Prosecutors originally opposed DNA testing for Doswell, but a judge ordered it. When the tests came back last month showing that semen taken from the victim was not from Doswell, prosecutors filed motions to vacate his sentence and have him released.

Why did this happen? As TalkLeft recently observed, eyewitness testimony is often unreliable, but suggestive identification procedures, such as those used in Doswell's case, enhance the likelihood of a mistaken identification.

The victim and another witness had picked out Doswell's photo among a group of eight shown to them by police. At the time, Pittsburgh police identified mug shots of people charged with rape with the letter "R." Doswell insisted witnesses identified him as the rapist only because the letter "R" appeared under his mug shot.

His photo was marked because an ex-girlfriend had accused him of rape, but he was acquitted of that charge. Police officials say they no longer mark photos of rape suspects with an "R."

Studies show that presenting photos sequentially, rather than in a group, reduces the chance of an erroneous identification. Of course, branding a photo with the equivalent of a "scarlet R" is so suggestive of guilt that it nearly assures a false identification. The police should be compelled to use identification procedures that are fair, not those that are designed to lead the witness to pick someone so that the police can clear the case.

Congratulations to the lawyers and staff at the Innocence Project at the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law in New York for the great work they did on Doswell's behalf.