Criminal justice reform Q&A: Author and CUNY professor Matthew Barry Johnson
NEWARK, NJ—In this interview, Public Square co-founder Linda M. Carter speaks to Matthew Barry Johnson, Associate Professor of Psychology at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice, CUNY, about the impact of the 2016 consent decree in the City of Newark, related criminal justice issues of interrogation, confessions, and wrongful convictions, and how police reforms can help build community trust.
Matthew Barry Johnson recently authored Wrongful Conviction in Sexual Assault, Stranger Rape, Acquaintance Rape, and Intra-Familial Child Sexual Assault from Oxford University Press (2021). He is also a member of the Peoples' Organization for Progress, the New Jersey Chapter of the Association of Black Psychologists, and the NAACP.
The consent decree, the Newark Police Department, and interrogation tactics
Author and CUNY Professor Matthew Barry Johnson (Courtesy: Matthew B. Johnson )
Dr. Johnson, five years ago, the U.S. Department of Justice reached a comprehensive settlement with the City of Newark to compel thorough reforms and changes to the Newark Police Department. The consent decree followed 2014 DOJ findings of NPD officer's engagement in law enforcement practices—such as unconstitutional stops, searches, excessive force—with a disproportionate, harmful impact on people of color in Newark. It ensured NPD reforms, including improved officer training, revised search and seizure policies, the deployment of in-car and body-worn cameras by NPD, and improved public information programs to promote transparency.
How do you think Newark and the Newark Police Department are faring today concerning the consent decree?
Linda, I was involved in collecting information and data shared with the DOJ on these issues.
We need to continue closely monitoring the police. (I'm reminded that the Black Panther Party in Oakland began, I think in 1967, with members following police patrols to monitor police activity.) I believe that the situation under Mayor Baraka is much improved from the situation under Mayor Booker. And most importantly, Newark needs a civilian police review board with subpoena powers.
In a recent piece for the New York Amsterdam News, you wrote that "Black and Brown people in lower-income communities have high levels of victimization by crime, and also victimization by the police." Can you talk about this dynamic within the context of Newark residents and the NPD?
As a result of generations of racial discrimination in various walks of life— and specifically residential redlining—there are Black and Brown communities in Newark and throughout the U.S. characterized by "concentrated poverty" as described by the noted Black sociologist, William Julius Wilson. In these communities, there are likely to be increased incidents of interpersonal crime and also, because of race and class bias, and because some police officers feel they can get away with it, these residents are at increased risk of police brutality and excessive force. Simply put, they are disrespected.
How common do you think instances of secret coercive interrogation are in NPD cases? Is this practice legal in New Jersey, as it is in New York?
Secret police interrogation was specifically outlawed in New Jersey by the State Supreme Court. I think it went into effect in 2005. Prior to that, police could interrogate a suspect for hours and hours without keeping a record of just what was said to the suspect. Then the police could announce the suspect made a detailed confession to the crime when actually the details were provided by the officers. This type of secret police interrogation still occurs in New York, and this is what my piece in the NY Amsterdam News addressed.
Wrongful conviction & sexual assault cases
"Innocent people plead guilty not out of ignorance, but out of fear," says Rodney Roberts in an interview with the Innocence Project. Roberts was arrested in 1996 in Newark, New Jersey, after an altercation with a friend. After several days in custody, he was charged with the kidnapping and rape of a 17-year-old girl. Though he insisted he was falsely accused, his court-appointed attorney advised him to plead guilty to the crime or risk a life sentence. So, Roberts pleaded guilty to the crime in exchange for a 7-year sentence. But he ultimately spent 18 years in custody until exonerated by DNA evidence and released in 2014.
Can you speak on the Rodney Roberts case?
The Rodney Roberts case is important and remarkable for several reasons. One, it is a Newark case that illustrates Wrongful Conviction in Sexual Assault - which is the title of my book.
Everyone knows about the Central Park Five wrongful rape conviction, but it is not widely known that there are hundreds of these cases in the U.S. and typically, the wrongfully convicted are Black males. David Shephard and Nate Walker are two other Black males from Newark who were wrongfully convicted of rape. Rodney accepted a plea bargain because he feared he would be convicted at trial and face a more severe sentence. This also is not uncommon.
In the article, “Why innocent defendants plead guilty to rape,” I detail 17 cases of innocent men who plead guilty to rapes they did not commit. Eleven of these defendants were African-American, five were white, and one was Latino. I was not personally involved in the consultation in these cases. This reflects research I conducted with my students at John Jay College of Criminal Justice. But back to Rodney's case, after he served the prison sentence, he was confined further by the State of New Jersey as a 'sexually violent predator' until he finally proved he was innocent of the original crime.
It's been 25 years since Rodney Rodwell's arrest in Newark. How do you feel the justice system has changed, for better or worse, when it comes to arrests and prosecution stemming from allegations of rape and kidnapping? When it comes to fair trials and exoneration for those falsely accused?
The public defense system, you know, the public defender's office needs much more support. Those attorneys cannot manage the large caseloads they have. The public defender office needs to have resources fully comparable to those of the county prosecutor's office. The public defender needs to be able to recruit the best law school graduates who are interested in criminal defense, just like the prosecutor can get the best aspiring prosecutors.
Another problem from Rodney Robert's case involves the forensic lab and lost evidence. There needs to be a statewide structure and system for preserving evidence. There needs to be the assurance that all rape kits are tested and preserved. Irregularities in the New Jersey state forensic lab contributed to the wrongful rape conviction of Larry Peterson, a Black man from South Jersey. Also, as recommended by the National Academy of Sciences, forensic labs should be fully independent rather than being attached to prosecutors' or district attorneys' offices. They should be able to conduct scientific testing of evidence without influence from the prosecution or defense.
In addition, let me mention, there is a need for a Conviction Integrity Unit, probably statewide rather than in individual counties. There needs to be a place where defendants can file innocence claims, and these claims will be given the scrutiny they deserve. One of the ironic things about this is that modern criminal justice innocence advocacy got its start in New Jersey with Centurion Ministries in Princeton, led by Jim McCloskey. They take cases even when there is no DNA evidence. They conducted the investigation that led to the exoneration of Nate Walker from Newark, who I mentioned earlier. Also, there is the Last Resort Exoneration Project at Seton Hall Law School, led by Leslie Risinger. But these are small outfits that are not adequately funded to serve the hundreds of referrals they receive each year.
What is really at the heart of "wrongful convictions" in the U.S. and other places influenced by the U.S.? Does economic, political, historical, and social corruption contribute? How?
Well, as you suggest, wrongful conviction is complex, multi-determined, and several things contribute. The politics of wrongful conviction revolves around the fact that many politicians and prosecutors rely on so-called 'tough on crime' rhetoric to advance their careers. This, combined with press sensationalizing of certain crimes, often related to racial stereotypes, sets the stage for wrongful conviction. I could go on and on with this. There is a psychology of wrongful conviction also. When people learn that a horrible crime has occurred, there is a knee-jerk demand for arrest, conviction, and sometimes execution. In the aftermath of a crime, there are emotional reactions that interfere with the thorough review of evidence. I describe this as 'moral correction.' We all observed this in the Central Park Five case. It was a feature in the Byron Halsey wrongful conviction in Plainfield, New Jersey, in the late 1980s. Many people accept the prosecution narrative as presented in the press – and this is reflected in jury verdicts as well.
There is also a culture of wrongful conviction apparent most clearly in crime genre T.V. and film narratives, which seek to define what is criminal and often justify police brutality and misconduct. Color of Change recently commissioned a report by academics titled "Normalizing Injustice" that addresses these issues.
Criminal justice in Newark and throughout the U.S.
Considering the protest movements in this country (chattel slave revolts, labor, Women, Civil Rights, Anti-War, Indigenous, environmental, Occupy Wall Street, etc.) combined with the efforts of community groups such as the Black Panthers and Young Lords - who only sought to enhance their respective communities - is policing really designed to serve as a societal control mechanism for the wealthy and powerful?
Well, certainly, policing is a source of social control. But education is also a source of social control, as well as the vast traditional and social media. But what I would like to emphasize is the role of the FBI, in concert with local police, in surveilling, disrupting, and murdering Black freedom fighters. This goes back, at least, to the 1920s where the FBI surveilled, undermined, and attacked Marcus Garvey, members of the Black press, and A. Phillip Randolph. This continued with Dubois and Paul Robeson. This continued with the Black Panther Party, SNCC, and the Nation of Islam, and as we all know, with Martin Luther King, Jr. I learned recently from Professor Kelly Harris at Seton Hall University that the federal government conducted surveillance of Martin Luther King's grandfather in 1917. Gratefully, there have been recent film presentations, Who Killed Malcolm X? and Judas and the Black Messiah, which shed light and educated the public on the role of the police and FBI in undermining and attacking Black freedom fighters.
Is the term ‘criminal justice’ an oxymoron?
I think there is value in pointing it out as an oxymoron because it helps people think carefully about terms that are often misused. I'm reminded of another one, 'military intelligence.' Actually, I would say it is aspirational; it is what we seek. I'm a critic of the so-called justice system, but I have to consider that we need some type of justice system and what it should look like.
Lastly, how can the NPD do a better job when it comes to policing and building community trust?
The police can stop their legal challenge to the Civilian Review Board with subpoena powers. Also, I am aware that the Newark Police Department has devoted increased funding to social services, which is moving in a better direction.