The Anthony verdict is why I am so glad to be American

[Brown Mule]

"We have a court of laws, not a court of Justice" Oliver Wendell Holmes

[Uncle Buck]

There is one issue where I think the British have a better procedure in jury trials than we have in the U.S.A. Unless I'm mistaken, in England the first twelve names chosen sit on the jury, period. Unless there is an actual conflict-of-interest with one of the parties, or a real life-or-death conflict, the jury is set randomly. None of the games that go on in American jury selection.

[Dan Schultz]

There is one issue where I think the British have a better procedure in jury trials than we have in the U.S.A. Unless I'm mistaken, in England the first twelve names chosen sit on the jury, period. Unless there is an actual conflict-of-interest with one of the parties, or a real life-or-death conflict, the jury is set randomly. None of the games that go on in American jury selection.

I agree. Jury duty should be mandatory except in extreme hardship situations. Putting the defendant on the stand should be mandatory, too!

[SplatterTone]

Ron White's signature line comes to mind.

[Mark]

Ron White's signature line comes to mind.

They call me Tater Salad.

I know, I know. "You can't fix stupid."

[bort]

I didn't even know about this until yesterday...

I guess you would have made you a good potential juror for the case!

[Mojo workin']

I know there are people on this board from all over the world, but I've just got to say to the Americans that the Anthony verdict is an example of what makes this country great.

I don't admire Casey Anthony. Not in the slightest. But I admire the hell out of that jury. They had the courage to stand up in the media spotlight, in a case where the defendant had already been hanged by the media and the public, and say they still had some doubts.

The old saw goes that it would be better for ten murderers to go free than for one innocent person to have their life or liberty taken away. I couldn't agree more, or be prouder to be an American than I am today.

Proud to be an American because of this?


Yes, legalisms are more important than life.

USA! USA! Rah! Rah! Rah!

[Mojo workin']

USA!

USA!

USA!

(cough)dead little girl(cough)

USA!

USA!

USA!

[Bob Kolada]

Brushing aside the usual smartass comments , I did not know who this is until literally yesterday.

[Michael Bush]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_ex ... ow_inmates" target="_blank

cough cough cough

[Dan Schultz]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_ex ... ow_inmates" target="_blank

cough cough cough

On that list... I wonder how many of those folks who were wrongfully convicted of THAT particular crime but were not fit to live in society, anyway.

The 'system' isn't perfect but does offer some degree of protection for descent members of society. It's just a shame to have to leave the decision of who lives and dies up to lawyers! Might as well let preachers and car salesmen rule The World!

[TubaRay]

If jurors are selected who haven't the b**ls to pull the trigger, the entire exercise is a complete waste of time, money, etc. The phrase, "beyond a reasonable doubt" is often misconstrued.

[bort]

If jurors are selected who haven't the b**ls to pull the trigger, the entire exercise is a complete waste of time, money, etc. The phrase, "beyond a reasonable doubt" is often misconstrued.

If convicted, she would spend about the next 25 years in prison with multiple appeals and retrials before anything actually happens. Think about how much waste that would be!

But still, this is a HUGE presumption of guilt. If you knew nothing about the case, had only the evidence presented, and the responsibility of sentencing someone to DIE for their charge, you'd better be damn damn sure you are right. The jury deliberated for less than 12 hours, so it's pretty clear they were never even close.

I still don't know why the prosecution had the balls to charge for 1st degree murder w/death penalty with no witnesses, no weapon, and no cause of death. I never thought that would hold -- that kind of charge is typically for very cut and dry cases.

In the end, she's "not guilty," and that's not the same as "innocent." The law has spoken, and that's that. There's plenty of innocent and plenty of not guilty people in this world, and I don't have to like any of them. She's another one of these people to me.

[Michael Bush]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_ex ... ow_inmates" target="_blank

cough cough cough

On that list... I wonder how many of those folks who were wrongfully convicted of THAT particular crime but were not fit to live in society, anyway.

The 'system' isn't perfect but does offer some degree of protection for descent members of society. It's just a shame to have to leave the decision of who lives and dies up to lawyers! Might as well let preachers and car salesmen rule The World!

My point is that if you're not going to make the state convince juries of particular crimes (which gets screwed up often enough as it is) you may as well go ahead and let Stalin rule the world.

We think (or used to think and I at least still do) that it's better to have wrongly acquitted people walking around on the street than to have wrongly convicted people in prison or executed. Ideally, all the errors would be made on the side of acquittal.

[TubaRay]

If convicted, she would spend about the next 25 years in prison with multiple appeals and retrials before anything actually happens. Think about how much waste that would be!

If she is guilty, I do not consider this a waste of money. I don't support multiple appeals as a basic constitutional right, but I believe criminals should be put behind bars for a penalty for violating our laws. Especially murder!

I still don't know why the prosecution had the balls to charge for 1st degree murder w/death penalty with no witnesses, no weapon, and no cause of death. I never thought that would hold -- that kind of charge is typically for very cut and dry cases.

I completely agree with you on this.

In the end, she's "not guilty," and that's not the same as "innocent." The law has spoken, and that's that. There's plenty of innocent and plenty of not guilty people in this world, and I don't have to like any of them. She's another one of these people to me.

And, I agree with this, too.

To me, any way you look at it, this was really ugly. Now, we can see if she follows O.J.'s lead. I really wonder if she is going to go looking for the killer(on the golf course).

[TexTuba]

You know I don't speak Spanish. In English, please!

[bort]

To me, any way you look at it, this was really ugly. Now, we can see if she follows O.J.'s lead. I really wonder if she is going to go looking for the killer(on the golf course).

...and write a book called "If I Did It."

Another question -- will there be a civil suit filed against her? I know in the OJ case, there was a suit filed against him from the victims families. But what happens here since she is the victim's family?

[Mark]

http://abcnews.go.com/US/casey_anthony_ ... d=14005609

Bloke? ABC?

[TubaRay]

Another question -- will there be a civil suit filed against her? I know in the OJ case, there was a suit filed against him from the victims families. But what happens here since she is the victim's family?

If I'm not mistaken, there are already a couple of lawsuits pending. I don't know if they have been filed, or if there is a threat they will be filed.

[Uncle Buck]

Another question -- will there be a civil suit filed against her? I know in the OJ case, there was a suit filed against him from the victims families. But what happens here since she is the victim's family?

If I'm not mistaken, there are already a couple of lawsuits pending. I don't know if they have been filed, or if there is a threat they will be filed.

Who would sue?