Films
The Cases of Fisher & Byrialsen Have Been Documented in Film
False Confessions
This documentary by Katrine Philp follows four cases of defense attorney Jane Fisher-Byrialsen, including that of Korey Wise who was only 16 when he was manipulated into a false confession in the infamous Central Park Jogger case, as she fights to put an end to an institutionalized injustice. Examining the complex tactics law enforcement agencies across the U.S. use to coerce false confessions, the film looks at the psychological aspect of how people end up confessing to crimes they have not committed as well as the consequences of these confessions – for those accused, for their families and for society.
When They See Us
Ava DuVernay’s Netflix docuseries is based on the wrongful convictions of five teenagers who became known as the “Central Park Five.”
Korey Wise was one of five black and Latino teenagers to be wrongfully arrested, tried, and convicted of charges stemming from the brutal attack and rape of a female jogger in New York City’s Central Park in 1989.
The oldest defendant at 16, Wise was tried as an adult and spent a total of 13 years and four months incarcerated.
In 2002, the true rapist confessed to the crime, which DNA testing confirmed, and the five defendants were exonerated. In late 2014, a federal judge approved a $41 million settlement in which each defendant received roughly $1 million for every year he was wrongly imprisoned.
When Innocent People are Convicted of Crime
Click on the video to the left to watch the question and answer session between Kirsty Martinez, former director of the Korey Wise Innocence Project, and Jane Fisher-Byrialsen. The two discuss what can cause innocent people to confess to crimes they have not committed.