Years ago a co-worker or mine was assigned to a jury on a murder case. Without going into details, he told me the worst thing that can happen to you is to find yourself in the hands of any jury.
OK, one detail, the accused had a lengthy history of mental illness. The police and the prosecutor tried to paint this a some sort of joke and sought the death penalty! After much arguing and the legal definition of mental illness defined, a life sentence was given.
My co-worker begged all of us to sit down with our families and have a talk about the legal system and it's flaws.
The US police, justice, and carceral systems are over-zealous and punitive. The US has among the highest incarceration rates on the planet (including a large pre-trial detention population) and their conditions are often inhumane.
To be fair, juries are an approximate averaging system of guesswork by people who weren't there, listening to other people who weren't there arguing for the interests of 2 sides who present different stories.
OK, one detail, the accused had a lengthy history of mental illness. The police and the prosecutor tried to paint this a some sort of joke and sought the death penalty! After much arguing and the legal definition of mental illness defined, a life sentence was given.
My co-worker begged all of us to sit down with our families and have a talk about the legal system and it's flaws.