Modern Jurisprudence
Modern Criminal JurisprudenceMy report card on the judicial system that the Founding Fathers came up with ? Very discouraging in modern times. There is an attitude in the air of guilty until proven innocent. This is not just with jurors but with prosecutors. Rather than look at a case (as our law has designed to seek justice affording all constitutional and statutory rights to the citizen accused) to see if there is probable cause for an arrest, or guilt beyond a reasonable doubt to convict, I am constantly faced with people who cannot accept or understand the way our judicial system works. Tarrant County, Texas, the 2nd most conservative county in the United States, is not the bastion of justice I wish it could be. I constantly argue motions to suppress where there is a reasonable doubt as to whether or not a police officer had reasonable suspicion or probable cause to initiate an investigation and find that judges are thinking just the opposite (not looking for reasonable doubt but for ways to negate the reasonable doubt). They (my own professional opinion of course and not all judges fit in this category) readily dispose of the reasonable doubt that looks them in the eye and scramble for "fillers" that are just not legally relevant to the facts at hand (courts are constantly opting for "time and place" nonsense on traffic stops because no real violations of law exist.. just because it is late at night does not mean my client should be pulled over for no reason !). What is even more discouraging to me are the prosecutors who despite seeing evidence or reasonable doubt that someone is not guilty press forward anyway due to political "office policies" in place when the law requires they seek justice and not convictions. What used to be sacred, asking a fact witness whether or not someone is intoxicated has become a joke as prosecutors object to such relevant information in court and essentially intimidate witnesses who will testify to the truth. My last DWI trial (all a matter of public record) involved a state subpoeaned witness who told me she was literally sick before testifying because she had made it clear that my client was sober and the prosecutors just were not having it. They objected when I asked her on the witness stand as to her opinion of intoxication (based on all the evidence). Sickening. When prosecutors want to win so bad they will do anything in trial (despite the truth and justice of the facts) it makes you wonder how they got to be lawyers in the first place or what kind of parenting did they receive ? Where have all the ethics gone ? Just as bad ? Jurors who refuse to look at the truth because they think it is their job to convict. This "Law and Order" "Tough on Crime" mentality some people have these days makes laws and constitutional principles nonexistent. Many of them only recognize and value constitutional rights when it is too late, when it is them on the hot seat- otherwise they would rather sacrifice rights for temporary safety. Benjamin Franklin once remarked that those who are willing to sacrifice rights and liberty for temporary safety deserve neither.
My how far we have come. In the days of modern conveniences and information readily available, we find our forefathers smarter on the sacred principles that matter. Many jurors do not understand, until it is them, that what police officers say on the witness stand (more frequently than not) is a playscript out of their DWI police report training class full of "typical descriptors". Many jurors do not understand that what essentially in a cop's mind serves as "embellishment" of the truth as they see it, is really just the opposite: nonexistent ! Just because a cop says someone is swaying and clearly they are not, does not make it so !
Well, Europe has largely moved away from a jury system. They don't believe average intelligence people are smart enough to make legal distinctions and determinations of law and facts. Europe also has trained judges for the particular subject matter. It is disturbing we elect judges with nonscientific backgrounds and expect them to make proper rulings on breath and blood test cases. And who is providing judges DWI training in the State of Texas ? Texas DPS ! Yup , the large governmental agency that receives a minimum of $3k for every DWI conviction to put in the slush fund (at one point designated to fund the Texas Transcorridor highway project). Moral of the story ? It's not good for society when the government lies. It perpetuates injustice. No wonder jurors convict without moral misgivings of conscience, our own highway signs say "Drink.Drive.Go to Jail" and that's not even the law !!!! Citizens are led into believing government lies and make the ends justify the means throwing law right out of the process. Solution ? Let's elect people who will hold the government accountable and not lie to the people. Attorney General Greg Abbott should have already had those incorrect signs funded by our taxpayer dollars taken off the highways. After all, he is challenging the Health Care Reform that just passed because he claims it is unconstitutional. Let him first start with our DWI laws ! (the highway signs, the illegal and double jeopardy surcharges, equal protections claims of classifications of crimes where murder defendants are afforded more right than first time DWI offenders). We also need to reward prosecutors who do the right things. They are the ones who should be receiving awards at local VFW and community dinners. Let's hold the prosecutors who are unethical accountable. Their actions deserve to see the light of day. Their actions speak for themselves. Let them defend their lack of respect for what's right. The judges that do uphold the law deserve our respect and praise. Let's stop endorsing judges that don't have this spirit. It's not that they are bad people, it's just that you can't take sides when you are a judge. Our modern day judges who can't seem to separate "Tough on Crime" politics from their jobs need to quit and work for the DA's office.
I have been practicing law for 15 years, long enough to understand the modern jurisprudence trends and it is part of my job to speak up for what is right. I regretfully lament the "Guilty at all costs" environment that I constantly find myself in. Time to go back to 1776, the Sons of Liberty, and remember that we broke away from a tyrannical monarchy because we believed in notions like "innocent until proven guilty" and "beyond a reasonable doubt." I love my job and its challenges. I just think that what's currently happening in modern jurisprudence is sad and history will judge as dark and unenlightened days. Doing my job to stop the train of injustice and sincerely hope for future generations it will be easier. We just need to bring back the hopes and spirits this country was founded on.
posted by Mimi Coffey @ 8:09 AM
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