Wrongful Convictions, False Confessions and Lost Cases

When the system gets it wrong: 13 wrongful convictions of innocent people and 3 false confessions, followed by the 102 cases where the prosecution failed to win a conviction at trial.

Wrongful convictions 13

• Law & Order S6E12 “Trophy” (1996): Andrew Dillard. McCoy convicted him of killing five Black boys; another man later confesses to the killings, and Dillard sues the city while awaiting release.
• Law & Order S10E5 “Justice” (1999): Steve Dupree. Sent to death row for beating Dana Hagen to death; evidence the original prosecutor buried points to Michael Gordon, who pleads guilty to the killing.
• Law & Order S12E11 “The Collar” (2002): Freddie Ortega. Convicted of the Riverside Park stabbing; a priest knew the wrong man was locked up, and Ortega is set free.
• Law & Order S13E4 “Tragedy on Rye” (2002): Carton, Johnson and Otum. All three are convicted of first-degree murder; before the penalty phase, phone records lead to the real killer.
• Law & Order: SVU S4E13 “Rotten” (2003): Willie Angel. Serving 25 years after Officer Les Cooper shot him and framed him with a planted gun; Cabot moves to free him.
• Law & Order: SVU S5E21 “Criminal” (2004): Javier Vega. Vega was convicted, then prosecutors and defense moved to vacate it after evidence pointed to another man.
• Law & Order S14E21 “Vendetta” (2004): Grimes. Grimes spent 20 years in prison for a murder he did not commit before being freed, after an officer framed him.
• Law & Order: SVU S5E24 “Poison” (2004): Rosalin Silvo. Silvo was jailed since 1993 for poisoning her baby, but the child actually had a rare disorder; conviction vacated.
• Law & Order S19E16 “Take-Out” (2009): Martin Garvik. Serving life for passing defense software to China, he admits the spy was his late wife, Elyse; he took the blame to protect their children.
• Law & Order: SVU S13E17 “Justice Denied” (2012): Omar Peña. Peña was convicted of rape, but DNA later tied another man to the attacks and the conviction was vacated.
• Law & Order: SVU S18E2 “Making a Rapist” (2016): Sean Roberts. Roberts was convicted after a victim misidentified him and was later exonerated.
• Law & Order: SVU S21E6 “Murdered at a Bad Address” (2019): Carlos. Carlos was imprisoned for killing his mother and sister, but DNA pointed to another man and his conviction was vacated.
• Law & Order S23E10 “Inconvenient Truth” (2024): Bryant. Bryant spent 12 years in prison for a crime he did not commit before being exonerated.

False confessions 3

• Law & Order: SVU S2E6 “Noncompliance” (2000): Moreland. Moreland confessed to the killing, but the confession collapsed because he had no idea how she died.
• Law & Order: SVU S13E17 “Justice Denied” (2012): Omar Peña. After a nine-hour interrogation in 2004 he confessed to the rape and torture of Ariel Baskins, a crime DNA later tied to another man.
• Law & Order S22E9 “The System” (2022): Booker. Confessed after two hours of questioning and spent 18 months at Rikers awaiting trial before a bystander’s video backed his account.

Cases the prosecution lost

Every acquittal and hung jury for a defendant on trial. The prosecutor ranking shows who lost the most.

Law & Order 66 cases

• S1E18 “The Secret Sharers” (1991): Nicky, acquitted. The jury acquits Nicky despite strong evidence, an apparent nullification.
• S2E8 “Out of Control” (1991): Campion, acquitted. The jury acquits Campion of rape.
• S2E8 “Out of Control” (1991): Holder, acquitted. The jury acquits Holder of rape.
• S2E15 “Trust” (1992): Jamie (first shooting), not guilty by reason of insanity. Acquitted on the grounds of mental defect (not guilty by reason of insanity).
• S2E19 “The Fertile Fields” (1992): Tashjian, acquitted. The jury finds Tashjian not guilty of murder.
• S3E11 “Extended Family” (1993): Gary Silver, acquitted. The jury finds Gary Silver not guilty.
• S3E18 “Animal Instinct” (1993): Donald, acquitted. Donald is acquitted after Susan's testimony is disregarded.
• S3E21 “Manhood” (1993): Sgt. Harley, acquitted. The jury acquits all three defendants.
• S3E21 “Manhood” (1993): Rhodes, acquitted. The jury acquits all three defendants.
• S3E21 “Manhood” (1993): Davis, acquitted. The jury acquits all three defendants.
• S4E8 “American Dream” (1993): Swann (Cohen murder), acquitted. At his new trial Swann is acquitted of Cohen's murder.
• S4E15 “Kids” (1994): Kevin, hung jury. The jury deadlocks and the prosecutors conclude a retrial would not convict.
• S4E19 “Sanctuary” (1994): Roberts, hung jury. The jury deadlocks and Schiff refuses to retry him.
• S4E20 “Nurture” (1994): Fenady, acquitted. The jury acquits Fenady on all three counts.
• S5E3 “Blue Bamboo” (1994): Martha Bowen, acquitted. The jury finds Bowen not guilty of second-degree murder.
• S5E7 “Precious” (1994): Marty Willick, hung jury. Tried with his wife, the jury hangs; he then tells what he saw and no retrial or disposition of his own case is shown.
• S5E23 “Pride” (1995): Crossley, hung jury. The jury deadlocks and the judge declares a mistrial.
• S6E9 “Blood Libel” (1996): Matt Hastings, hung jury. After repeated deadlocks the judge declares a mistrial; a plea is only discussed.
• S6E10 “Remand” (1996): Sal Munoz, acquitted. The jury finds Munoz not guilty of rape and attempted murder.
• S6E14 “Custody” (1996): Jenny Mays, hung jury. The jury deadlocks and the judge declares a mistrial; McCoy's offer is only taken back to her.
• S6E20 “Girlfriends” (1996): Shelly Taggert, acquitted. The jury acquits Shelly Taggert.
• S7E8 “Family Business” (1996): Laura Bergreen, acquitted. The jury finds Laura Bergreen not guilty of second-degree murder.
• S7E13 “Matrimony” (1997): Kim, acquitted. The jury acquits Kim.
• S8E2 “Denial” (1997): Christina Talbert, acquitted. The jury finds Christina Talbert not guilty of second-degree murder.
• S8E2 “Denial” (1997): Tommy Horton, acquitted. The jury finds Tommy Horton not guilty of second-degree murder.
• S8E5 “Nullification” (1997): Philip Christie, hung jury. After nine days and 40 ballots the jury cannot reach a verdict and the judge declares a mistrial.
• S8E5 “Nullification” (1997): the other militia defendants, hung jury. Tried with Christie; the same deadlocked jury ends in a mistrial.
• S9E18 “Juvenile” (1999): Nicole, acquitted. Her 1978 case is dismissed in family court; arrested for the attempted murder of Fox, a title card says she was acquitted.
• S10E1 “Gunshow” (1999): Weber, acquitted. The jury convicts, but the judge sets the verdict aside and directs an acquittal.
• S10E1 “Gunshow” (1999): Rolf Firearms (company), acquitted. The jury convicts, but the judge sets the verdict aside and directs an acquittal.
• S10E14 “Entitled” (2000): Regina Mulroney, acquitted. The jury acquits her on all counts.
• S11E1 “Endurance” (2000): Megan Parnell, not guilty by reason of insanity. Acquitted of murder by reason of insanity and sent to Kirby for evaluation.
• S11E4 “Standoff” (2000): Peter Bennett, acquitted. The jury acquits him of murder, which the prosecutors call jury nullification.
• S11E6 “Burn Baby Burn” (2000): Miller, acquitted. The jury acquits him of first-degree murder.
• S12E3 “For Love or Money” (2001): Lorraine Cobin, acquitted. The jury acquits her of first-degree murder; she is then arrested for her husband's murder, with no result shown.
• S12E12 “Undercovered” (2002): Garcia, hung jury. The jury deadlocks nine to three for conviction and the judge declares a mistrial.
• S12E18 “Equal Rights” (2002): Leslie Cooper, acquitted. The jury finds her not guilty.
• S13E16 “Suicide Box” (2003): Stevie Thomas, acquitted. The jury finds Stevie Thomas not guilty of first-degree attempted murder; no other verdicts are shown.
• S13E21 “House Calls” (2003): Heinz, acquitted. The jury finds Heinz not guilty on the sole count of second-degree murder.
• S13E22 “Sheltered” (2003): Justin, not guilty by reason of insanity. The jury acquits Justin by reason of mental defect (not guilty by reason of insanity).
• S14E3 “Patient Zero” (2003): Blanchard, acquitted. The jury acquits Blanchard of attempted murder and second-degree murder.
• S14E15 “Veteran's Day” (2004): Silva, hung jury. Acquitted of second-degree murder, the jury deadlocks on first-degree manslaughter and a mistrial is declared; prosecutors plan a retrial.
• S14E16 “Can I Get a Witness?” (2004): Keyes, acquitted. The jury finds Keyes not guilty of first-degree murder.
• S14E16 “Can I Get a Witness?” (2004): Duggan, acquitted. Duggan is acquitted of murder, witness intimidation and bribery.
• S14E17 “Hands Free” (2004): Madison (Barry's death), acquitted. Tried for the killing of his lover Barry, Madison is acquitted.
• S14E23 “Caviar Emptor” (2004): Roya, acquitted. The jury finds Roya not guilty after her husband confesses on the stand.
• S14E24 “C.O.D.” (2004): Belinda (Byrne's death), acquitted. Tried by McCoy for Byrne's murder, Belinda is acquitted.
• S15E3 “The Brotherhood” (2004): Worley, hung jury. The jury deadlocks and the judge declares a mistrial; prosecutors are still weighing a retrial.
• S15E11 “Fixed” (2004): Draper, acquitted. The jury finds Draper not guilty of second-degree murder.
• S15E13 “Ain't No Love” (2005): Foreman, acquitted. The jury acquits Foreman of second-degree murder; he is then arrested for witness tampering, with no outcome shown.
• S15E17 “License to Kill” (2005): Stoller, acquitted. The jury acquits Stoller of manslaughter.
• S16E4 “Age of Innocence” (2005): Dwyer, hung jury. The jury deadlocks on Dwyer and the judge declares a mistrial; a retrial is in doubt.
• S16E7 “House of Cards” (2005): Stoll, acquitted. The jury finds Stoll not guilty of second-degree murder.
• S16E19 “Positive” (2006): Copelan, acquitted. The jury finds Copelan not guilty of second-degree murder.
• S16E21 “Hindsight” (2006): Keisha, acquitted. The jury acquits Keisha of second-degree murder.
• S17E11 “Remains of the Day” (2007): Vaughn, acquitted. The jury finds Vaughn not guilty of second-degree murder.
• S18E13 “Angelgrove” (2008): Hensley, acquitted. The jury finds Hensley not guilty of second-degree murder and manslaughter.
• S19E15 “Bailout” (2009): Aldridge, acquitted. The jury acquits Aldridge of first-degree murder and kidnapping.
• S20E4 “Reality Bites” (2009): Johnson, hung jury. The jury deadlocks and the judge declares a mistrial while the state weighs a retrial.
• S21E8 “Severance” (2022): Baker, not guilty by reason of insanity. The jury finds Baker not responsible by reason of mental disease or defect (insanity).
• S23E1 “Freedom of Expression” (2024): Kendra Nasser, acquitted. The jury finds Nasser not guilty.
• S23E8 “Facade” (2024): Arnou, acquitted. The jury acquits Arnou of murder.
• S24E17 “A Perfect Family” (2025): Derek, acquitted. The jury finds Derek not guilty of second-degree manslaughter.
• S24E22 “Look the Other Way” (2025): Mills, acquitted. The jury finds Mills not guilty of second-degree murder.
• S25E19 “Accidentally Like a Martyr” (2026): Ross, hung jury. The judge pushes the jurors toward a verdict, but the trial ends in a mistrial; no retrial is shown.
• S26E1 “Ghost in the Machine” (2026): Klein, acquitted. The jury finds Klein not guilty of second-degree murder.

Law & Order: Special Victims Unit 36 cases

• S2E7 “Asunder” (2000): Lloyd Andrews, acquitted. The judge acquits him on every count at a bench trial.
• S5E7 “Choice” (2003): Jennifer Fulton, acquitted. The jury acquits her of criminal contempt.
• S5E10 “Shaken” (2003): Evelyn Prichard, hung jury. Her assault and attempted-murder trial ends in a hung jury; after Lucy dies she faces a murder charge, but her case is not shown.
• S5E22 “Painless” (2004): Dr. Amy Solwey, hung jury. Manslaughter trial ends with a deadlocked jury; she is then indicted for murder, but the episode ends before that case is resolved.
• S5E24 “Poison” (2004): Karen Campbell, acquitted. In the first case (attempted murder of Alexis), Judge Taft acquits her on all charges at a bench trial.
• S6E3 “Obscene” (2004): Carolyn Spencer, hung jury. The jury deadlocks six to six and the judge declares a mistrial; no retrial is shown.
• S6E5 “Outcry” (2004): Mike Tucker, acquitted. The jury acquits Tucker of first-degree rape.
• S6E6 “Conscience” (2004): Brett Morton, acquitted. The jury finds him not guilty of second-degree murder.
• S7E14 “Taboo” (2006): Ella Christiansen, not guilty by reason of insanity. The jury acquits her on both counts by reason of mental disease or defect (insanity).
• S8E22 “Screwed” (2007): Darius Parker, acquitted. The jury acquits Darius of murder and assault.
• S9E1 “Alternate” (2007): Janis Donovan, not guilty by reason of insanity. The jury finds her not guilty by reason of insanity of her parents' murders.
• S9E6 “Svengali” (2007): Cecilia Strayer, not guilty by reason of insanity. After her courtroom outburst, Morten gloats that she is going to a psychiatric ward instead of prison.
• S9E13 “Unorthodox” (2008): Jack Trembley, not guilty by reason of insanity. The jury finds him not responsible by reason of mental disease or defect on every count.
• S9E17 “Authority” (2008): Merritt Rook, acquitted. Representing himself on the conspiracy charge, he tells jurors not to be sheep and they acquit him.
• S9E18 “Trade” (2008): Pierson Bartlett, hung jury. Eleven jurors vote to convict and a mistrial follows; Avery is then revealed as the killer, and no retrial is shown.
• S9E19 “Cold” (2008): Tom Crane, hung jury. The jury deadlocks, and the DA will not retry Crane; Lake later shoots him dead.
• S10E19 “Selfish” (2009): Monica Stewart, acquitted. The jury acquits her of criminally negligent homicide.
• S11E10 “Anchor” (2009): Joe Thagard, acquitted. The jury acquits Thagard on all three murder counts.
• S11E15 “Confidential” (2010): Ingrid Block, acquitted. The judge directs a verdict of not guilty on facilitating Renee's murder.
• S13E6 “True Believers” (2011): Michael Wedmore, acquitted. The jury acquits him of both rape and weapon possession.
• S13E10 “Spiraling Down” (2011): Jake Stanton, acquitted. The jury finds him not guilty of second-degree rape.
• S13E18 “Valentine's Day” (2012): Christine Hartwell, hung jury. The jury deadlocks 11 to 1 and a mistrial is declared.
• S15E3 “American Tragedy” (2013): Jolene Castille, acquitted. The jury finds Jolene not guilty of manslaughter.
• S15E23 “Thought Criminal” (2014): Simon Wilkes, acquitted. The jury acquits Wilkes of both charges after less than three hours.
• S16E12 “Padre Sandunguero” (2015): Nicolas Amaro, acquitted. The jury acquits Nicolas of second-degree assault and reckless endangerment.
• S16E21 “Perverted Justice” (2015): Derek Thompson, acquitted. At the retrial the jury finds Derek not guilty of first-degree rape.
• S17E9 “Depravity Standard” (2015): Lewis Hodda, hung jury. The jury deadlocks and the judge declares a mistrial; a kidnapping trial is still to come.
• S17E16 “Star-Struck Victims” (2016): Noel Panko, acquitted. The jury acquits Panko of rape and sodomy.
• S17E16 “Star-Struck Victims” (2016): Bobby D'Amico, acquitted. The jury acquits D'Amico of rape and sodomy.
• S19E13 “The Undiscovered Country” (2018): Rafael Barba, acquitted. Jury finds Barba not guilty of second-degree murder.
• S20E1 “Man Up” (2018): John Conway, acquitted. Jury finds him not guilty of first-degree rape.
• S23E9 “People vs. Richard Wheatley” (2021): Richard Wheatley, hung jury. The jury deadlocks and the judge declares a mistrial.
• S24E9 “And a Trauma in a Pear Tree” (2022): Elias Olsen, hung jury. The jury deadlocks and the judge declares a mistrial; Carisi plans a retrial.
• S26E15 “Undertow” (2025): Stacey Moran, hung jury. The jury deadlocks on the single count of third-degree rape and the judge declares a mistrial; no retrial shown.
• S27E8 “Showdown” (2025): Quentin Welsum, hung jury. The jury deadlocks after two days and the judge declares a mistrial; he stays remanded for a retrial.
• S27E18 “Gimmick” (2026): Clint O'Neill, acquitted. The jury finds him not guilty of second-degree murder.

Taken from each episode’s recap on this site; an entry appears only when the episode establishes the person’s innocence. How these summaries are written.