It's happened again - brandishing charge

[vaskidmark]

Doesn't there have to be some kind of preliminary hearing before a judge?  A lot of this foolishness would stop if the judge threw out the charges AND jailed the prosecutor for a week for "contempt" for wasting the court's time.

Quite right.  It was held - that's the one where the judge denied a motion for discovery and the Commomwealth Attorney refused to provide a Bill of Particulars.  There is a lot more foolishness going on but I can't leak out details.  Effectively the defense attorney was told he cannot have access to what the prosecution knows and will not be told specifically what his client is charged with that constituted breaking the law.  Puts the defense in the middle of the bull ring with a blindfold and both arms tied behind the back against a raging bull with sharpened horns.

stay safe.

[dogmush]

WTF?

How is that legal?

[Fitz]

WTF?

How is that legal?

Because security !!!!!oneone

[dogmush]

Every time i read about a new absurdity of the justice system I wonder how long our society is going to agree to be bound by it.

[cassandra and sara's daddy]

Heres one for you. Guy was facing middling charge. Stupid law. Was prepared for jury trial. Prosecution found out downgraded charge to avoid jury

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I997 using Tapatalk 2

[dogmush]

Heres one for you. Guy was facing middling charge. Stupid law. Was prepared for jury trial. Prosecution found out downgraded charge to avoid jury

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I997 using Tapatalk 2

And he was convicted of (still stupid) lesser charge without jury trial?

[Tallpine]

Every time i read about a new absurdity of the justice system I wonder how long our society is going to agree to be bound by it.

Pitchforks! 

[zxcvbob]

Heres one for you. Guy was facing middling charge. Stupid law. Was prepared for jury trial. Prosecution found out downgraded charge to avoid jury

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I997 using Tapatalk 2

Right to a trial by jury is still guaranteed by the 7th Amendment, unless a civil infraction has a fine of $20 or less.

[Strings]

How did the DA NOT get bitch-slapped into next week by the judge?

[Regolith]

How did the DA NOT get bitch-slapped into next week by the judge?

They're probably golfing buddies.

[Scout26]

Sounds like he needs to demand a jury trial.   (To call the CA's bluff).

[cassandra and sara's daddy]

They're probably golfing buddies.

reduced it to an infraction   no jury

it was too long ago for me to remember exact charge

http://www.conflictatlaw.com/content/infraction-misdemeanor-or-felony

[230RN]

I'm gettin' a little tired of having to carry a law library around in my head just to go erranding and grocery shopping with a gun in my pocket.

[vaskidmark]

I'm gettin' a little tired of having to carry a law library around in my head just to go erranding and grocery shopping with a gun in my pocket.

Even carrying a law school faculty around would not have helped.  Some bus driver had a PSH moment when they saw, through the guy's back window, that he was shifting his gun from one location to another.

Now, we all might agree that administrative handling of handguns should be reduced to as infrequently as possible.  We all also might agree that there ought to be laws, with penalties, for pointing a gun in a menacing fashion at someone so as to cause them to fear they will get shot.  But most importantly of all, we all might agree that folks that have PSH moments at the mere sight of a gun should not go around making false accusations about the gun being pointed at them in a menacing fashion so as to cause them to fear they will get shot.  (It's almost as bad as the rent-a-cop's statement in my trial about my pointing a finger at him: "I was never so afraid for my life.  Not even when I was in Iraq.")

Knowing what the law is, and all the permutations that courts have said violate the law, will not help when the objective is to enhance  a personal opinion that certain perfectly legal behaviors ought not to be allowed even if the courts say they are not illegal.  On top that there is a truckload or three of other dirt that bears on the whys and wherefors of this guy being arrested.  I'm not allowed to publically talk about that - yet.

stay safe.

[vaskidmark]

Time to resurect this.  Scouser's trial was scheduled for 9:30 this morning.  What happened was not a trial per any of he definitions I know.

Short version - guilty, 12 months with 6 suspended for 3 years.  Appeal noted and bonded out pending appeal.

Somewhat more detailed version starts at the bottom of page 14 at http://forum.opencarry.org/forums/showthread.php?113853-The-Tale-of-Henrico-Chapter-2-in-a-Ferry-Tale-Arrested-for-following-the-law&p=1953611#post1953611 .

stay safe.

[Regolith]

Two questions:

1) Why wasn't this a jury trial?

2) How the hell does that judge stay on the bench? You'd think that he'd have drawn a judicial slapdown from someone higher up on the food chain by now, if that's how he normally handles cases before him. 

[vaskidmark]

Two questions:

1) Why wasn't this a jury trial?

2) How the hell does that judge stay on the bench? You'd think that he'd have drawn a judicial slapdown from someone higher up on the food chain by now, if that's how he normally handles cases before him. 

1 - General District Court is not a court of record, and you only get a bench trial in front of a judge.  In  the Circuit Court appeal he can either have a bench trial in front of the judge or ask for a jury.  He's asking for a jury.

 2 - He's a substitute judge.  Probably an ttorney in practice who gets asked to sit while one of the real judges is away (vacation, doctpr's appointment, doing their own jail time).  He gets to stay there because the judicial complaint review process is so stacked against the complainant.  Even if you could get a video camera in there and catch him diddling the witnesses the system would not sanction him unless he was showing favor by diddling one side's witnesses more than the other's.

Quite honestly, many General Disstrict Court judges look on their part of justice as merely some sort of gatekeeping - if the defendant is willing to plead guilty or no contest then slap a sentence and fine on them and get to the next case because the docket is overflowing.  If the defendant wants to plead not guilty then either figure out in about 20 seconds that they really are not guilty or would be worth diddling if you found them not guilty.  All others are going to appeal anyhow so let's just get this over with and move on to the next case - the judge/jury up in Circuit Court can take the time to actually listen, figure out what the law is, and then render a verdict.

stay safe.

[tokugawa]

The legal system is set up to process little people. If you are connected you get a chance. If you are really connected you never get charged, unless you have enemies who are also connected.
 
 It is just a big machine set up to grind out a process, nevermind guilt or innocence or law, and too damn bad if you lose everything proving your innocence.

 


 

[RoadKingLarry]

It is just a big machine set up to grind out a process, nevermind guilt or innocence or law, and too damn bad if you lose everything proving your innocence.

Take away everything a man has to live for and you create a very dangerous man.

[HankB]

. . . Effectively the defense attorney was told he cannot have access to what the prosecution knows and will not be told specifically what his client is charged with that constituted breaking the law . . .

This sounds like a kangaroo court - I always thought that in the USA 1) the prosecution was required to turn over all evidence, list of witnesses, etc. to the defense; 2) the charges have to be specific. I'm puzzled as to what kind of defense lawyer would let them get away with this.

A local judge here in Central TX is now facing trial for witholding evidence in a major case back when he was a prosecutor.

[vaskidmark]

It's not a kangaroo court.  Wiki http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kangaroo_court says a kangaroo court is " "a mock court in which the principles of law and justice are disregarded or perverted". It is essentially where the defendant has already been deemed guilty, and has little if any opportunities to object or defend himself."

This was a real court in a real courtroom in a real courthouse. [/sarcasm]

The attorney for the defense had plenty of opportunity to object.  The prosecution didn't need any, as the judge announced when "that doesn't matter" even when there was not an objection by either side.

And quite seriouisly, the big problem was the judge did not want to be forced to take the necessary time to give the case a fair* hearing.  His attitude was "if I find him guilty and he will not roll over and accept his punishment, the judges over in Circuit Court can have a do-over with a jury and everything.  Their docket is not so full that I'm going to be here past 4 PM if everybody takes more than 10 minutes."

stay safe.

* - after yesterday's "trial" someone said that they guessed "fair" was where you went to ride the Ferris wheel and eat cotton candy, 'cause there was nothing that looked fair in the courtroom.

[roo_ster]

It's not a kangaroo court.  Wiki http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kangaroo_court says a kangaroo court is " "a mock court in which the principles of law and justice are disregarded or perverted". It is essentially where the defendant has already been deemed guilty, and has little if any opportunities to object or defend himself."

This was a real court in a real courtroom in a real courthouse. [/sarcasm]

The attorney for the defense had plenty of opportunity to object.  The prosecution didn't need any, as the judge announced when "that doesn't matter" even when there was not an objection by either side.

And quite seriouisly, the big problem was the judge did not want to be forced to take the necessary time to give the case a fair* hearing.  His attitude was "if I find him guilty and he will not roll over and accept his punishment, the judges over in Circuit Court can have a do-over with a jury and everything.  Their docket is not so full that I'm going to be here past 4 PM if everybody takes more than 10 minutes."

stay safe.

* - after yesterday's "trial" someone said that they guessed "fair" was where you went to ride the Ferris wheel and eat cotton candy, 'cause there was nothing that looked fair in the courtroom.

Tar & feathers are too good for such as this.  An example needs to be made to encourage the others to mind their duty.