Spent all day yesterday at jury duty. I was on a panel for a first-degree felony murder charge, something Id never been a part of before. While it was an interesting experience, a lot of what I saw makes me seriously concerned for our future. The judge, the prosecuting attorneys rep, and the defense attorneys rep all explained the presumption of innocence, the 5th Amendment, and the absolute right of the defendant to not testify. Despite all that - along with an admonition from the judge that not testifying cannot at all factor in to a determination of guilt or innocence - 14 people out of the panel of 97 stated for the record that they would not presume the defendant innocent if he/she declined to testify and instead would hold not testifying against him/her. While I admire their honesty, what the HELL? Hello??? Were talking about one of the foundational principles of our entire system of jurisprudence. Can we not put aside our preconceptions and biases, even for a short time, and resolve to be impartial? Especially when someones entire future is at stake? That such a large portion of a random cross-section of the population answer that question with No makes me really afraid for the future of our society and country.
Posted on: Tue, 11 Nov 2014 16:29:29 +0000