This paper estimates the cost of wrongful convictions based on analysis of jury awards and settlements for individuals who were wrongfully convicted and incarcerated for crimes they did not commit. Key variables of interest are number of days spent in prison, days on probation, and demographics of wrongfully convicted and their families. The average “cost” of a wrongful conviction is estimated to be $6.1 million, or $1334 per day of incarceration, while the marginal cost decreases over time: initial incarceration is valued at over $50,000 for the first day; year one is valued at $1.5 million ($4000/day), while the marginal cost of the 10^th year is estimated to be approximately $350,000 ($950/day).

中文翻译：

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痛苦、苦难和陪审团裁决：对错误定罪成本的研究

本文基于对陪审团裁决和因未犯下的罪行而被错误定罪和监禁的个人的和解的分析，估算了错误定罪的成本。感兴趣的关键变量是入狱天数、缓刑天数以及被错误定罪及其家人的人口统计数据。错误定罪的平均“成本”估计为 610 万美元，即每天监禁 1334 美元，而边际成本随着时间的推移而降低：第一天的初始监禁价值超过 50,000 美元；第一年的价值为 150 万美元（4000 美元/天），而第 10 年的边际成本估计约为 350,000 美元（950 美元/天）^。