Thursday 5 March 2009

Jury Nullification

"The Juror's Creed"
I will not allow my self to be a juror unless I am certian that I can protect the rights of the innocent as well as proclaim the guilt of the criminal.
I will remeber that when I take my oath I become a judge and the judge becomes a referee.
I will honor my obligation to be a judge and to judge the both the law and the facts that as is my right and duty.
I will not allow the referee, the prospector, or the other jurors to talk me out of doing what I know to be right.
I will always be mindful that the accused is innocent until I vote otherwise.
I will claim my right to interrogate the witnesses to eliminate doubt because I will not vote against the accused if I have any doubt.
If I become aware that the Constistutional or other rights of the accused are not being honored, i will automatically vote in favor of the accused, unless I am completly satisfied that harm has truly been done to others by the accused.
I will vote in favor of any defendant who is prevented from telling me why he believes I should find him not guilty.
May I never be an instrument of harm to anyone who does no harm, or who has broken no law.

Thursday 19 February 2009

General welfare- the way I see it

James Madison was right, when he explained the limitations of the Government, concerning general welfare.
Concerning the "General Welfare" clause of the Constitution, Madison remarked that when the government is the supreme judge of the common welfare, it limits the freedom of the people.this clause explains that when the government pushes the boundaries of the general welfare, it cannot opperate as God designed.
Madison warned that if, the government was not kept in check, it would, by the excuse of managing welfare, dominate the lives of Americans.Many regulations which are warned of are already happening.Public schools, regulating roads (toll booths- taxation) and religion are all being meddled with by the government.All of these organizations are to be handled by the good will of the people.Yet the U.S. Government today has seen it profitable to regulate many such things.
Many Americans do not realize that freedoms are being taken away because they do not know about them in the first place. This is often becasue the government schools do not fund such information.
The fact that the general welfare is being solely managed by the government, is not a light matter.The citizens of the United States of America need to fulfill their God-given duty of standing for freedom.
Americans ought to know how Government should opperate, and strive for that goal.
- Kelly

"General Welfare" - a direct quote of James Madison

" If Congress can apply money indefinetly to the general welfare, and are the sole and supreme judges of the general welfare, they may take the care of religion into their own hands;they may establish teachers in every state, country, and parish, and pay them out of the public treasury: they may take into their own hands the education of children, establishing in like manner schools throughout the Union; they may undertake the regulation of all roads other than post roads.In short, everythiong from the highest object of state legislation down to the most minute object of police, would be thrown under the power of Congress; for every object I have mentioned would admit the application of money, and might be called, if Congress pleased, provisions for the general welfare".