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2:27:00 PM EST
Feeling Surprised
Three Envelopes and a Verdict Part 4
Baltimore, Md 2/11-
That left possession. We took a vote on possession, and it was eight hands voting guilty. The three not-guilty hands were Ponytail Girl, Marlboro Man, and Amish Beard Boy.
First, Ponytail girl said it wasn't possession because he didn't have it on him. We asked for a tape of the judge's instructions, because he had adressed that point specifically. He'd gone out of his way. Must've known it would come up. His instructions were clear. It could be his possession, even if it's not on his person. But it had to be in his direct control. He had to be the one who decided what would happen with the drugs. This is where the law got very foggy for a lot of people in the room.
Because the judge had stated that the "proximity" of the drugs to Roosevelt had to be taken into consideration, the not-guilty-crowd argued that he wasn't in close proximity, but we, the guilty-crowd, explained it ad nauseam and finally had them understanding what exactly that meant. It really came down to whether or not he was in control of the things within that room when the police raided the house.
We listened to the judge's words repeatedly. Finally, I asked Amish Beard Boy (I selected him first, because I figured he would be the first to break) whether he thought it was reasonable that the drugs didn't belong to Roosevelt. Was it reasonable that the cop had made it up about the other mail being there on the nightstand? Was it reasonable that he'd never been there like his sister said? No. Amish Beard Boy changed his vote to guilty.
Using that line of argument, we convinced the Ponytail girl that it wasn't reasonable to assume that the drugs weren't his. It was strange to be trying to think of angles to present the evidence, essentially in ways the prosecution had never presented. For every argument she made, the guilty-crowd had a counter argument. She voted in favor of a guilty verdict.
But it didn't matter. Marlboro Man wouldn't budge. I respect his decision. He understood everything that had been presented. he didn't try to claim that Roosevelt hadn't lived there. He conceded that point. He didn't try to pretend there was any evidence planting going on. He simply believed that it was reasonable to assume that, in a drug dealer's house, drugs could turn up in a basement bedroom, and nobody would know who they belonged to.
We instructed the judge that we had a verdict on three counts and that we were hung on the other six. When the black lady read the verdict, Roosevelt mouthed a, "Thank you." to her. He should have mouthed it to the Marlboro Man.
We exited back through the jury room, and judge said he would stop by to answer any questions we had. I stayed behind, so did the black lady and the mother of seven. We asked him several questions, but he essentially confirmed that we had understood the law when we were deliberating. He did mention that he is opposed to mandatory sentences. He gave a hypothetical that may have been in reference to this case. He said, "What if a young man is arrested for possession of a small amount of weed (his words), and then a few years later he's arrested for possession of a small amount of drugs, and the jury finds him guilty of intent to distribute, and the minimum sentence is ten years? Does that seem fair? (I'm assuming he was telling us this was the case)
It's my opinion that ol' Roosevelt got away with possession, and may have even been selling a bit to his friends. I'm comfortable letting him walk on the intent to distribute charges. I think the system failed on the possession charges. Only because I didn't get my way though.
Our system works, and the system's broken.
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Extremely fascinating. I love your style of writing; easy to follow and very visual.
I especially enjoyed the insight into how our judicial system is simultaneously working and broken; it rings true on many levels. Yet as a believer in the American form of government, I have to HOPE that we are doing the best that we can with the cards that are dealt to us. It's the only way we can get through each day.
http://journals.aol.com/tripper559/my-way-of-thinking -
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What a nice story! I can hardly wait to read more! I loved the charater development as well! All very well written. I could see them!
I look forward to reading more of your work. Very interesting!
Sara
Sorry I have no journal. -
I wonder how many $'s of taxpayers money is spent on these types of trials that end in the same way. I bet lot's - thats how a broken system works, I suppose. I would hate to have to make a decision regarding someone else and their life. I'm not sure how you ever fix the system when it comes to drugs. Ayway, this was a great read-I enjoyed it - glad it was you and not me tho LOL.
5/24/08 5:59 AM