National Center for Reason and Justice
Encyclopedia
The National Center for Reason and Justice is a United States
national non-profit organization disseminating information to the public about claims of injustice in the current criminal justice system and facilitating financial and legal assistance for people the organization considers likely to have been falsely accused or wrongfully convicted
.
According to the NCRJ, most of the individuals whose convictions were overturned have been convicted because of faulty eyewitness testimony, coerced confessions, or the acceptance of junk science in the courtroom.
Most NCRJ-sponsored cases involve accusations of sex offenses against children and adolescents, where the accusations are given wide media coverage.
NCRJ President Michael Snedeker is a criminal-defense lawyer who has successfully handled the appeals of ritual abuse
cases in California. He is author of the California State Prisoners Handbook and co-author with Debbie Nathan
of Satan's Silence: Ritual Abuse and the Making of a Modern American Witch Hunt.
Noted NCRJ Directors and advisers include: Elizabeth Loftus
, Debbie Nathan and Judith Levine
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
national non-profit organization disseminating information to the public about claims of injustice in the current criminal justice system and facilitating financial and legal assistance for people the organization considers likely to have been falsely accused or wrongfully convicted
Miscarriage of justice
A miscarriage of justice primarily is the conviction and punishment of a person for a crime they did not commit. The term can also apply to errors in the other direction—"errors of impunity", and to civil cases. Most criminal justice systems have some means to overturn, or "quash", a wrongful...
.
According to the NCRJ, most of the individuals whose convictions were overturned have been convicted because of faulty eyewitness testimony, coerced confessions, or the acceptance of junk science in the courtroom.
Most NCRJ-sponsored cases involve accusations of sex offenses against children and adolescents, where the accusations are given wide media coverage.
NCRJ President Michael Snedeker is a criminal-defense lawyer who has successfully handled the appeals of ritual abuse
Satanic ritual abuse
Satanic ritual abuse refers to the abuse of a person or animal in a ritual setting or manner...
cases in California. He is author of the California State Prisoners Handbook and co-author with Debbie Nathan
Debbie Nathan
Debbie Nathan is an American feminist journalist and writer, known for critiquing cultural and criminal justice panics about abuse of children, particularly accusations of chimeric "satanic" abuse in schools and public childcare institutions. She also writes about immigration, focusing on women and...
of Satan's Silence: Ritual Abuse and the Making of a Modern American Witch Hunt.
Noted NCRJ Directors and advisers include: Elizabeth Loftus
Elizabeth Loftus
Elizabeth F. Loftus is an American psychologist and expert on human memory. She has conducted extensive research on the misinformation effect and the nature of false memories. Loftus has been recognized throughout the world for her work, receiving numerous awards and honorary degrees...
, Debbie Nathan and Judith Levine
Judith Levine
Judith Levine is an American author, journalist, civil libertarian and co-founder of the National Writers Union, a trade union of contract and freelance writers, and No More Nice Girls, a group dedicated to promoting abortion rights through street theater...