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Smoke but No Fire

Convicting the Innocent of Crimes that Never Happened
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( 68 ratings, 9 reviews)
Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Summary
Smoke but No Fire reveals a disturbing form of wrongful conviction where innocent people are incarcerated for crimes that never actually occurred. Jessica S. Henry shares poignant accounts, such as that of Rodricus Crawford, wrongfully sentenced to death for his baby's death, later proven to be from an undiagnosed illness. From false homicides to planted evidence and fabricated assaults, the book exposes systemic failures that permit these miscarriages of justice.

Drawing on personal stories and careful legal analysis, the author exposes the flawed nature of the American criminal justice system and its alarming tendency to convict the innocent. This is a vital read for understanding a critically overlooked issue in contemporary law enforcement and justice.
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Format: Paperback / softback
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Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

Ideal for legal professionals, students, activists, and readers interested in criminal justice reform, social sciences, and wrongful conviction studies.

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Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

2020 Foreword Indies Finalist in Political and Social Sciences

Smoke but No Fire is the first book to explore a shocking yet all-too-common type of wrongful conviction—one that locks away innocent people for crimes that never actually happened.

Rodricus Crawford was convicted and sentenced to die for the murder by suffocation of his beautiful baby boy. After years on death row, evidence confirmed what Crawford had claimed all along: he was innocent, and his son had died from an undiagnosed illness. Crawford is not alone. A full one-third of all known exonerations stem from no-crime wrongful convictions.

The book tells the heartbreaking stories of innocent people convicted of crimes that simply never happened. A suicide is mislabeled a homicide. An accidental fire is mislabeled an arson. Corrupt police plant drugs on an innocent suspect. A false allegation of assault is invented to resolve a custody dispute.

With this book, former New York City public defender Jessica S. Henry sheds essential light on a deeply flawed criminal justice system that allows—even encourages—these convictions to regularly occur. Smoke but No Fire promises to be eye-opening reading for legal professionals, students, activists, and the general public alike as it grapples with the chilling reality that far too many innocent people spend real years behind bars for fictional crimes.

Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?

Acclaimed for its revelatory evidence and balanced presentation, Smoke but No Fire is praised by Kirkus Reviews as an eye-opening account of miscarriages of justice. Crime, Law and Social Change highlights its clear narration blending personal stories with legal facts. Reviews from the Wrongful Conviction Law Review and The Champion commend the book as both engaging and groundbreaking, illuminating deep systemic dysfunction and offering cautious hope.

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Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9780520385801

Publisher: University of California Press

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 05 October 2021

Country: United States

Imprint: University of California Press

Illustration: 2 tables

Audience: Professional and scholarly

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 15.0mm

Width: 152.0mm

Height: 229.0mm

Weight: 363g

Pages: 264

About the Author

Jessica S. Henry was a public defender for nearly ten years in New York City before joining the Department of Justice Studies at Montclair State University, where she is Professor and a frequent commentator on national television, on radio, and in print media.

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