Amanda Knox

Throughout the hearing, the judge interjects and pushes back, specifically questioning the prosecution's logic. It's deeply uncomfortable to watch a representative of the state take such a righteous stance and dismiss the opportunity to grant actual innocence. But from the beginning, the defense team has hoped the judge they were given would truly listen and rule in an unbiased way.

Throughout the hearing, the judge interjects and pushes back, specifically questioning the prosecution's logic. It's deeply uncomfortable to watch a representative of the state take such a righteous stance and dismiss the opportunity to grant actual innocence. But from the beginning, the defense team has hoped the judge they were given would truly listen and rule in an unbiased way.

And Judge Kubota continually proves to do just that. He often responds with critical questions to the state's argument that ongoing investigations justify withholding evidence, especially since Laurel's DNA has been confirmed and he is now deceased.

And Judge Kubota continually proves to do just that. He often responds with critical questions to the state's argument that ongoing investigations justify withholding evidence, especially since Laurel's DNA has been confirmed and he is now deceased.

Nothing else, Your Honor.

Nothing else, Your Honor.

I'm Amanda Knox, and this is Three. Three. Let me reiterate what you just heard. Prosecutor Shannon Kagawa is stating a theory in their case that despite everything they have learned up till this point, they can't confidently say that the Schweitzer's and Frank Pauline Jr. weren't involved in Dana's murder.

I'm Amanda Knox, and this is Three. Three. Let me reiterate what you just heard. Prosecutor Shannon Kagawa is stating a theory in their case that despite everything they have learned up till this point, they can't confidently say that the Schweitzer's and Frank Pauline Jr. weren't involved in Dana's murder.

You want to believe that our justice system is just, that it always prioritizes the truth over the egos and reputations of the flawed humans who carry it out. But all too often, it doesn't. When I was first accused, I had assumed that the courtroom was like a scientific laboratory, where lots of contradictory evidence was sifted and analyzed and boiled down to truth beyond a reasonable doubt.

You want to believe that our justice system is just, that it always prioritizes the truth over the egos and reputations of the flawed humans who carry it out. But all too often, it doesn't. When I was first accused, I had assumed that the courtroom was like a scientific laboratory, where lots of contradictory evidence was sifted and analyzed and boiled down to truth beyond a reasonable doubt.

It was a painful discovery to learn how naive that was, that the courtroom is more like a battleground of storytelling, where the most compelling and not necessarily the most truthful story wins." In the wake of my wrongful conviction, I wanted to understand how the authorities could have gotten it so wrong.

It was a painful discovery to learn how naive that was, that the courtroom is more like a battleground of storytelling, where the most compelling and not necessarily the most truthful story wins." In the wake of my wrongful conviction, I wanted to understand how the authorities could have gotten it so wrong.

And that led me to connect with other wrongly convicted people, to see the patterns and to study the cognitive biases that lead well-intentioned people to commit grievous harm, all the while thinking they are delivering justice. One of those biases is referred to by social psychologists as the just world fallacy.

And that led me to connect with other wrongly convicted people, to see the patterns and to study the cognitive biases that lead well-intentioned people to commit grievous harm, all the while thinking they are delivering justice. One of those biases is referred to by social psychologists as the just world fallacy.

We all have a tendency to think that there is a moral balance to the universe, that good things happen to good people, and if bad things happen to a person, they must have had it coming. It's no wonder that so many of us can fall asleep at night confident that our prisons are full of bad guys and only bad guys.

We all have a tendency to think that there is a moral balance to the universe, that good things happen to good people, and if bad things happen to a person, they must have had it coming. It's no wonder that so many of us can fall asleep at night confident that our prisons are full of bad guys and only bad guys.

Accepting the truth is uncomfortable and unsettling, and the truth is that the system gets it wrong far too often, and that prosecutors will pursue bogus cases long after the evidence is clear, all to protect their conviction rate and to avoid admitting fault. After all, they're human, and nobody likes to be wrong, especially when the stakes are so high.

Accepting the truth is uncomfortable and unsettling, and the truth is that the system gets it wrong far too often, and that prosecutors will pursue bogus cases long after the evidence is clear, all to protect their conviction rate and to avoid admitting fault. After all, they're human, and nobody likes to be wrong, especially when the stakes are so high.

In late 2023, the National Institute of Justice released a report called The Impact of False or Misleading Forensic Evidence on Wrongful Convictions. We'll link this report out in the show notes, and I highly recommend you read it in full. But for now, consider this.

In late 2023, the National Institute of Justice released a report called The Impact of False or Misleading Forensic Evidence on Wrongful Convictions. We'll link this report out in the show notes, and I highly recommend you read it in full. But for now, consider this.