Showing posts with label justice. Show all posts
Showing posts with label justice. Show all posts

Jury Nullification Has Long History Of Righting Wrong Laws

by Frank Parlato.     Because justice is a result, not just a process. In 1215, when the Barons of England compelled King John to sign the Magna Carta, trial by jury was established. The King now had to seek permission through 12 citizens unanimous in their verdict before he could take anyone's freedom away. That’s why we have jury trials: To    ... MORE

Cynthia M. Cale: Forensic DNA Evidence Is Not Infallible

Some new techniques have higher probability of error. Earlier this month, the Texas Forensic Science Commission raised concerns about the accuracy of the statistical interpretation of DNA evidence, and it is now checking whether convictions going back more than a decade are safe. Despite how it is often portrayed, in the media and in courts,    ... MORE

Massachusetts Considers Fully-Informed Jury Legislation

Because justice is a result, not just a process.      A bill under consideration in the Massachusetts House would reaffirm the right of jury nullification by explicitly allowing defendants to tell jurors about their ability to nullify unjust or immoral laws. Introduced by Reps. Elizabeth Poirier (R-North Attleboro) and Paul Heroux (D-Attleboro), House  ... MORE

Keith Crosby: Stand Up Now Or Kneel Forever

Judge wisely.     In the United States a jury of 12 has much more power than the attorneys or judges want you to know. I urge all who are honored to serve either as a Grand Juror or Petit Juror to study and know this power before appearing to serve. John Jay, the first chief justice of our Supreme Court and a Founding Father, said, "It is presumed that ... MORE

Don’t Forget The Jury’s Power To Rule On Moral Grounds

by James Weeks II.        In recent years, many people have fallen victim to government tyranny, everything from drug offenses to tax resisters. Historically, going back to the Magna Carta, it has been the job of the jury to stand in the way of government tyranny and judge the law as well as the case. Jury nullification was used to deny convictions  ... MORE

Jordan Richardson: A Serious Problem In Our Legal System

Justice is a result, not simply a process.       A life sentence. For Sharanda Jones, a first-time, nonviolent cocaine offender, it wasn’t sinking in. “I was numb,” she remembers. “I was thinking about my baby. I thought it can’t be real life in prison.” Having grown up in a disadvantaged family, Sharanda started working at the age of 14, later opening ... MORE

Learn About Jury Nullification: Medical Marijuana Patient Could Spend Close To 100 Years In Prison For Pot Charges

by Maria Ines Taracena.    The thought of possibly spending close to 100 years in prison terrifies Kyle Catlin. But he's mostly concerned about his mom. She's not in the best of health. If something were to happen to her, "I may not even be allowed to leave prison to go to my mom's funeral, and that's super fucked up," he says. "I'm probably not gonna   ... MORE

John W. Whitehead: ‘Give Me Liberty Or Give Me Death’ - The Loss Of Our Freedoms In The Wake Of 9/11

To comply or to resist?   What began with the passage of the USA Patriot Act in October 2001 has snowballed into the eradication of every vital safeguard against government overreach, corruption and abuse. Since then, we have been terrorized, traumatized, and acclimated to life in the American Surveillance State. The bogeyman’s names and faces    ... MORE

Protect Free Speech Inside And Outside Of Courtrooms

Because justice is a result, not just a process.  In 2012, an 80-year-old retired chemistry professor was indicted on jury tampering charges for passing out brochures in a plaza outside a federal courthouse in New York. Those brochures regarded "jury nullification," an option available to jurors who might agree that a defendant broke the  ... MORE

Man Jailed Over $5 Theft For Months Without Bail Dies

by Jon Swaine.  Jailer says 24-year-old died of natural causes. A young black man arrested by police in Portsmouth, Virginia, has been found dead in jail after spending almost four months behind bars without bail for stealing groceries worth $5. Jamycheal Mitchell, who had mental health problems, was discovered lying on the floor of his cell by guards ... MORE

Denver Concedes Distributing Jury Nullification Pamphlets Near A Courthouse Is Constitutionally Protected Speech

by Jacob Sullum.  But, it still won't drop charges against those arrested for doing so.   Yesterday a federal judge in Denver issued a preliminary injunction protecting the First Amendment rights of activists who want to distribute jury nullification pamphlets outside the Lindsey-Flanigan Courthouse. Two activists, Mark Iannicelli and Eric Brandt, did  ... MORE

AP: Federal Court To Hear Challenge To Jury Nullification

Free speech under assault.     A federal judge is scheduled to hear evidence in a lawsuit arguing that a Denver judge cannot bar people from telling potential jurors outside a courthouse that they have a right to ignore laws they believe are wrong. Attorney David Lane filed a lawsuit against the city and Denver police, asking a federal judge to   ... MORE

We Are The Government: The Power Of Jury Nullification

by John W. Whitehead. Saddled with a corporate media that marches in lockstep with the government, elected officials who dance to the tune of their corporate benefactors, and a court system that serves to maintain order rather than mete out justice, Americans often feel as if they have no voice and no recourse when it comes to holding government    ... MORE