From: Erin N. (enoonan@kent.edu)
Date: Fri Nov 01 2002 - 22:27:47 GMT
PLATT Interpretation: You may want to pay special attention to
>the part where Pirsig says that sympathy towards criminals and
>lawlessness is "really stupid."
erin: okay I think Newland has a really good point.
Empathy is not always about that soup of sentiments my
dearest Platt. Some crimes have to be put into context--
which requires reasoning. Maybe you love blind acceptance to laws and
automatic
dissapproval of breaking them but I don't know how you
can argue that you are for freedom if you do:-P
Although I agree with Newland I am not clear whether his
solution will work or not. It will be interesting to
see if it gets passed in South Dakota and how it plays out.
If anybody knows a lot about I would be curious to feedback
to hear about their predictions about this.
VERMILLION, S.D. -- Bob Newland calls them his "horror stories," and they are
coming in by the dozen—unconfirmed, one-sided, passionate.
A quadriplegic writes of his conviction on drug charges for smoking a
marijuana cigarette—the only relief, he says, for his violent tremors. A
teenager writes of her conviction on assault charges for standing up to local
bullies. A mother writes of her son's two-year prison sentence for violating a
restraining order by putting a rose and a teddy bear in his former
girlfriend's car.
To Newland, a Libertarian activist, such stories prove that America has become
a police state—prosecuting without reason, punishing without mercy.
His radical proposal to restore balance: Let juries determine not just guilt
or innocence, but whether the laws of the land are fair, and whether those
laws should apply to any given defendant on any given day.
South Dakotans will vote Tuesday on a measure that would enshrine those
reforms in the state Constitution. The initiative could upend the state's
legal system—and stir similar revolts around the nation.
Newland, a long-shot candidate for attorney general, is the prime force behind
the measure. But the concept, broadly known as "jury nullification," has
attracted an eclectic bunch of backers—among them, folks infuriated by tough
drug laws, gun laws, tax laws, motorcycle helmet laws, even traffic laws.
"The laws have to be applied in context. That's the issue. That's the
principle that lawyers have forgotten about," said Jorge Vicuna, 52, a farm
manager in Huron who believes he was wrongly convicted under animal abuse
statutes for trying to fend off a chained dog with a hockey stick.
The text of Amendment A sounds mild enough. If it passes, defendants in
criminal cases would have the right "to argue the merits, validity and
applicability of the law, including the sentencing laws."
In practice, that means a drunk driver would be allowed to tell a jury: Yes, I
drove while intoxicated. But state law setting a 0.08% blood-alcohol content
limit is unfair. The federal government forced that standard down our
lawmakers' throats. And in any case, it shouldn't apply to me, because though
I was legally drunk, I drove safely.
Antiabortion activists could argue that the laws against threatening clinics
are invalid because it's everybody's moral duty to prevent abortions. Pot
smokers could press for acquittal on the grounds that sentences for drug
possession are too harsh. A batterer could claim that domestic violence laws
should not apply because the spouse was asking for trouble.
In short, it would allow a defendant to argue that, although he broke the law,
he does not deserve to be prosecuted. "You should be allowed to tell a jury:
'Yes, I committed these actions, but ... this is a stupid law,' " Newland
said.
Opponents—including virtually all the state's legal establishment—contend that
Amendment A will make a mockery of due process, equal protection and democracy
itself.
MOQ.ORG - http://www.moq.org
Mail Archive - http://alt.venus.co.uk/hypermail/moq_discuss/
MD Queries - horse@darkstar.uk.net
To unsubscribe from moq_discuss follow the instructions at:
http://www.moq.org/md/subscribe.html
This archive was generated by hypermail 2.1.5 : Fri Nov 01 2002 - 22:22:41 GMT