www. Radical New Thoughts .com

Jury Nullification

The right to, and availability of jury nullification is almost unknown among jurors. This is a shame, as many good people go to jail due to unjust laws and unjust application of laws which could have been nullified by an informed jury.

A Juror Has To Judge Only The Facts

Judges, lawyers and others in the justice system tell jurors they may only judge the facts in the case, and not let their opinion of the law, their conscience, or the motives of the defendant affect their decision. This lie is told because authorities don't want to lose control of the process of "justice" to mere citizens.

"Jury nullification of law," as it is sometimes called, has been a recognized right since the founding of the United States. A quote about jurors from John Adams, our second president: "It is not only his right but his duty...to find the verdict according to his own best understanding, judgment, and conscience, though in direct opposition to the direction of the court." In the early days of the country it was common practice for a judge to inform a jury about their right to judge the defendant AND the law.

Law made in England was regularly nullified by colonial juries, and the founding fathers of the U.S. defended this right in the new country. It has been repeatedly upheld by the highest courts when challenged. When law required citizens to pay taxes to churches they didn't belong to, a jury could say no. Juries today can still say no to bad law, or to a bad application of the law. They are not limited to judging the facts in a case.

However, a series of court rulings decided that juries don't need to be told about this. The court can even lie to the jury, as in this typical instruction from a Judge in California's criminal cases: "It becomes my duty as judge to instruct you concerning the law applicable to this case, and it is your duty as jurors to follow the law as I shall state it to you ... You are to be governed solely by the evidence introduced in this trial and the law as stated to you by me."

Amazingly, officers of the court in most jurisdictions are not allowed to tell the jury of their veto power. Even worse, those who try to inform and educate juries are sometimes threatened with jury-tampering charges. Nonetheless, it is still a recognized legal right. The D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in 1972 that a jury has an "...unreviewable and irreversible power...to acquit in disregard of the instruction on the law given by the trial judge. The pages of history shine upon instances of the jury's exercise of its prerogative to disregard instructions of the judge; for example, acquittals under the fugitive slave law."

Sometimes great injustice is done in the name of the law. Until humans are perfect, there will always be bad law and there will always be cases where the law is misapplied. In those cases, you have the right as a juror to say no to the law or its use.

As a practical matter, even when other jurors vote to convict, your "innocent" vote results in a hung jury. In these cases, especially when there is no clear victim, the state often drops a case rather than go through the trouble and expense to retry it. You have the right and the realistic power then, to set free good people who are being persecuted under bad laws. When necessary, use your jury-nullification power to deliver true justice.

From the ebook "99 Lies," which comes with, "You Aren't Supposed To Know - A Book Of Secrets." To see what else comes with the package, visit
The Secret Information Site.

Radical New Thoughts | Jury Nullification