Death Penalty Can Revive Criminal Justice; and Too Big to Jail: How Prosecutors Compromise with Corporations.
The misdemeanor system is four times the size of the felony system. With so many gradations of minor crimes—many involving fines in a very informal process—prejudice and inequality shapes prosecution.
DNA is a powerful forensic tool. If only crime labs could be trusted with it.
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