Jennifer Thompson and Ronald Cotton: When Memory Betrays Justice

This powerful episode explores how eyewitness misidentification led to Ronald Cotton's wrongful conviction for rape, while examining the fascinating science of memory and identification. We trace how Jennifer Thompson's confident but mistaken identification, combined with flawed police lineup procedures, resulted in an innocent man spending 11 years in prison. Through interviews and court records, we analyze how memory can be unconsciously altered during the identification process. The episode culminates in the extraordinary story of Thompson and Cotton's reconciliation after DNA evidence proved his innocence, and their joint advocacy for identification reform. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.