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It's not unheard of for people to be convicted of crimes they did not commit. This is often a result of using torture to get forced confessions. Actions are now being taken to ensure this doesn't happen.

After 23 years of wrongful imprisonment, Chinese citizen Chen Man finally embraced his family this February, as an innocent man.

In 1994, Chen was sentenced to death with a two-year suspension for murder and arson, in south China's Hainan province. Despite insufficient evidence, he admitted crimes that he hadn't committed.   

"They kept me in a state where I was mentally breaking down. There were wounds all over my body. They didn't let me sleep or eat. Together with the cold weather,  I had become very weak. Under such circumstances, I made a small confession. And the small one gradually evolved into a complete confession," Chen said.

The Chen Man case was one of the 23 major false criminal rulings overturned by the Chinese court since 2013. Experts say forced confession had been a leading devil.
 
"Some might say torturing does not necessarily lead to wrongful conviction. But I would say wrongful convictions definitely result from torturing. If somebody isn't forced, how would he admit something he didn't do?" said Lyu Guanglun, former judge of People's Supreme Court.

In 2013, the revised Criminal Procedure Law was enacted. Many call it the country's second constitution.

"No one can force a person to prove himself guilty. And evidence acquired through illegal means cannot be used in prosecution. These are specified in the revised criminal procedure law and important items to protect one's human rights," said Hu Weixin, deputy director of research office of People's Supreme Court.

Since 2013, Chinese courts have acquitted nearly 2,000 people. And over 18 cities have set up speedy trials for misdemeanors to prevent unnecessary imprisonment.