Several days ago, I was required to go to the Superior Court of the City of Los Angeles, possibly to sit on a jury. I've had jury duty before, and only once was I selected to be a juror. The case ended up being decided by means of a misstatement by the plaintiff, which proved the defendant innocent.
This time, I listened once again to the lengthy and repetitive blather about not allowing anything not heard in the courtroom influence me, and not speaking to anyone once placed on a case. Interesting how government drones are so certain that all of us are stupid. It must be caused by their view of their fellow drones.
At length, I was part of a panel chosen for a trial. I was #27 in a panel of thirty-six.
The prosecutor looked like a 60-year-old Telly Savalas. His assistant looked like a not-too-pretty 30-year-old Jewish girl. The defense attorney was an ever-so-typical Jewish-looking 40-year old who had a balding patch where his yarmulke would normally go. The judge was a 55-ish white guy who, though he seemed affable enough, gave no clues as to his degree of fairness or of intelligence.
The one standout in the little drama was the defendant. He was a black man, about 40 or so, about 6' 3", fit and slender, handsome but tough looking. He was wearing a black pin-stripe suit a bit out of style. He sat stoically at the defense table and said nothing; showed nothing.
As the attorneys detailed the charge and what each intended to say in court, I became more and more disturbed. The defendant was charged with possession of cocaine with intent to sell, and mentioned that the defendant had $44 in his pocket. I'm not sure of the relevance of the money.
The judge questioned the first 24 prospective jurors about their prejudices and their experiences vis a vis the police, crime and the law. The defense attorney asked about their opinions on race and whether the defendant would have to testify. There was more, but to me it was all irrelevant.
The man was not alleged to have harmed anyone. If he did what they said, he merely possessed a commodity, and was attempting to sell the goods at a profit. In reason, there is no way that can be a crime. The truth is, for those of us who are aware that there really was history prior to our own birth, that anti-drug laws were originally imposed to control black people.
They dismissed a few of the first 24 candidates, and chose a jury from the rest, not including those of us numbered 25 through 36.
I find myself wondering, had I been picked for the jury, how things would've shook out when I refused to convict based on the unjustness of the law.
They've killed Freedom! Those bastards!
Warm regards,
Col. Hogan
3 comments:
Too bad you didn't get on that jury.
Dang, I was hoping you were going to tell us you got on the jury! I wish you had.
LC & TWC,
I would have liked to judge this case (and the unConstitutional law involved), too. It wasn't going to happen. Had they gotten to #25 through #36, I would've faced those questions, at which time my views would've come out. The prosecution, and likely the judge, would've turned purple.
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