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June 13, 2005
Free To Beat It Again
Apparently, in California it's okay to touch little boys.
Yes, for the second time in a decade, the citizen jurors and court system of the state of California provided us with a ridiculous verdict in which an obvious criminal was set free to walk the streets again. And for the second time in a decade, the jurors had no other choice due to the presumption of innocence and the burden of proof being on the prosecution. Reasonable doubt having been raised, the jury had no other choice.
That doesn't mean Jackson the Freak is innocent; far from it. It just means that the jury could not vote to convict under the letter of the law. Presented with a case only slightly less obvious than the O.J. Simpson case, the D.A.'s office screwed things up to the point that "not guilty" was the only real option the jury had. I'm not sure what the qualifications are to become a D.A. in the Golden State, but I think my cat's probably met them.
Just like ten years ago, the state's case was undermined by unsympathetic elements in the prosecution, and it cost them a guilty verdict. In 1995 with the O.J. case, the truth was likely that the police tried to frame a guilty murderer. In 2005, the truth is likely that Michael Jackson molested a con woman's son. Both times, a man who to any unbiased eye seems guilty instead walked free. Both times, it was the right verdict thanks to horrendous prosecution.
If I ever think about breaking the law, I'm going to move to California first.
