[Discuss] Fwd: [Peace-discuss] on Jury Nullification

[John W.]

On Tue, Jun 10, 2008 at 4:19 AM, Ricky Baldwin <baldwinricky at yahoo.com>
wrote:

Great!  Some places they hand out pamphlets on jury nullification.
> These are resources we can get, too.
>
> The real pinch I think comes not from the prosecuting attorney asking
> questions, as discussed just now, but earlier.  I was called last year
> for jury duty and they show you a little video of the judge (so you
> can't ask him/her any questions?) telling you you must follow the law
> even if you disagree with it -- completely false of course, but try
> arguing with the court functionaries they have herding you around ...
> then they ask you to swear an oath that you can do that, even if you
> disagree.
>
> Bears some thinking about in my opinion.
>
> I think most of the very honest people who'd be willing to stand up for
> real justice against such "justice" lies could be weeded out by this
> oath "requirement."


So a person would have to care enough about the Big Picture of "justice" in
order to lie under oath.  I'd certainly be willing to do that IF I knew what
kind of trial I was going to be participating in.  At what point in the jury
selection process does this oath requirement kick in?

Well, hell, on second thought I'd probably swear the oath in general, then
use my own discretion later on.  I can think of a lot of reasons why I'd be
more than willing to hang a jury in a questionable case.


So, for example, I KNEW about jury nullification,
> but I wasn't sure how I was going to get IN ... and in the end, the
> case (whatever it was) was settled by the psychological pressure on the
> defendant of our tromping feet outside the courtroom door (another
> issue in itself).
>
> The system isn't just broken, folks, it's twisted and tangled - gnarled
> even - and, like the hydra, you chop off one head it grows two.
> Ricky


To me one of the worst and most harmful legal doctrines is that of
"prosecutorial discretion".  No one should have that much discretion.

J.W.



> --- Barbara kessel <barkes at gmail.com> wrote:
>
> > "Jury nullification" is when the jury finds a person innocent by way
> > of
> > nullifying a bad law they are being tried under. Barbara
> > *ewj at pigs.ag*
>
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