POS 343-99
Urban Human Rights: Wrongful Conviction in Chicago and London
Syllabus
Dr. Bethany Barratt, Associate Professor of Political Science
Director, Joseph Loundy Human Rights Initiative (http://www.roosevelt.edu/loundy/)
bbarratt@roosevelt.edu - http://faculty.roosevelt.edu/barratt/
Office Location and Hours
o Downtown - AUD 876: Fall 2013 Office Hours M 1230-3.
Class Meeting Times: Wednesday 2-430. But see also special lecture events and London itinerary.
Class Location: Aud 516
Course Description:
Protecting human rights could be argued to be the ultimate justification for government. Yet here in
Chicago and abroad, governments fail to protect, and often violate, citizens' basic human rights. The
US, for instance, considers itself an exemplar of democracy, but incarcerates a higher proportion of its
citizens than any other developed nation - many of them after flawed judicial processes. This state of
affairs presents an inescapable practical and ethical challenge that we must meet.
In order to do so, we must discover the unique challenges and opportunities presented by our own
political context. We can only do this when we view our own context in comparative perspective. In
this course we will explore, especially, cases of wrongful conviction, here and abroad, through site
visits and partnerships with outside experts.
In this course, we will
1. identify the aspects of particular national and urban settings that led to the problems taking
their present form
2. enumerate the solutions each level of government has taken to these problems, and how
effective these solutions have been
3. learn firsthand from community leaders what alternate approaches have been attempted
4. enumerate proposed solutions that have not been pursued
5. identify achievable goals, either on the basis of existing proposals, or of our own design
6. travel abroad to study the nature of those problems abroad, and the solutions that have been
proposed
7. on the basis of our comparative studies, create comprehensive action plans to meet our goals
Class members will also have the opportunity after the course to work with the Loundy Human Rights
Project or community partners to implement recommendations.
The course will engage us in local-level investigations of global political and social trends. Our work
will also provide us the opportunity to conduct original research and potentially even establish a
record of publication, and to see firsthand the policy recommendations and changes that can come
about as a result of our studies. The act of documenting human rights abuses in Chicago
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demonstrates the proximity of human rights abuses. Our experiences instantiate the concept that
social justice must be pursued in every area of human interaction.
We will be immersed in the urban life and challenges of two cities.
Evaluation methods
Participation in all lectures and activities
(Including weekly question essays at 3 pts
each)
Chicago background paper (late or
missing papers or components will result in
5pt per day deduction)
Presentation of comparative findings
Midterm exam
Comparative analytical paper (late or
missing papers or components will result in
5pt per day deduction)
25% of the total class grade.
15%
15%
15%
30%
Course Policies and Assignment Descriptions/Requirements.
Course Website: http://roosevelt.blackboard.com/.
The syllabus, course announcements, and many course documents will be posted on this site. The
course website will be used for research links and links to supplemental reading materials, archiving of
lecture materials, and other purposes as we decide over the course of the semester. If you have not
used Blackboard before, we can walk through it at the first meeting of class.
Course Participation Expectations
You are expected to be in class on time, prepared to discuss the assigned readings, to discuss the key
questions of the week, and to participate in all field trips. During class we expect that all cell phones,
PDAs, Blackberrys, etc. will be on either “silent,” or if need be, “vibrate” mode. If you are awaiting an
important call, let me know in advance, and please leave the room for the conversation. I expect
that this would only be a rare event. Excessive absences, late arrival, early departure, repeated use
of cell phone in class (including ringing and texting), and other disruptions will adversely impact the
class participation component of your grade.
I will also be distributing thought questions for the following week’s readings via blackboard. Each
week that we have readings assigned, you will choose one thought question to address in a wellconsidered paragraph and post it in the relevant discussion board forum on Blackboard by noon on
the day of class. These will be an important part of our in-class discussion, and are each worth three
points toward your overall participation grade.
Current Events Requirement
You are expected to keep up with any current local developments related to the course. Some links
to relevant news sources will be provided.
Presentations
You will present the findings of your comparative research in a panel held with community leaders the
final week of class.
Presentations will be evaluated based on:
- Analysis and synthesis of course materials (40%)
- Innovation (10%)
- Use of outside materials (20%)
- Presentation style (making eye contact, having material memorized, having clear slides if
doing PowerPoint, etc) (30%)
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Background and Policy Papers
The background and policy papers may investigate on any aspect of miscarriages of justice that
interests you (with instructor approval!). Major areas of investigation are listed in the section of
Blackboard entitled “paper topics”. Working jointly on papers is strongly encouraged.
These papers will proceed in two stages.
1. Chicago/US background paper (approx. 2000 words) will:
a. identify the aspects of particular national and urban settings that led to the problems
taking their present form
b. enumerate the solutions each level of government has taken to these problems, and
how effective these solutions have been
c. summarize, based on meetings with community leaders and/or site visits, what
alternate approaches have been attempted
d. enumerate proposed solutions that have not been `pursued
2. Comparative policy recommendations paper (4-5000 words) will:
a. Include the components of the Chicago/US paper for the London/UK setting
b. Discuss most important similarities and differences between the two locales regarding,
at both the national and local level
i. Historical and current trends in the levels and effects of wrongful convictions
ii. Public awareness and opinion of wrongful convictions
iii. Trends regarding class, race, national origin, political orientation, religion
iv. Remedies that have been proposed or attempted by government
v. Remedies that have been proposed or attempted by civil society
c. identify achievable goals that have not been attempted
d. consider reasons they have not been attempted
e. on the basis of our comparative studies, create comprehensive action plans to meet
our goals
Working together in groups is encouraged. Paper assignments from groups will be expected to be
proportionately longer. If you wish to work in a group, make an appointment to meet with Dr. Barratt
to discuss the specifics.
Writing Center
The Roosevelt University Writing Center provides one-on-one peer tutoring to all writers in the university
community. It would be wise to schedule appointments early on in the semester if you have any
writing/research problems, or areas you want to improve upon. Appointments are available by
phone, e-mail, or in person. The Writing Center is located in AUD 650, and is open Monday – Thursday
1:00pm – 7:00pm. You can call them at X7141. On-line tutoring is also available. For more information:
http://www.roosevelt.edu/writingcenter/
Late Policy/Plagiarism
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Without a valid medical or other excuse or prior permission of instructor, late assignments will be
penalized 3 points (on a 100 point scale) for each 24 hour period the paper is late. Students are
required to review Roosevelt University policies on plagiarism and will be held to standards of
scholarship outlined in these policies. If plagiarism is detected, the student will be reported as
specified in the Roosevelt University plagiarism policy, and will receive an F in the class.
Academic Dishonesty
Acts of academic dishonesty violate the spirit of the University. Academic dishonesty is taken very
seriously at Roosevelt University, with consequences ranging from failing the assignment or the course,
to being expelled by the university. Roosevelt University students are responsible for following the
“Code of Student Conduct,” which is available at this url:
http://www.roosevelt.edu/current/judicial/code.htm.
Accommodation of Persons with Disabilities
Students with disabilities or other conditions that require special accommodations are encouraged to
identify themselves to me and/or to the Academic Success Center/Office of Disability Services at 312
341-3810, so that appropriate accommodation may be made. Please explicitly advise me of any
accommodation you need as early in the course as possible.
Course texts.
 Westervelt and Humphrey, 2001. Wrongly Convicted. New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers Univ. Press.
 Scheck, Neufeld and Dwyer, 2001. Actual Innocence: When Justice Goes Wrong and How to
Make it Right. New York: penguin
 Huff and Kilias, 2008. Wrongful Conviction: International Perspectives on Miscarriages of Justice.
Philadelphia: Temple University Press.
 Protess and Warden, 1998. A Promise of Justice. New York: Hyperion.
 (Recommended) Cannino-Thompson and Cotton, 2009. Picking Cotton. New York: St. Martins.
 Additional readings will be distributed in class.
Working Course Schedule and Itinerary
Date
Week 1 (28 Aug)
Week 2 (4 Sep)
Week 3 (11 Sep)
Week 4 (18 Sep)
Week 5(25 Sep)
Week 6 (2 Oct)
Content
Topic(s): Introduction to course and issues. Human rights, conviction,
and punishment.
Topics. Wrongful Conviction Case 1
Reading Due: Promise of Justice, through p 120
Assignments due: Weekly question essay
Topic: Wrongful Conviction Case 1, Part II
Reading Due: Promise of Justice, 120-end
Logistics: Guest speaker: Pamela Cytrynbaum, Executive Director,
Chicago Innocence Project (Tentative)
Assignments due: Weekly question essay
Topic: Sources of Wrongful Conviction I: False Confessions and Police
Coercion
Reading Due: Scheck Chs 1-5
Logistics: none
Assignments due: Weekly question essay
Topic: Special Guest Lecturers: Karen Daniel and Nicole Harris
Reading Due: brief article to be distributed on Blackboard
Logistics: Class meets in Gage Gallery at 5.
Assignments due: Chicago Paper Bibliography (annotated, at least 5
*scholarly* sources)
Topic: Sources of Wrongful Conviction II: False Witnesses, Bad Law and
Science
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Week 7 (9 Oct)
Week 8 (16 Oct)
Reading Due: Scheck et al, Chapters 6-end
Logistics: None
Assignments due: Weekly question essay, Chicago paper outline (300
words min)
**MIDTERM**
No other reading or assignments due
Topic: Special Guest Lecturer: David Harris
David Harris studies, writes and teaches about police behavior and
regulation, law enforcement, and national security issues and the law.
Professor Harris is the leading national authority on racial profiling. His
2002 book, Profiles in Injustice: Why Racial Profiling Cannot Work, and his
scholarly articles in the field of traffic stops of minority motorists and stops
and frisks, influenced the national debate on profiling and related topics.
His work led to federal efforts to address the practice and to legislation
and voluntary efforts in over half the states and hundreds of police
departments. He has testified three times in the U.S. Senate and before
many state legislative bodies on profiling and related issues.
Reading Due: None
Logistics: Class meets in Gage Gallery at 5. Event Goes to 6:30.
Assignments due: Chicago paper rough draft
Special Guest Lecturer: Penny Beerntsen
In 1985, Beerntsen was raped and beaten near the town of Two Rivers.
Among evidence put into a rape evidence kit were thirteen pubic hairs
thought to have been left by the rapist. Beerntsen described her
assailant as white, stocky build, long sandy hair, brown scraggly beard,
no glasses, and brown eyes. The description fit two suspects: Steven
Avery and Greg Allen. . The local sheriff, Thomas Kocourek, promptly
pegged Avery. Six months before the Beerntsen attack, Avery had been
accused of trying to abduct the wife of one of Kocourek's deputies.
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A photo of Avery was placed into an array of nine photos shown to
Beerntsen six hours after the attack. She identified Avery, but the array
inexplicably did not include a photo of Allen. During Avery's trial in
December 1985, Beerntsen identified him in open court. Although Avery
had a corroborated alibi, Beerntsen's positive identification trumped it.
By early 2002, however, DNA technology had advanced to a point that
the pubic hair recovered from Beerntsen at the hospital seventeen years
earlier could be tested. Over the objection of the prosecution, a legal
team from the University of Wisconsin Law School Innocence Project
obtained a court order for the testing to be preformed by the Wisconsin
Crime Laboratory. On September 10, 2003, the laboratory released a
report positively identifying the hair as Allen's — leaving no doubt that he,
not Avery, had raped Beerntsen.
Week 9 (23 Oct)
Week 10 (30 Oct)
Week 11 (6 Nov)
Reading Due: Brief article posted on Blackbard
Logistics: Meet 5 pm at Gage Gallery. Event goes to 630 pm.
Assignments due: Chicago paper final draft
Topic: Miscarriages of Justice in Comparative Perspective I, Intro to
government and politics of UK.
Reading Due: Huff and Killias Intro, Conclusion, Chapters 10 and 11
Logistics: Logistics
Assignments due: Weekly question essay
Topic: Special guest lecturer: Robert Milan. Assistant United States
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attorney for the Northern District of Illinois, 2008-2009 First assistant state's
attorney of Cook County, 2003-2008 Adjunct professor (emeritus) at
Chicago-Kent College of Law, 2002-2009.
Logistics: Meet at Gage 5-630.
Reading due: none
Assignments due: Weekly question essay
Topic: Special Guest Lecturer: Rob Warden
Week 12 (13 Nov)
Week 13 (20 Nov)
Sat 23 Nov
Sun 24
Mon 25
Tues 26
Wed 27
Thurs 28
Fri 29
Sat 30
Sun 1 Dec
Tues 3 Dec
Week 14 (4 Dec)
Finals Week (11
Dec)
Logistics: Meet at Gage 5-630.
Reading Due: Brief article that will be posted on Blackboard
Assignments due: London research bibliography (5 *scholarly* sources,
annotated)
Topic: Miscarriages of Justice in Comparative Perspective II: Police,
Counsel, Forensic Evidence
Reading Due: Walker and Starmer Ch 3,4,6
Logistics: none
Assignments due: London section outline (min. 300 words)
Depart Chicago
See Itinerary
See Itinerary
See Itinerary
See Itinerary
See Itinerary
Free
Free
Depart London
Assignment due: Comparative analytical paper rough drafts posted on
Blackboard by 8 pm.
Assignments due: Comparative analytical paper presentation runthrough.
Comparative analytical papers presented to members of Justice
Council, Northwestern University Law School: 430-6 Angell Reading
Room
Reading Due: None
Assignments due: Final presentation.
Logistics: Class will meet in the Angell Reading Room, 10 th Floor, Library,
at 4:30. Event goes until 6.
Final Papers Due 15 Dec
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CRITICAL: Passports
You must either already have, or w/in the first week of class produce proof of application for a
passport. Non-US citizens should also check on additional visa/entry requirements depending on your
country of citizenship.
Travel Advisories
There are currently no travel advisories for the UK, but students should consult the Department of State
and Centers for Disease Control throughout the course.
This class will be an organic product of our experiences and interests. We may make revisions in the
syllabus if necessary or pedagogically beneficial. You will receive notice of all changes.
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