That was only one of the irregularities that plagued the case of Cassez, who's now serving a 60-year jail term for allegedly belonging to the Zodiacs kidnapping gang.
Even in cases where the innocent are freed after being snared in the criminal justice system, they pay a heavy price.
"They go back to their communities having been paraded around as members of a cartel or criminal gang," said Steinberg, of Human Rights Watch. "They are punished by years of marginalization within their communities."
Granada, who lost two years of his life to the police's mistake over his identity, still faces battles. His efforts to obtain a document that declares him free of a criminal record — which is necessary to get a job _have become snarled in bureaucracy.
When he turns on the television and sees alleged criminals presented at police news conferences, it fills him with rage and irritation.
"I don't believe it at all. I think it's all made up," he said.
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