How can someone convince themselves they are not guilty?
I recently had a case where there was physical evidence that had not been tested. The police didn't test it because the case against the defendant seemed strong. The evidence could exonerate him, and my client insisted it be tested. We went over the risks, the biggest being that he was going to make the State's case for them if came back as him. Without DNA testing, we could still argue he was not involved, or at least that there was a reasonable doubt of guilt. With the evidence, there would be no doubt. We also went over the reliability of the tests, and how the odds weren't with him. He continued to insist he was innocent, and we sent the evidence off to be tested. It came back today, and sure enough, there is now no doubt whatsoever that he's guilty.
This is not the first time I've had this happen. I can understand rolling the dice with a polygraph. They aren't admissible, and if you fail, its not going to hurt you in court. With DNA tests though, the evidence is admissible. More importantly, its far more reliable than a polygraph. You aren't going to get lucky on a DNA test - they best you could for would that the results were inconclusive.
So why do people insist they are innocent, when there is no doubt they are guilty? I don't have any scientific support, but I think that are some people who can actually convince themselves of something. The more they tell themselves they aren't guilty, the more they believe.
Of course, I also think that are people who just don't believe their lawyer (yes, its really true). If you tell them the tests are accurate, and its going to prove their guilt, they aren't going to believe you. Maybe some just feel like they don't have anything to lose, and want to roll the dice - even the odds against them are astronomical.
I've resigned myself to the fact that this is something I will probably never understand. Maybe I don't want. to.
This situation also highlights something else we have to deal with - some clients seem determined to everything they can to sabotage their case. Unfortunately, they are often the first to blame everything on the lawyer. I guess if being a criminal defense lawyer was easy, everyone would want to do it.
Can't you file a writ and argue ineffective assistance of client?