New York state has paid out the most per citizen in compensation for wrongful imprisonments, new research has found.
The study by pre-settlement legal funding company High Rise Financial analyzed data from the National Registry of Exonerations on how many people have been wrongfully imprisoned in each state since 1989, and how much the state has paid out in compensation for those who successfully sought it. The total compensation figure was then compared against the state’s population to reveal how much is being paid out per citizen in compensation for wrongful imprisonment.
New York tops the list for the highest compensation payouts per capita, as its cost per citizen comes to more than $15. There have been 326 exonerees in the state in the time period measured, and 237 claims filed for wrongful imprisonment, with a total of $322 million paid to exonerated people. Compared against the state’s population of around 20 million people, that equates to every single person in New York paying $15.97 in compensation – the highest rate in the study. Exonerees in the state received an average of $2.179 million in compensation.
In second place, Connecticut has paid out more than $50 million to 13 of its total 31 exonerees for wrongful incarceration. When measured against the state’s population of around 3.6 million people, the cost per citizen is $14.04, the second highest amount of the states in the study, and the only other state alongside New York with a payout per citizen of more than $10.
Maryland placed third on the list as it has seen 51 people wrongfully imprisoned, of which 19 had claims awarded, receiving a total of $36,897,715. There are around 6.16 million people living in the state, so the total compensation compared against the population results in a per capita payment of $5.98.
Fourth in the list, with a cost per citizen of $5.32, is Texas. The state, which is home to around 29 million people, has paid more than $155 million to 128 exonerees (out of 450 people who have been exonerated in the state).
In fifth place, Michigan is one of the most recent states to implement a compensation statute, introducing the Wrongful Imprisonment Compensation Act in 2017. Since then it has paid out to 67 exonerees a total of $48,066,779, and compared against its population of around 10 million, it results in a cost per citizen of $4.77.
Although not included in the list of states, Washington DC has the highest compensation payout per citizen, at $63.13. Its absence is because it has only paid out $43,532,027 to exonerees in total, and has a population of just 689,000.
At the other end of the scale, Iowa has paid out the lowest cost per citizen. Its total compensation for exonerees comes to $217,687, resulting in a cost of seven cents for each of the 3.19 million people in the state. Wisconsin has a similarly low rate of just eight cents per citizen, after $445,417 in compensation payouts.
Rank State/Territory Total Compensation Paid to Exonerees Population Cost per capita 1 New York $322,513,025.00 20,201,249 $15.97 2 Connecticut $50,644,270.00 3,605,944 $14.04 3 Maryland $36,897,715.00 6,165,129 $5.98 4 Texas $155,080,673.00 29,145,505 $5.32 5 Michigan $48,066,779.00 10,077,331 $4.77 6 Ohio $50,667,807.00 11,799,448 $4.29 7 West Virginia $7,405,000.00 1,793,716 $4.13 8 Nevada $9,971,382.00 3,104,614 $3.21 9 Louisiana $14,060,602.00 4,657,757 $3.02 10 Illinois $37,732,406.00 12,812,508 $2.94
SOURCE: Journo Research
