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- Sep 3, 2011
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Couple things...
1) The headline is not technically wrong, but it is a little misleading. It implies that no "guilty" person can sue the state of Iowa for false imprisonment, but read the story and only those who plead guilty, even if part of a plea bargain, cannot sue. Subtle, but significant and distinct difference.
I had read elsewhere a long time ago that Iowa's law means, in lay terms, that if you 'play a part' in your own guilty conviction, you cannot seek redress.
2) Is this legitimate as a blanket concept? I can see some logic to it, but not entirely. If a person pleads guilty to a lesser charge just to avoid a longer sentence, I can see that. You can be released if later evidence warrants that, but you should not be compensated.
But, if it comes out later that prosecutors withheld evidence, and in doing so presented that the case was stronger against them than it really was, then I say the convicted person should still be able to sue. (One possible scenario.)
1) The headline is not technically wrong, but it is a little misleading. It implies that no "guilty" person can sue the state of Iowa for false imprisonment, but read the story and only those who plead guilty, even if part of a plea bargain, cannot sue. Subtle, but significant and distinct difference.
I had read elsewhere a long time ago that Iowa's law means, in lay terms, that if you 'play a part' in your own guilty conviction, you cannot seek redress.
2) Is this legitimate as a blanket concept? I can see some logic to it, but not entirely. If a person pleads guilty to a lesser charge just to avoid a longer sentence, I can see that. You can be released if later evidence warrants that, but you should not be compensated.
But, if it comes out later that prosecutors withheld evidence, and in doing so presented that the case was stronger against them than it really was, then I say the convicted person should still be able to sue. (One possible scenario.)