he's an amazing man. i could never ever ever ever be as good of a person as he is. i'm so impressed, his ability to forgive her says so much for his character.
They are actually good friends now and yes he did get compensation for his time in prison, but I don't think money will ever be able to pay back what he endured.
No amount of money can ever buy time. Time is precious. You can’t earn time. You can earn money. Time is something you cannot get back, money can be made, you can get it back, etc.
Met Ronald last week. He’s a great man, he says he wakes up happy everyday despite what he has been through in the past. He continues to speak in public places and spread awareness on the flaws on the justice system and shares his personal story with others in his community. I’m glad his story is being shared but this nation still has issues that must be fixed because there are still innocents still being accused of terrible crimes they did not commit.
Not as much as you probably think theres so much more evidence now then their was 20+ years ago. technology had advance so much. as u heard him say he first heard about DNA in prison it wasn't as common, now thats a common thing.
1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 Please pick a number, any number. Did you select a number between one and six? Why? I never said that the number you should pick should be one of the numbers listed. This is the standard way police lineups are done. People assume that one of the options give IS the perpetrator so the pick the one that fits best. In law eyewitness testimony is consider one of the most reliable types of evidence, but science has shown it to be completely unreliable.Yet the lawyers still hold onto it because it helps them win in court. Court should be about finding the truth, not winning or losing.
But it's not set up to try to find the truth. The police have to charge *somebody* with the crime. It is the prosecutor's job to try to convict the person the police have charged. They have no responsibility at all to find the truth.
The only people who have the responsibility of finding the truth is the untrained and easily swayed jury who just wants to get this over with as soon as possible.
Peter Piper You make very valid points. It worries me because what ends up happening is the police just arrest some poor black kid, because even if the black kid didn't commit the crime he's being accused of, he must have committed some kind of crime, right? The poor black kid gets some overworked underpaid public defender who just wants to get through the day and clear his case so he advises the poor black kid to plead guilty. Meanwhile the real criminal is still out running around. Do you think they get thew black kids because it's easier to convict them?
Eric Taylor It's not always some poor black kid, but that's frequently what happens. Have a look at this list of people who were exonerated some after spending many years on death row. In many cases the state fought tooth and nail to prevent new evidence being introduced. www.innocenceproject.org/know/Browse-Profiles.php
For those who think Jennifer lacks emotion perhaps it is because these events happened back in the 80's. She and Ronald have told their story so often now. A lot of emotion has been worked through. Ronald was angry in his early years of incarceration but he changed his heart. Jennifer says in another interview how much deep shame, pain and sorrow she has had over her mistake of wrongly accusing Ronald and causing him such suffering. They both have cried many tears.
What a sad, honest, and beautifully humane story at the same time. This is basically the one thing that makes me not regret having to pull an all-nighter to study for Psych and Law exam in a couple of days. So moving.
UngaBunga23 I agree, but most of the comments are blaming Jennifer, as if she did it on purpose. That makes me really annoyed, it's as if you and I watched a different show. I hope you did/do well in your exam.
These always make me so sad. We need to limit how much we rely on eye-witness testimony because so many people are wrongfully convicted and it's just heartbreaking to know how much time these people, including Ron, have lost.
Sayittomyface Idareyou Do you ever feel so angry that you can’t remember your past events? Also Bobby Poole and cotton look a like too, in the video cotton even claimed that he look like Bobby Poole and the prisoners mistake both of them too. That time Bobby Poole was not in the line he was lucky while cotton was in the line, he was unlucky.
I agree so sad for this man your mind can be tricky I guess Your mind is very powerful it's blocks certain things you don't want to know about in a trauma it may take years before a mental break down for some people if it wasn't for him investigating looking for information he would have been still in prison until her mind wakes up from this trauma Be safe everyone
I have watched this episode over and over for the last 10 years and it still brings tears to my eyes. This is more than about false witness testimony. It's equally about forgiveness, grace, and mercy. Ronald forgiving Jennifer represents the best of humanity. The two of them working together to improve our legal system shows that even when the worst things happen, the best things can follow. Jennifer fighting for Ronald's lost wages while he was in prison also shows that things can be righted.
Just imagine how many innocent men and women have died in jail, especially before we began studying DNA. What amazes me is that this man gets no compensation. I would be like "YOU TOOK 11 YEARS OF MY LIFE BASED ON THE TESTIMONY OF AN EMOTIONALLY FRACTURED RAPE VICTIM, AND NOW YOU JUST SAY 'OOPS'!?" He should get a bucket load of cash and a public apology from the courts.
He did receive compensation. They had a bill passed to help him because originally it was just 5k. And then the bill passed and he received 10,000 dollars each year he was there. In total he recieved 109,150.69.
you think this is a messed up story , I just watched the documentary on Emmit Till and the old lady confessed that she lied and that poor young boy was beat to death!!
dimplez 2U When did they say he was beaten to death? Don’t assume, also in the video cotton even admits the real rapist look like him, even the prisoners mistakes between them too. How did she lied?
Anger will bind you,we all need to unburden ourselves,of anger ,hate, narcacistic behavior so that we can forgive because none of us is perfect and we all may one day.Find ourselves in need of forgiveness.
Thank you! I’m sick of reading these hateful comments that are filled with bitterness. It is truly tragic what happened, however it brought tears to my eyes when Cotten chose forgiveness. It would have need so easy to choose anger, hatred and bitterness, but he chose forgiveness....a lot of people in this comment section could learn a thing or two from this guy instead of being so hateful. Mistakes happen, Thompson felt horrible and regrets her mistake (and it seems sincere). What more do people need from her? Thank God DNA evidence is around now-a-days to prevent these situations from happening as easily as back then.
People forget thst Thompson was literally RAPED. She is a victim, she is traumatized. We all need to be understanding and realize what that does to someone. To me it sounds like she coped with anger. The way she describes going to the hospital days of the rape determined to help, saying "i cam indentify him I studied him." It makes it sound like she coped with anger. And yes it is not healthy, but she's a VICTIM. Not evil. We are all flawed and part of it is the justice systems fault. I'm not excusing what she put Cotton through, but mindless hate and ignorant bitterness doesn't do anything for you and if anything shows how little people understand about trauma especially rape
Watching this video just makes me glad the justice system has changed. DNA testing, and other chemical testing provides so much more evidence than just a woman/man pointing a finger.
The most shocking part of this whole story is when the cop admits he got the wrong guy. I have never seen that. Even when faced with DNA cops still deny they got the wrong guy.
@Crisis757 You miss the point of the video entirely: This isn't about this specific woman making a mistake. It's about memory - EVERYONE's memory. Literally ANYONE is capable of making this sort of mistake. Be sure to watch both parts of the video if you haven't already. Part II goes into this in more detail.
It's amazing to me that a tremendously moving story about a woman who is devastated to learn she sent the wrong man to jail, and about a man who is able to overcome false imprisonment to recognize the woman's sincere sorrow, inspires such ignorant and repugnant comments.
It's called restorative justice. I am learning about it this week in class. Yes it's a shame this happened to this innocent man but it happens more than you think.
The second time around there was a new trial (which is very, very difficult to achieve) and she had the opportunity to correct this horrible injustice and she was all like, "how dare you tell me he was not my rapist".
@@masonhollander5149 Well hey now, the woman still got raped. She is still a victim and something like that can be very traumatizing. Not saying rape or a decade in jail is worse or better than the other but they are both victims.
You need to remember that after she picked Cotton in the criminal lineup the police told her that she picked the person from the pictures, which made her believe that she was right the first time.
Even one of Ronald Cotton's lawyers said no jury would have acquitted him because her testimony was so dramatic and believable. She made an honest mistake with no intent to frame an innocent man.
She's just being honest with her feelings. And of course she'd feel that way. Imagine he was the aggregator won't it seem pretty disrespectful to her that he gets another trial?
Notice that there is no penalty at all for making the false identification. Other than just feeling guilty about it, she's never had to pay for putting an innocent man away for 11 years.
KnwName "This system is not setup to get justice" That's the problem right there. The system is set up to make somebody pay for the crime. It might be the right person or it might be the wrong person.
***** Good point. Maybe I was thinking of a different case: The Gary Dotson case where the witness deliberately made up a false allegation about a rape that didn't take place. (in fact she was with her boyfriend), and then made a false eyewitness identification because she feared she might be pregnant. The guy who was picked at random spent 10 years in prison as well as several years fighting to try to clear his name. www.innocenceproject.org/cases-false-imprisonment/gary-dotson
She made an honest mistake. I don't think the honestly mistaken should be punished. If it can be proved that they knowingly lied to see someone convicted, they should receive the punishment they intended for the other.
Peter Piper Also in the video the cotton claimed that he looked like him even the prisoners were mistaken by the two of them I don’t blame her. Poole was lucky because he wasn’t in the lineup while cotton was unlucky because he was there. Also you don’t how much human memory been forged every time for a longer period of time mostly when they experience something very scary, the memory would sometimes been substitute some false memory.
09.01.2012...4.55 pm, chicago time, i live in river forest illinois, 13 miles west of downtown chicago, RONALD COTTON , is a better man then i, for him not only to forgive JENNIFER THOMPSON, but for both of them to be friends,and go on tour and talk to people about wrongful convictions. the pain he went through, to be in PRISON, for 11 years for a crime that he did not commit, He is a better man than I will ever be, peace to hime and his family.
What really messed up was that she looked at the real rapist in the second trial and still pointed the finger at the innocent man. Not even once did she think about the possibility of being wrong
Sounded like DNA was a new thing even 11 years after the incident. So not sure it was there at the start of the trial. Would explain why they had evidence and didn't use it.
It is difficult to identify a stranger esp. cross ethnicity, this is a fact. She actually did think it was him, this was not done on purpose on her part and she felt terrible, I mean, what can you say? She now goes and talks about false identification. He knew this and took the high road. They did not know a lot about this and he knew she did not mean to do this to him. They are friends now and I think it says a lot that he chose to forgive. I don't know how terrible I would feel if I did this.
10,000 a year is definitely not enough. If you worked for those 11 years, 40 hours a week at minimum wage you would be getting about 5,000 more each year. That's ridiculous.
God bless Ronald and the Victims - only release of the guilt, fears, angers, self judgements - will bring Peace. This is a story with Mature Minded Outcome. Must get to know the Law of Attraction.
🎯 Key Takeaways for quick navigation: 00:00 🕵️♂️ Eyewitness testimony can have a significant impact on court cases. 03:55 📸 Eyewitness identification can be flawed, leading to wrongful convictions. 09:32 🧬 DNA evidence can be a powerful tool for proving innocence. 11:50 🤝 Forgiveness and reconciliation can bring healing and closure even after a wrongful conviction. 12:47 🤔 The story raises questions about the reliability of eyewitness testimony and the complexities of memory. Made with HARPA AI
This proves that eyewitness testimony cannot be relied upon. Many people have been exhonorated by DNA. But if he can forgive, it is a lesson that we should all take heed to...
This issue is as old as mankind. When we start looking for evidence, objectively, and actually make prison/legal reforms, the whole system will be one to emulate. RIP to those thousands, who have languished or died in prison for crimes they NEVER committed.
wtf this woman prayed to God for another dude to get rapped in jail and to die? Wow smhh. I don't care what anyone did to you, praying to God for someone's else misfortune is pretty evil as well. It is understandable but at the same time very spiteful.
Mistakes may occur in people's lives but this was a dramatic mistake and believe how Ronald Cotton could be affected by such a mistake. Someone who has been doing his job and come back home. Just a moment of his life he is wrongly accused and spent 11 years in jail. Listening to this story makes me fill very bad about this issue. How they could spoil someone else life for a decade. God is really great and day and night He pleads and defends the righteous.
I am also watching this for my psychology class. Very interesting.. This is very sad when people get confused about who or what they see and a testimony by someone who believes that they really know who the offender is and they are wrong. a five minute testimony could change a whole lifetime of someone who never committed the crime. It is so sad.
This proves how deeply flawed the justice system is. Outside of hard evidence (DNA and other absolute science), people are convicted on emotion and assumption. Now, I'm sure plenty of rightful convictions have been made this way, of guilty people. But I'm also in no doubt PLENTY of wrongful convictions too. A woman in a state of shock (rape) is ironically NOT the best eye-witness. We don't remember things well in these kind of states. Yet, she's trusted due to the empathy felt etc.
That is not what perjury is. She did not knowingly lie. This is an unfortunate situation but she doesnt deserve to be criminally charged because she made a mistake. If she lied on purpose, sure, but that is not what happened.
for some reason your coment got spammed but i agree with you. people just want to hear what they want to hear. that's the problem with this world. this man is so generous, i on the other hand, would have not.
Your welcome. The thing is that it is very common and something that not a lot of people know about regarding the mis-identification of suspects. I don't think people are stupid, but ignorant meaning that they have not been told or taught. If anyone wants to take offense, let them, big difference in my opinion. She knew she made a mistake and has tried to make people aware of it which is more than other people would do, at least she gives a damn and should not be put down for it. Go figure.
it runs way deeper than that. As I'm learning now, memory is like modeling clay. Look at how she was presented the suspects. "pick from these suspects who raped you." setting up a plane of recognition instead of recall, the suspect could have very well not been in the lineup at all. taking you time to choose also solidifies recall. Telling her that she chose the same suspect from the sketches increased confidence and molded his face into her memory.
cant blame her, she was recovering from a rape and the investigators helped direct her anger toward one of the 6 men they presented pictures of, in the end we all must learn from ronald cotton and have mercy and foregiveness of HONEST mistakes. Dishonest and false accusations are punishable
Not only sad, its a dramatic terrible situation for the person and family, this innocent person will have huge side symptoms afterwards, bse of person who “thought” its the right person, lets hope that the future of the judges will be based more on physical evidences and that no person has the right to judge even a judge without the real evidence, assumptions are on this earth not welcomed… 😢😢😢 i feel so sorry for the innocent person!
Follow-up aired tonight on 60 Minutes. Lesley Stahl profiled Jennifer who is still conducting seminars for victims of crimes and those convicted people that have been exonerated.
watching this because of my ap psych class :)
N1te same
Same o/
Same
Same, criminal justice ev class
I have a paper on this one -_-
he's an amazing man. i could never ever ever ever be as good of a person as he is. i'm so impressed, his ability to forgive her says so much for his character.
Right!!! you can just tell from a person's voice or demeanor sometimes
He was still convicted of sexual assault once before.
@@bigbeezus1335Maybe if you read the book you would know why he was accused of that aswell
@@elitex_kel6248what book?
They are actually good friends now and yes he did get compensation for his time in prison, but I don't think money will ever be able to pay back what he endured.
This woman is the damdevil,Goddid this to her
@Newman Tumata he received 10k a year i dont think that is fair compensation.
He had a special path to follow and job to do, so his sentence had meaning and purpose.
No amount of money can ever buy time. Time is precious. You can’t earn time. You can earn money. Time is something you cannot get back, money can be made, you can get it back, etc.
@@johnlyles8345 god raped her? why would u talk about your god like that?
Met Ronald last week. He’s a great man, he says he wakes up happy everyday despite what he has been through in the past. He continues to speak in public places and spread awareness on the flaws on the justice system and shares his personal story with others in his community. I’m glad his story is being shared but this nation still has issues that must be fixed because there are still innocents still being accused of terrible crimes they did not commit.
The dude commuted a sexual assault. Before he was ever arrested for raping Thompson he already had a record. It says it in the video
Imagine how many more are imprisoned on false charges.
230.00 claim 2 beinnocent
Makes me so sad man!
Exactly 💯
Not as much as you probably think theres so much more evidence now then their was 20+ years ago. technology had advance so much. as u heard him say he first heard about DNA in prison it wasn't as common, now thats a common thing.
@Alex Mejia There are people of all races that have been accused of crimes that they didn't do.
1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6
Please pick a number, any number.
Did you select a number between one and six? Why? I never said that the number you should pick should be one of the numbers listed. This is the standard way police lineups are done. People assume that one of the options give IS the perpetrator so the pick the one that fits best.
In law eyewitness testimony is consider one of the most reliable types of evidence, but science has shown it to be completely unreliable.Yet the lawyers still hold onto it because it helps them win in court. Court should be about finding the truth, not winning or losing.
But it's not set up to try to find the truth. The police have to charge *somebody* with the crime. It is the prosecutor's job to try to convict the person the police have charged. They have no responsibility at all to find the truth.
The only people who have the responsibility of finding the truth is the untrained and easily swayed jury who just wants to get this over with as soon as possible.
Also, nowadays an incredible amount of pressure is put on the accused to plead guilty so most cases never go to trial.
Peter Piper You make very valid points. It worries me because what ends up happening is the police just arrest some poor black kid, because even if the black kid didn't commit the crime he's being accused of, he must have committed some kind of crime, right? The poor black kid gets some overworked underpaid public defender who just wants to get through the day and clear his case so he advises the poor black kid to plead guilty.
Meanwhile the real criminal is still out running around.
Do you think they get thew black kids because it's easier to convict them?
Eric Taylor It's not always some poor black kid, but that's frequently what happens. Have a look at this list of people who were exonerated some after spending many years on death row. In many cases the state fought tooth and nail to prevent new evidence being introduced. www.innocenceproject.org/know/Browse-Profiles.php
For those who think Jennifer lacks emotion perhaps it is because these events happened back in the 80's. She and Ronald have told their story so often now. A lot of emotion has been worked through. Ronald was angry in his early years of incarceration but he changed his heart. Jennifer says in another interview how much deep shame, pain and sorrow she has had over her mistake of wrongly accusing Ronald and causing him such suffering. They both have cried many tears.
rogerio maria
Lol she’s “evil” for being at mistake. Also the rapist is a black dude
I so appreciate her honesty. This is not the only case like this I've seen, but this is the first woman I've seen so candid.
🙄🙄🙄
$10,000 for each year he was stuck in prison? You'd make just slightly less than that working at WALMART. What a joke
thats 110,000$ from a single family. Hush
DrewTheAwsom The state paid him, what are you talking about?
im talking about his family getting 110,000 total from the state.
+insomniastic you make over $16,000 working at walmart each year...so yeah.
+insomniastic A nude picture leaked however could've netted many times that sort of money.
What a sad, honest, and beautifully humane story at the same time.
This is basically the one thing that makes me not regret having to pull an all-nighter to study for Psych and Law exam in a couple of days. So moving.
UngaBunga23 I agree, but most of the comments are blaming Jennifer, as if she did it on purpose. That makes me really annoyed, it's as if you and I watched a different show. I hope you did/do well in your exam.
I totally agree with you.
What a coincidence. I am currently pulling an all-nighter studying for a Psych and Law exam. You go to UVA law?
Lol I'm currently studying for a Psych exam as well
Criminology Exam
These always make me so sad. We need to limit how much we rely on eye-witness testimony because so many people are wrongfully convicted and it's just heartbreaking to know how much time these people, including Ron, have lost.
All that "studying" she says she did, she failed "big time" . And end up ruining a man's life and putting him in jail for "big time ".
She wouldn't of needed 5 mins if she knew who it was. Scumbag
Sayittomyface Idareyou
Do you ever feel so angry that you can’t remember your past events? Also Bobby Poole and cotton look a like too, in the video cotton even claimed that he look like Bobby Poole and the prisoners mistake both of them too. That time Bobby Poole was not in the line he was lucky while cotton was in the line, he was unlucky.
I agree so sad for this man your mind can be tricky I guess Your mind is very powerful it's blocks certain things you don't want to know about in a trauma it may take years before a mental break down for some people if it wasn't for him investigating looking for information he would have been still in prison until her mind wakes up from this trauma Be safe everyone
That man is an angel, cause forgiving someone after 11 years wasted, WOW
I have watched this episode over and over for the last 10 years and it still brings tears to my eyes. This is more than about false witness testimony. It's equally about forgiveness, grace, and mercy. Ronald forgiving Jennifer represents the best of humanity. The two of them working together to improve our legal system shows that even when the worst things happen, the best things can follow. Jennifer fighting for Ronald's lost wages while he was in prison also shows that things can be righted.
Yeah I definitely see the Glory of God in his forgiveness for her and that she helped him get some form of justice.
thanks u helped with my school assignment
Just imagine how many innocent men and women have died in jail, especially before we began studying DNA.
What amazes me is that this man gets no compensation. I would be like "YOU TOOK 11 YEARS OF MY LIFE BASED ON THE TESTIMONY OF AN EMOTIONALLY FRACTURED RAPE VICTIM, AND NOW YOU JUST SAY 'OOPS'!?"
He should get a bucket load of cash and a public apology from the courts.
which is exactly what he did get my dude...
He did receive compensation. They had a bill passed to help him because originally it was just 5k. And then the bill passed and he received 10,000 dollars each year he was there. In total he recieved 109,150.69.
@@kikic.6950 im sorry but that is still NOTHING compared to 11 years of LIFE
Watching for. My forensic class 😂
Saaame😂 Its interesting tho
Yo, same. You tryna help me out rq
same...
sammmeeee
same lmfao
He will never get those lost years back.
He got something else though. A chance to change the world.
you think this is a messed up story , I just watched the documentary on Emmit Till and the old lady confessed that she lied and that poor young boy was beat to death!!
dimplez 2U
When did they say he was beaten to death? Don’t assume, also in the video cotton even admits the real rapist look like him, even the prisoners mistakes between them too. How did she lied?
@@imsomething4432 shes talking about emmitt till not ronald cotton
@@imsomething4432 somebody should have read what was written very slowly before jumping the gun🤦🏽♀️ or should have also deleted this comment lol
Perhaps I'm just feeling optimistic, but I was more struck by Cotton's ability to forgive, than Thompson's inability.
Anger will bind you,we all need to unburden ourselves,of anger ,hate, narcacistic behavior so that we can forgive because none of us is perfect and we all may one day.Find ourselves in need of forgiveness.
Thank you! I’m sick of reading these hateful comments that are filled with bitterness. It is truly tragic what happened, however it brought tears to my eyes when Cotten chose forgiveness. It would have need so easy to choose anger, hatred and bitterness, but he chose forgiveness....a lot of people in this comment section could learn a thing or two from this guy instead of being so hateful. Mistakes happen, Thompson felt horrible and regrets her mistake (and it seems sincere). What more do people need from her? Thank God DNA evidence is around now-a-days to prevent these situations from happening as easily as back then.
People forget thst Thompson was literally RAPED. She is a victim, she is traumatized. We all need to be understanding and realize what that does to someone. To me it sounds like she coped with anger. The way she describes going to the hospital days of the rape determined to help, saying "i cam indentify him I studied him." It makes it sound like she coped with anger. And yes it is not healthy, but she's a VICTIM. Not evil. We are all flawed and part of it is the justice systems fault. I'm not excusing what she put Cotton through, but mindless hate and ignorant bitterness doesn't do anything for you and if anything shows how little people understand about trauma especially rape
You just have to listen to Ronald for about three minute’s and feel how humble and kind he is.
I’m here my Psychology class brought me here on 4/2/23
That man didnt carry hate in his heart... Thats whats amazing about this story
Funny how he forgave her while she was praying for his death. 😐😏
because of the money ,, she convince him to write a book with her.. she is a true Narsciscist
he is jesus
Probably because she thought he raped her for several years idk
@@nikokarassik2936 oh be quiet for goodness sake, what rubbish are you speaking smdh!!
They spoke at my school and moved everyone with their story!
Watching this video just makes me glad the justice system has changed. DNA testing, and other chemical testing provides so much more evidence than just a woman/man pointing a finger.
Ronald was a good man
I donr think they look alike for a start this man is very handsome.
I was so hoping someone would say that.
False accusations are just terrible, especially when paired with eye witness accounts which are almost flawed.
The most shocking part of this whole story is when the cop admits he got the wrong guy. I have never seen that. Even when faced with DNA cops still deny they got the wrong guy.
Ronald is a class act, Christ's mercy is so powerful!
when canvas won’t load this video for my psych class so I have to watch it on my phone...
I felt that
@Crisis757 You miss the point of the video entirely: This isn't about this specific woman making a mistake. It's about memory - EVERYONE's memory. Literally ANYONE is capable of making this sort of mistake. Be sure to watch both parts of the video if you haven't already. Part II goes into this in more detail.
It's amazing to me that a tremendously moving story about a woman who is devastated to learn she sent the wrong man to jail, and about a man who is able to overcome false imprisonment to recognize the woman's sincere sorrow, inspires such ignorant and repugnant comments.
dang that guy has a great heart honestly idk if i would be so easy to forgive that woman but God bless both of em
great story
It's called restorative justice. I am learning about it this week in class. Yes it's a shame this happened to this innocent man but it happens more than you think.
The second time around there was a new trial (which is very, very difficult to achieve) and she had the opportunity to correct this horrible injustice and she was all like, "how dare you tell me he was not my rapist".
@Christopher Green The man who was falsely convicted is the victim!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
@@masonhollander5149 Well hey now, the woman still got raped. She is still a victim and something like that can be very traumatizing. Not saying rape or a decade in jail is worse or better than the other but they are both victims.
You need to remember that after she picked Cotton in the criminal lineup the police told her that she picked the person from the pictures, which made her believe that she was right the first time.
Even one of Ronald Cotton's lawyers said no jury would have acquitted him because her testimony was so dramatic and believable. She made an honest mistake with no intent to frame an innocent man.
She's just being honest with her feelings. And of course she'd feel that way.
Imagine he was the aggregator won't it seem pretty disrespectful to her that he gets another trial?
11 years of his life!!!!! He can never get back!!!!!!!!!
Sooo many Black folks are sooo forgiving.
Notice that there is no penalty at all for making the false identification. Other than just feeling guilty about it, she's never had to pay for putting an innocent man away for 11 years.
+Peter Piper Right. This system is not setup to get justice. If it was, eye-witness testimony would not be used to convict people only.
KnwName "This system is not setup to get justice" That's the problem right there. The system is set up to make somebody pay for the crime. It might be the right person or it might be the wrong person.
***** Good point.
Maybe I was thinking of a different case:
The Gary Dotson case where the witness deliberately made up a false allegation about a rape that didn't take place. (in fact she was with her boyfriend), and then made a false eyewitness identification because she feared she might be pregnant.
The guy who was picked at random spent 10 years in prison as well as several years fighting to try to clear his name.
www.innocenceproject.org/cases-false-imprisonment/gary-dotson
She made an honest mistake. I don't think the honestly mistaken should be punished. If it can be proved that they knowingly lied to see someone convicted, they should receive the punishment they intended for the other.
Peter Piper
Also in the video the cotton claimed that he looked like him even the prisoners were mistaken by the two of them I don’t blame her. Poole was lucky because he wasn’t in the lineup while cotton was unlucky because he was there. Also you don’t how much human memory been forged every time for a longer period of time mostly when they experience something very scary, the memory would sometimes been substitute some false memory.
What a great man, we need some one like him in the White House
09.01.2012...4.55 pm, chicago time, i live in river forest illinois, 13 miles west of downtown chicago, RONALD COTTON , is a better man then i, for him not only to forgive JENNIFER THOMPSON, but for both of them to be friends,and go on tour and talk to people about wrongful convictions. the pain he went through, to be in PRISON, for 11 years for a crime that he did not commit, He is a better man than I will ever be, peace to hime and his family.
He is a man with a big heart. Feel sorry for him.
So pretty much saying all black people look the same
Thank goodness for DNA
There is something called the cross-race effect, where people tend to recognize unfamiliar faces better if they are within their own race
What really messed up was that she looked at the real rapist in the second trial and still pointed the finger at the innocent man. Not even once did she think about the possibility of being wrong
Did you see part 2 of this? They go more into that there.
Praying that somebody dies is a sin
+nick blaze not if we pray to Baphomet the almighty!
But we have to recognize that we're all human: flawed, vengeful, susceptible to "sin," and somehow, still worthy. Peace!
What happened to DNA in the first accusation. The sketch could look like any black man SMH
Sounded like DNA was a new thing even 11 years after the incident. So not sure it was there at the start of the trial. Would explain why they had evidence and didn't use it.
It is difficult to identify a stranger esp. cross ethnicity, this is a fact. She actually did think it was him, this was not done on purpose on her part and she felt terrible, I mean, what can you say? She now goes and talks about false identification. He knew this and took the high road. They did not know a lot about this and he knew she did not mean to do this to him. They are friends now and I think it says a lot that he chose to forgive. I don't know how terrible I would feel if I did this.
10,000 a year is definitely not enough. If you worked for those 11 years, 40 hours a week at minimum wage you would be getting about 5,000 more each year. That's ridiculous.
Sad feel sorry for the man was put. In jail
Watching for my forensic class
Watching this to help a student with ap psych class.
This made my heart ache.
He has a big heart and can tell God is with him. This lady was fixed on Ronald Cotton doing that horrific crime..
@Pamela Henson, John7:24 "Do not judge by appearances, but judge with right judgment.”
Amen 👏🏾
Anybody else watching bcz of theyre psych class
God bless Ronald and the Victims - only release of the guilt, fears, angers, self judgements - will bring Peace.
This is a story with Mature Minded Outcome.
Must get to know the Law of Attraction.
watching for my wrongful convictions class
🎯 Key Takeaways for quick navigation:
00:00 🕵️♂️ Eyewitness testimony can have a significant impact on court cases.
03:55 📸 Eyewitness identification can be flawed, leading to wrongful convictions.
09:32 🧬 DNA evidence can be a powerful tool for proving innocence.
11:50 🤝 Forgiveness and reconciliation can bring healing and closure even after a wrongful conviction.
12:47 🤔 The story raises questions about the reliability of eyewitness testimony and the complexities of memory.
Made with HARPA AI
This proves that eyewitness testimony cannot be relied upon. Many people have been exhonorated by DNA.
But if he can forgive, it is a lesson that we should all take heed to...
This issue is as old as mankind. When we start looking for evidence, objectively, and actually make prison/legal reforms, the whole system will be one to emulate. RIP to those thousands, who have languished or died in prison for crimes they NEVER committed.
I saw Ronald Cotton at the race track in Burlington and had to do a double take!
wtf this woman prayed to God for another dude to get rapped in jail and to die? Wow smhh. I don't care what anyone did to you, praying to God for someone's else misfortune is pretty evil as well. It is understandable but at the same time very spiteful.
Yeah it shows she didn't really seem to get the whole "forgiveness" thing.
+Olay Ored I thought the same, that woman is evil bro
Peter Piker = God-Hating SLIME!!!! BURN in HELL!!!
Robert Martyr Let me guess. You consider your self a Christian?
Seems like +Robert Martyr should get his blood pressure checked.
WHY DIDNT THEY TEST THE SPERM FOR DNA IN THE FIRST PLACE???? IM OUTRAGED.
bruh they didn't have the technology at that time.
🤦🏼♂️
This happened in 1984 before DNA evidence was a thing.
Things are getting interesting for sure.
They've always lied, and had gotten away with lying!
She sent him to prison for all those years and he was innocent!
Not deliberately
@Mei Chong There are a lot of people in prison that did not deliberately murdering other people. What are you talking about?
@@DetroitLives313 The woman did not deliberately mis-identify him , it was a genuine mistake even the guy who went to jail
has forgiven her
watching this for my Social Psyc. class in 2020 :)
Mistakes may occur in people's lives but this was a dramatic mistake and believe how Ronald Cotton could be affected by such a mistake. Someone who has been doing his job and come back home. Just a moment of his life he is wrongly accused and spent 11 years in jail. Listening to this story makes me fill very bad about this issue. How they could spoil someone else life for a decade. God is really great and day and night He pleads and defends the righteous.
I am also watching this for my psychology class. Very interesting.. This is very sad when people get confused about who or what they see and a testimony by someone who believes that they really know who the offender is and they are wrong. a five minute testimony could change a whole lifetime of someone who never committed the crime. It is so sad.
This proves how deeply flawed the justice system is.
Outside of hard evidence (DNA and other absolute science), people are convicted on emotion and assumption. Now, I'm sure plenty of rightful convictions have been made this way, of guilty people. But I'm also in no doubt PLENTY of wrongful convictions too.
A woman in a state of shock (rape) is ironically NOT the best eye-witness. We don't remember things well in these kind of states. Yet, she's trusted due to the empathy felt etc.
Seems like everyone had a concience. His 11 years behind bars will never be repayed. Hope his life is prospering.
Anyone else doing this for their psych class ?
Being a Christian mean having a great understanding of forgiveness. If she did say that she did not know Christ at that time.
This is horrific because she didn't get any time for telling a bald face lie.
Intent is a key part. She had no intention of lying. She honestly believed Ronald Cotton was her rapist.
watching this b/c my forensic science class
Me too!!!
Sooo she Got the WRONG Person??...... sooo she need to be locked up on PERJURY
That is not what perjury is. She did not knowingly lie. This is an unfortunate situation but she doesnt deserve to be criminally charged because she made a mistake. If she lied on purpose, sure, but that is not what happened.
Hahahahahah Yeah ok
I show this to my 11th grade Pre-Law classes every year following an in-class mock trial and the showing the the 1957 classic "12 Angry Men".
IB psych class things.
for some reason your coment got spammed but i agree with you. people just want to hear what they want to hear. that's the problem with this world. this man is so generous, i on the other hand, would have not.
watching this for my genetics class
I hate going to jail and would never ever forgive one for mistaking me for a crime that I didn't commit.
And they call this justice...
& yo Problem, is WUT????
I don't think any of this is supposed to be about her religion. Honestly, Christian or not we are all hypocrites.
Your welcome. The thing is that it is very common and something that not a lot of people know about regarding the mis-identification of suspects. I don't think people are stupid, but ignorant meaning that they have not been told or taught. If anyone wants to take offense, let them, big difference in my opinion. She knew she made a mistake and has tried to make people aware of it which is more than other people would do, at least she gives a damn and should not be put down for it. Go figure.
Who else watched this for BOTH their AP psych and forensics class? 😭🤚🏾
me
im writing a paper for a friend for psych shes paying me lol
Women would be more careful who they accuse if there was a punishment for false accusation.
it runs way deeper than that. As I'm learning now, memory is like modeling clay. Look at how she was presented the suspects. "pick from these suspects who raped you." setting up a plane of recognition instead of recall, the suspect could have very well not been in the lineup at all. taking you time to choose also solidifies recall. Telling her that she chose the same suspect from the sketches increased confidence and molded his face into her memory.
cant blame her, she was recovering from a rape and the investigators helped direct her anger toward one of the 6 men they presented pictures of, in the end we all must learn from ronald cotton and have mercy and foregiveness of HONEST mistakes. Dishonest and false accusations are punishable
Mo Primo
Also the prisoners even mistakenly mixed them too. They were look alike
Hank Nelson So what does that mean she still the reason a man lost 11 years of his life.
wai omar_0 but she didn’t mean to do it just because. She genuinely thought it was him. Our memories are powerful, but they can also fail us.
RONALD COTTON IS THE DEFINITION OF A MAN
amazing story
Read the book, it's great. Thanks for posting, I enjoyed seeing this.
THEY ........ can Always count on US ....... to Forgive Them, Automatically, Absolutely AMAZING !!! 😳
Somebody should have been arrested for lying to police and the policemen should have been arrested as well.
Surprised he got any money for false incarcerton. Soooo
Many hav got nothing for a lot longer that
11 years...
Doppelgangers can confuse EVERYBODY, BUT DNA NOT!!!
Daammmn :) what a great episode :)
class brought me here
Not only sad, its a dramatic terrible situation for the person and family, this innocent person will have huge side symptoms afterwards, bse of person who “thought” its the right person, lets hope that the future of the judges will be based more on physical evidences and that no person has the right to judge even a judge without the real evidence, assumptions are on this earth not welcomed… 😢😢😢 i feel so sorry for the innocent person!
Why no closed captioning?
She prayed he would die? Wow
Yeah she thought he broke into her house and violently raped her 😭 why are you guys acting like this isn’t normal for victims of rape to do
How long is this going to be permitted to go on!!
Follow-up aired tonight on 60 Minutes. Lesley Stahl profiled Jennifer who is still conducting seminars for victims of crimes and those convicted people that have been exonerated.
I came here after JKnews. crazy story