Courts and Criminals
Courts and Criminals
These essays, which were written between the years 1905-1910 are reprinted without revision, although in a few minor instances the laws may have been changed.
Book Excerpt
he grand jury." Shades of Sir Henry Hawkins! Does the judge expect that they are actually to swallow that? Here is a jury sworn "to a true verdict find" in the case of an ugly looking customer at the bar who is charged with knocking down an old man and stealing his watch. The old man--an apostolic looking octogenarian--is sitting right over there where the jury can see him. One look at the plaintiff and one at the accused and the jury may be heard to mutter, "He's guilty,--all right!"
"Presumed to be innocent?" Why, may I ask? Do not the jury and everybody else know that this good old man would never, save by mistake, accuse anybody falsely of crime? Innocence! Why, the natural and inevitable presumption is that the defendant is guilty! The human mind works intuitively by comparison and experience. We assume or presume with considerable confidence that parents love their children, that all college presidents are great and good men, and that wild bulls are dangerous animals. We may be wrong. But it is u
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I did not finish this book. It was too dry and clinical for my taste. I get the feeling that it is probably aimed at students.
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