The Legal System Will Drive You Crazy (When It Works To Design Specs)

Reality To Earth . . . Reasonable doubt is a good idea. Even when it seems it isn't.

There are plenty of other examples, but for a lot of people in my generation it goes back to the trial of OJ Simpson. Months of testimony, tons of evidence, gloves that wouldn't fit and a whole other pile of things which a jury seemed to magically distill in only four hours of sitting together in a room. The word was not guilty, the innocent dead all these years later still haven't had some form of justice done for the crimes committed against them, and a defendant those of us sitting on the outside looking in considered as guilty as could possibly be determined walked away.

The wrath of public opinion and righteous indignation have found a new "What were those twelve people thinking" watermark in the trial of a smiling, somewhat smug defendant and a dead innocent, a doe-eyed two year old who practically redefines the term. From what the evidence shows, we can only hope she never knew or never suffered due to what was done, but there will always be that underlying, nagging feeling she might have.

I've resisted writing on this subject for a few days. I wanted to see whether the 'lay of the land' was much the same as during the trial, with public opinion coming down like a hammer on the prosecution, the defendant and the jury.

I think the outside headline "No Justice" and the interior "Monster Mom beats Slay Rap" in Wednesday's July 6th's NY Daily News pretty much crystallized what I've been seeing since. The only people who seem to have doubted the defendant was guilty of murdering her daughter were the twelve whose opinions counted in this case. They saw the evidence presented, they weighed it, and they came to a decision which was largely based on the phrase every judge charges a jury with . . . "Beyond A Reasonable Doubt".

There are two thing no one can consider beyond that reasonable doubt. One is that Caylee Anthony is dead. Casey Anthony, amidst the clouds of stories, obfuscation and defenses walks away with time served. Just as with the case which I began the column with, the service of justice has been relegated to the court those of faith consider the final one, as there's little chance of anyone else being charged with the crimes.

The second fact, even if it currently irritates us, is that the term reasonable doubt is set within the legal system to protect the innocent accused of crimes in this country, if not always the innocent who are the victims of crime.

Stated simply . . . If the umpires blew the call, the ones they don't miss are what keeps the game on the field fair. And if I'm resorting to sports analogies, it's time to call a -30- to this entry.