One line says it all

From this article about four men in Texas, who'd been wrongfully imprisoned for 25 years, being freed on DNA evidence exonerating them:

"The biggest tragedy when the wrong person goes behind bars is that the right person got away with it," said state Sen. Rodney Ellis.

And I'm sure the senator is not alone in that sentiment. To an American politician, it is more important to punish the guilty than to protect the innocent.