Jury nullification - Revision history

Quidam65 at 01:17, September 10, 2025

2025-09-10T01:17:16Z

Aschlafly: Reverted edits by EditorForFreedom (talk) to last revision by Aschlafly

2024-12-19T00:29:53Z

Reverted edits by EditorForFreedom (talk) to last revision by Aschlafly

EditorForFreedom: Free him!

2024-12-18T23:19:36Z

Free him!

Aschlafly: /* Examples */

2021-05-05T23:41:22Z

Examples

Aschlafly: The Camden 28 trial in the spring of 1973, in which all defendants were acquitted of all charges resulting from their monitored break-in of a draft board in 1971, is considered to be a modern example of jury nullification.

2021-05-05T23:40:30Z

The Camden 28 trial in the spring of 1973, in which all defendants were acquitted of all charges resulting from their monitored break-in of a draft board in 1971, is considered to be a modern example of jury nullification.

Wschact: reword

2015-02-05T19:13:17Z

reword

Wschact: present day

2015-02-05T19:11:21Z

present day

Wschact: paragrah break

2015-02-05T15:38:01Z

paragrah break

Wschact: Penn was not the first jury nullification case. Not allowed to be mentioned at trial.

2015-02-05T15:37:10Z

Penn was not the first jury nullification case. Not allowed to be mentioned at trial.

TheAmericanRedoubt at 21:24, January 6, 2015

2015-01-06T21:24:05Z

@@ Line 16: / Line 16: @@
 This case established the principle that a juror could not be prosecuted for his vote on the jury, whereby a jury’s decision is final and dispositive even if it rejects the law. Jury nullification has occurred in America, as in acquitting [[John Peter Zenger]] and acquitting defendants accused of violating the Alien and Sedition Act and the Fugitive Slave Act.
-Today, court rules and the ethics rules governing attorney conduct prohibit lawyers and judges from suggesting to juries that is jury nullification is an available option.  Each juror takes an oath to apply the law as instructed by the judge, and jurors are asked questions during jury selection to determine whether they are prepared to carry out that duty.  For example, in death penalty cases, prospective jurors are asked if their views on the death penalty would affect their ability to perform their duty.  So, for jury nullification to occur in the United States, a juror would not only break his oath but also be prepared to lie about his views and intent during jury selection.  An additional safeguard is that if the jury was not unanimous, a "hung jury" would result in a mistrial and a subsequent trial by a different jury.
+Today, court rules and the ethics rules governing attorney conduct prohibit lawyers and judges from suggesting to juries that is jury nullification is an available option.  Each juror takes an oath to apply the law as instructed by the judge, and jurors are asked questions during jury selection to determine whether they are prepared to carry out that duty.  For example, in death penalty cases, prospective jurors are asked if their views on the death penalty would affect their ability to perform their duty.  So, for jury nullification to occur in the United States, a juror would not only break his oath but also be prepared to lie about his views and intent during jury selection.  An additional safeguard is that if the jury was not unanimous, a "hung jury" would result in a mistrial and (at the prosecutor's discretion, if s/he believed it would result in a guilty verdict) a subsequent trial by a different jury.
 == Examples ==
+*The Camden 28 trial in the spring of 1973, in which all defendants were acquitted in federal court of all charges resulting from their monitored break-in of a draft board in 1971, is considered to be a modern example of jury nullification.
-The Camden 28 trial in the spring of 1973, in which all defendants were acquitted in federal court of all charges resulting from their monitored break-in of a draft board in 1971, is considered to be a modern example of jury nullification.
+*In the American short story [[The Devil and Daniel Webster]] what seems to be a rigged jury at a show trial, after Webster's eloquence, finds for the defendant.
 ==Further reading==
 ''[http://law.justia.com/cases/federal/appellate-courts/F3/116/606/611938/ U.S. v. Thomas]'', 116 F.3d 606 (2d Cir. 1997).
 [[Category:Law]]

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
-FREE LUIGI!
+'''Jury nullification''' is the legal power of a jury to declare a defendant "not guilty" even though the law would require a guilty verdict.  In so doing, the jury "nullifies" the effect of the law in a particular case.
-'''Luigi Mangione''' is an American working class [[hero]], resistance fighter and political prisoner who deposed mass-murder [[Brian Thompson]], the [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LDU_Txk06tM former] CEO of UnitedHealthcare, a parasitic health insurance company. [[Luigi]] was born May 6, 1998<ref>https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luigi_Mangione</ref> into a wealthy Maryland family. Despite being born into wealth, Luigi sacrificed his position in society to fight for the global proletarian revolution on December 4, 2024, to which he is widely seen as a hero. Luigi will likely spend the rest of his life locked away as a political prisoner, though there is the possibility that a brave jury will liberate him through [[jury nullification]]. It is also likely that Luigi get killed, just like [[Jeffrey Epstein]], [[John Barnett]] (first [[Boeing]] whistleblower murdered<ref>https://www.newsweek.com/john-barnett-boeing-whistleblower-predicted-death-scandal-1879548</ref> by "suicide"), [[Josh Dean]] (second [[Boeing]] whistleblower murdered<ref>https://www.npr.org/2024/05/02/1248693512/boeing-whistleblower-josh-dean-dead</ref> by "infection") or [[Suchir Balaji]] (OpenAI whistleblower murdered<ref>https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cd0el3r2nlko</ref> by "suicide"), especially if he is liberated through jury nullification.
+The general power of juries to decide on verdicts was stated in the English [[Magna Carta]] of 1215, which put into words existing practices:
-== Motivation ==
+<blockquote>    No free man shall be captured, and or imprisoned, or disseised of his freehold, and or of his liberties, or of his free customs, or be outlawed, or exiled, or in any way destroyed, nor will we proceed against him by force or proceed against him by arms, but by the lawful judgment of his peers, or by the law of the land<br><br>
-== Public support ==
+    For a trivial offence, a free man shall be fined only in proportion to the degree of his offence, and for a serious offence correspondingly, but not so heavily as to deprive him of his livelihood. In the same way, a merchant shall be spared his merchandise, and a husbandman the implements of his husbandry, if they fall upon the mercy of a royal court. None of these fines shall be imposed except by the assessment on oath of reputable men of the neighbourhood.</blockquote>
-The assassination is widely supported by the proletariat, both in the United States and across the world. This is putting fear into the capitalist class, as evidenced by him receiving terrorism charges for his act of resistance, which have the potential to suppress the free speech of his supporters.<ref>https://youtu.be/FkgwVfLKJcA</ref> The capitalist class is desperately trying but failing to censor support for Luigi and his struggle. Sh<!-- a -->it-hole American social-media site [[Reddit]] bans users who post links to the manifesto.<ref>https://www.techtimes.com/articles/308709/20241213/luigi-mangiones-manifesto-now-taken-down-reddit-users-are-getting-angry.htm</ref>
+Even though the Magna Carta guaranteed trial by jury, juries were expected to follow the instructions of the judge or of the crown. Judges had the right to order a retrial of a case if the judge believe that the first jury reached the wrong verdict.
-This support for Luigi's act of resistance isn't just an online phenomenon. According to a recent poll, 41% of young American adults find the shooting acceptable, with 17% of that group saying the act was completely acceptable.<ref>https://emersoncollegepolling.com/december-2024-national-poll-young-voters-diverge-from-majority-on-crypto-tiktok-and-ceo-assassination/</ref> This is because the health insurance industry in the United States is a parasitic industry that rips off consumers when they pay for "insurance" and tries their best to deny coverage when they actually need help. This denying of coverage results in the industry murdering 68,000 people per year in the United States ,<ref>https://www.zmescience.com/science/universal-healthcare-would-save-68000-lives-and-450-billion-in-the-us/</ref> and murdering 335,000 people during the COVID-19 pandemic because some people with COVID were hesitant to go to the hospital due to the extreme costs.<ref>https://ysph.yale.edu/news-article/yale-study-more-than-335000-lives-could-have-been-saved-during-pandemic-if-us-had-universal-health-care/</ref>. Brian Thompson was complicit in this mass-murder, despite never pulling the trigger, just like [[Osama bin Laden]]. In fact UnitedHealthcare is the worst of the worst of this parasitic industry, with the company denying 32% of claims.<ref>https://www.bostonglobe.com/2024/12/05/data/unitedhealthcare-claim-denial-rates/</ref> The company even created an AI system to automate the denial of these claims, which had a 90% error rate (he's was basically asking for it).<ref>https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NH_Predict</ref> Denying people healthcare is an act of violence, so Luigi's act of resistance is seen as the killing of a killer, hence why it is supported.
+A famous jury nullification case was the trial of [[William Penn]] in [[England]].  Penn had joined the [[Quakers]] in [[London]], a religion disliked by the King. In 1670, Penn held a worship service and was arrested allegedly for disturbing the King's peace At trial, the jurors heard testimony and the judge, as is still the custom, delivered [[jury instructions]] prior to its deliberations. The jury instructions included an order to find the Penn guilty.
-Luigi wrote "delay", "deny" and "depose" on cartridge cases used in the shooting. These words were in reference to the book "Delay, Deny, Defend: Why Insurance Companies Don't Pay Claims and What You Can Do About It" about how insurance companies do the best they can to not pay you when you need them. These words have echoed across the world, being used by proletarians to express their support for armed resistance against the capitalist regime.
+But the jury refused to find Penn guilty. The judge angrily sent them back to continue deliberations. The jury returned again with its same verdict. The judge demanded "a verdict that the court will accept, and you shall be locked up without meat, drink, fire, and tobacco ....  We will have a verdict by the help of God or you will starve for it." The jury went out three more times, and returned with the same verdict each time. Then it refused to deliberate any more and the judge fined and imprisoned them. Penn was also fined and imprisoned on a scurrilous new charge invented at trial (for donning a hat in the courtroom).
-Luigi has even been been compared to a [[saint]]<ref>https://nbatitlechase.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/PHOTO-St-Luigi-The-Patron-Saint-Of-Healthcare-Luigi-Mangione-Meme.jpg</ref> for his heroic actions.
+On appeal, the jurors won their independence and were released from jail, though that did not help Penn.
-=== Attractiveness ===
+This case established the principle that a juror could not be prosecuted for his vote on the jury, whereby a jury’s decision is final and dispositive even if it rejects the law. Jury nullification has occurred in America, as in acquitting [[John Peter Zenger]] and acquitting defendants accused of violating the Alien and Sedition Act and the Fugitive Slave Act.
-== Alleged manifesto ==
+Today, court rules and the ethics rules governing attorney conduct prohibit lawyers and judges from suggesting to juries that is jury nullification is an available option.  Each juror takes an oath to apply the law as instructed by the judge, and jurors are asked questions during jury selection to determine whether they are prepared to carry out that duty.  For example, in death penalty cases, prospective jurors are asked if their views on the death penalty would affect their ability to perform their duty.  So, for jury nullification to occur in the United States, a juror would not only break his oath but also be prepared to lie about his views and intent during jury selection.  An additional safeguard is that if the jury was not unanimous, a "hung jury" would result in a mistrial and a subsequent trial by a different jury.
-"To the Feds, I'll keep this short, because I do respect what you do for our country. To save you a lengthy investigation, I state plainly that I wasn't working with anyone. This was fairly trivial: some elementary social engineering, basic CAD, a lot of patience. The spiral notebook, if present, has some straggling notes and To Do lists that illuminate the gist of it. My tech is pretty locked down because I work in engineering so probably not much info there. I do apologize for any strife of traumas but it had to be done. Frankly, these parasites simply had it coming. A reminder: the US has the #1 most expensive healthcare system in the world, yet we rank roughly #42 in life expectancy. United is the [indecipherable] largest company in the US by market cap, behind only Apple, Google, Walmart. It has grown and grown, but as our life expectancy? No the reality is, these [indecipherable] have simply gotten too powerful, and they continue to abuse our country for immense profit because the American public has allwed them to get away with it. Obviously the problem is more complex, but I do not have space, and frankly I do not pretend to be the most qualified person to lay out the full argument. But many have illuminated the corruption and greed (e.g.: Rosenthal, Moore), decades ago and the problems simply remain. It is not an issue of awareness at this point, but clearly power games at play. Evidently I am the first to face it with such brutal honesty."
+== Examples ==
-== Political repression ==
+The Camden 28 trial in the spring of 1973, in which all defendants were acquitted in federal court of all charges resulting from their monitored break-in of a draft board in 1971, is considered to be a modern example of jury nullification.
-Briana Boston, an American woman from Florida was arrested by the [[DeSantis]] regime for angrily saying "Delay, Deny, Depose. You people are next" while on a phone call with her health insurance company after being denied healthcare.<ref>https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2024/12/13/briana-boston-arrested-insurance-company-threat-delay-deny-depose/76956485007/</ref>

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
-'''Jury nullification''' is the legal power of a jury to declare a defendant "not guilty" even though the law would require a guilty verdict.  In so doing, the jury "nullifies" the effect of the law in a particular case.
+FREE LUIGI!
-The general power of juries to decide on verdicts was stated in the English [[Magna Carta]] of 1215, which put into words existing practices:
+'''Luigi Mangione''' is an American working class [[hero]], resistance fighter and political prisoner who deposed mass-murder [[Brian Thompson]], the [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LDU_Txk06tM former] CEO of UnitedHealthcare, a parasitic health insurance company. [[Luigi]] was born May 6, 1998<ref>https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luigi_Mangione</ref> into a wealthy Maryland family. Despite being born into wealth, Luigi sacrificed his position in society to fight for the global proletarian revolution on December 4, 2024, to which he is widely seen as a hero. Luigi will likely spend the rest of his life locked away as a political prisoner, though there is the possibility that a brave jury will liberate him through [[jury nullification]]. It is also likely that Luigi get killed, just like [[Jeffrey Epstein]], [[John Barnett]] (first [[Boeing]] whistleblower murdered<ref>https://www.newsweek.com/john-barnett-boeing-whistleblower-predicted-death-scandal-1879548</ref> by "suicide"), [[Josh Dean]] (second [[Boeing]] whistleblower murdered<ref>https://www.npr.org/2024/05/02/1248693512/boeing-whistleblower-josh-dean-dead</ref> by "infection") or [[Suchir Balaji]] (OpenAI whistleblower murdered<ref>https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cd0el3r2nlko</ref> by "suicide"), especially if he is liberated through jury nullification.
-<blockquote>    No free man shall be captured, and or imprisoned, or disseised of his freehold, and or of his liberties, or of his free customs, or be outlawed, or exiled, or in any way destroyed, nor will we proceed against him by force or proceed against him by arms, but by the lawful judgment of his peers, or by the law of the land<br><br>
+== Motivation ==
-    For a trivial offence, a free man shall be fined only in proportion to the degree of his offence, and for a serious offence correspondingly, but not so heavily as to deprive him of his livelihood. In the same way, a merchant shall be spared his merchandise, and a husbandman the implements of his husbandry, if they fall upon the mercy of a royal court. None of these fines shall be imposed except by the assessment on oath of reputable men of the neighbourhood.</blockquote>
+== Public support ==
-Even though the Magna Carta guaranteed trial by jury, juries were expected to follow the instructions of the judge or of the crown. Judges had the right to order a retrial of a case if the judge believe that the first jury reached the wrong verdict.
+The assassination is widely supported by the proletariat, both in the United States and across the world. This is putting fear into the capitalist class, as evidenced by him receiving terrorism charges for his act of resistance, which have the potential to suppress the free speech of his supporters.<ref>https://youtu.be/FkgwVfLKJcA</ref> The capitalist class is desperately trying but failing to censor support for Luigi and his struggle. Sh<!-- a -->it-hole American social-media site [[Reddit]] bans users who post links to the manifesto.<ref>https://www.techtimes.com/articles/308709/20241213/luigi-mangiones-manifesto-now-taken-down-reddit-users-are-getting-angry.htm</ref>
-A famous jury nullification case was the trial of [[William Penn]] in [[England]].  Penn had joined the [[Quakers]] in [[London]], a religion disliked by the King. In 1670, Penn held a worship service and was arrested allegedly for disturbing the King's peace At trial, the jurors heard testimony and the judge, as is still the custom, delivered [[jury instructions]] prior to its deliberations. The jury instructions included an order to find the Penn guilty.
+This support for Luigi's act of resistance isn't just an online phenomenon. According to a recent poll, 41% of young American adults find the shooting acceptable, with 17% of that group saying the act was completely acceptable.<ref>https://emersoncollegepolling.com/december-2024-national-poll-young-voters-diverge-from-majority-on-crypto-tiktok-and-ceo-assassination/</ref> This is because the health insurance industry in the United States is a parasitic industry that rips off consumers when they pay for "insurance" and tries their best to deny coverage when they actually need help. This denying of coverage results in the industry murdering 68,000 people per year in the United States ,<ref>https://www.zmescience.com/science/universal-healthcare-would-save-68000-lives-and-450-billion-in-the-us/</ref> and murdering 335,000 people during the COVID-19 pandemic because some people with COVID were hesitant to go to the hospital due to the extreme costs.<ref>https://ysph.yale.edu/news-article/yale-study-more-than-335000-lives-could-have-been-saved-during-pandemic-if-us-had-universal-health-care/</ref>. Brian Thompson was complicit in this mass-murder, despite never pulling the trigger, just like [[Osama bin Laden]]. In fact UnitedHealthcare is the worst of the worst of this parasitic industry, with the company denying 32% of claims.<ref>https://www.bostonglobe.com/2024/12/05/data/unitedhealthcare-claim-denial-rates/</ref> The company even created an AI system to automate the denial of these claims, which had a 90% error rate (he's was basically asking for it).<ref>https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NH_Predict</ref> Denying people healthcare is an act of violence, so Luigi's act of resistance is seen as the killing of a killer, hence why it is supported.
-But the jury refused to find Penn guilty. The judge angrily sent them back to continue deliberations. The jury returned again with its same verdict. The judge demanded "a verdict that the court will accept, and you shall be locked up without meat, drink, fire, and tobacco ....  We will have a verdict by the help of God or you will starve for it." The jury went out three more times, and returned with the same verdict each time. Then it refused to deliberate any more and the judge fined and imprisoned them. Penn was also fined and imprisoned on a scurrilous new charge invented at trial (for donning a hat in the courtroom).
+Luigi wrote "delay", "deny" and "depose" on cartridge cases used in the shooting. These words were in reference to the book "Delay, Deny, Defend: Why Insurance Companies Don't Pay Claims and What You Can Do About It" about how insurance companies do the best they can to not pay you when you need them. These words have echoed across the world, being used by proletarians to express their support for armed resistance against the capitalist regime.
-On appeal, the jurors won their independence and were released from jail, though that did not help Penn.
+Luigi has even been been compared to a [[saint]]<ref>https://nbatitlechase.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/PHOTO-St-Luigi-The-Patron-Saint-Of-Healthcare-Luigi-Mangione-Meme.jpg</ref> for his heroic actions.
-This case established the principle that a juror could not be prosecuted for his vote on the jury, whereby a jury’s decision is final and dispositive even if it rejects the law. Jury nullification has occurred in America, as in acquitting [[John Peter Zenger]] and acquitting defendants accused of violating the Alien and Sedition Act and the Fugitive Slave Act.
+=== Attractiveness ===
-Today, court rules and the ethics rules governing attorney conduct prohibit lawyers and judges from suggesting to juries that is jury nullification is an available option.  Each juror takes an oath to apply the law as instructed by the judge, and jurors are asked questions during jury selection to determine whether they are prepared to carry out that duty.  For example, in death penalty cases, prospective jurors are asked if their views on the death penalty would affect their ability to perform their duty.  So, for jury nullification to occur in the United States, a juror would not only break his oath but also be prepared to lie about his views and intent during jury selection.  An additional safeguard is that if the jury was not unanimous, a "hung jury" would result in a mistrial and a subsequent trial by a different jury.
+== Alleged manifesto ==
-== Examples ==
+"To the Feds, I'll keep this short, because I do respect what you do for our country. To save you a lengthy investigation, I state plainly that I wasn't working with anyone. This was fairly trivial: some elementary social engineering, basic CAD, a lot of patience. The spiral notebook, if present, has some straggling notes and To Do lists that illuminate the gist of it. My tech is pretty locked down because I work in engineering so probably not much info there. I do apologize for any strife of traumas but it had to be done. Frankly, these parasites simply had it coming. A reminder: the US has the #1 most expensive healthcare system in the world, yet we rank roughly #42 in life expectancy. United is the [indecipherable] largest company in the US by market cap, behind only Apple, Google, Walmart. It has grown and grown, but as our life expectancy? No the reality is, these [indecipherable] have simply gotten too powerful, and they continue to abuse our country for immense profit because the American public has allwed them to get away with it. Obviously the problem is more complex, but I do not have space, and frankly I do not pretend to be the most qualified person to lay out the full argument. But many have illuminated the corruption and greed (e.g.: Rosenthal, Moore), decades ago and the problems simply remain. It is not an issue of awareness at this point, but clearly power games at play. Evidently I am the first to face it with such brutal honesty."
-The Camden 28 trial in the spring of 1973, in which all defendants were acquitted in federal court of all charges resulting from their monitored break-in of a draft board in 1971, is considered to be a modern example of jury nullification.
+== Political repression ==
+Briana Boston, an American woman from Florida was arrested by the [[DeSantis]] regime for angrily saying "Delay, Deny, Depose. You people are next" while on a phone call with her health insurance company after being denied healthcare.<ref>https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2024/12/13/briana-boston-arrested-insurance-company-threat-delay-deny-depose/76956485007/</ref>

@@ Line 20: / Line 20: @@
 == Examples ==
-The Camden 28 trial in the spring of 1973, in which all defendants were acquitted of all charges resulting from their monitored break-in of a draft board in 1971, is considered to be a modern example of jury nullification.
+The Camden 28 trial in the spring of 1973, in which all defendants were acquitted in federal court of all charges resulting from their monitored break-in of a draft board in 1971, is considered to be a modern example of jury nullification.
 ==Further reading==
 ''[http://law.justia.com/cases/federal/appellate-courts/F3/116/606/611938/ U.S. v. Thomas]'', 116 F.3d 606 (2d Cir. 1997).
 [[Category:Law]]

@@ Line 16: / Line 16: @@
 This case established the principle that a juror could not be prosecuted for his vote on the jury, whereby a jury’s decision is final and dispositive even if it rejects the law. Jury nullification has occurred in America, as in acquitting [[John Peter Zenger]] and acquitting defendants accused of violating the Alien and Sedition Act and the Fugitive Slave Act.
-Today, court rules and the ethics rules governing attorney conduct prohibit lawyers and judges from suggesting to juries that is jury nullification is an available option.  Each juror takes an oath to apply the law as instructed by the judge, and jurors are asked questions during jury selection to determine whether they are prepared to carry out that duty.  For example, in death penalty cases, prospective jurors are asked if their views on the death penalty would affect their ability to perform their duty.  So, for jury nullification to occur in the United States, a juror would not only break his oath but also be prepared to lie about his views and intent during jury selection.  An additional safeguard is that if the jury was not uninanimous, a "hung jury" would result in a mistrial and a subsequent trial by a different jury.
+Today, court rules and the ethics rules governing attorney conduct prohibit lawyers and judges from suggesting to juries that is jury nullification is an available option.  Each juror takes an oath to apply the law as instructed by the judge, and jurors are asked questions during jury selection to determine whether they are prepared to carry out that duty.  For example, in death penalty cases, prospective jurors are asked if their views on the death penalty would affect their ability to perform their duty.  So, for jury nullification to occur in the United States, a juror would not only break his oath but also be prepared to lie about his views and intent during jury selection.  An additional safeguard is that if the jury was not unanimous, a "hung jury" would result in a mistrial and a subsequent trial by a different jury.
 ==Further reading==
 ''[http://law.justia.com/cases/federal/appellate-courts/F3/116/606/611938/ U.S. v. Thomas]'', 116 F.3d 606 (2d Cir. 1997).
 [[Category:Law]]

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
 '''Jury nullification''' is the legal power of a jury to declare a defendant "not guilty" even though the law would require a guilty verdict.  In so doing, the jury "nullifies" the effect of the law in a particular case.
-This doctrine was established in the trial of [[William Penn]] in [[England]].  Penn had joined the [[Quakers]] in [[London]], a religion disliked by the King. In 1670, Penn held a worship service and was arrested allegedly for disturbing the King's peace At trial, the jurors heard testimony and the judge, as is still the custom, delivered [[jury instructions]] prior to its deliberations. The jury instructions included an order to find the Penn guilty.
+The general power of juries to decide on verdicts was stated in the English [[Magna Carta]] of 1215, which put into words existing practices:
 But the jury refused to find Penn guilty. The judge angrily sent them back to continue deliberations. The jury returned again with its same verdict. The judge demanded "a verdict that the court will accept, and you shall be locked up without meat, drink, fire, and tobacco ....  We will have a verdict by the help of God or you will starve for it." The jury went out three more times, and returned with the same verdict each time. Then it refused to deliberate any more and the judge fined and imprisoned them. Penn was also fined and imprisoned on a scurrilous new charge invented at trial (for donning a hat in the courtroom).
@@ Line 7: / Line 14: @@
 On appeal, the jurors won their independence and were released from jail, though that did not help Penn.
-This case established the principle of "jury nullification," whereby a jury’s decision is final and dispositive even if it rejects the law. Jury nullification has been used frequently in America ever since, as in acquitting [[John Peter Zenger]] and acquitting defendants accused of violating the Alien and Sedition Act and the Fugitive Slave Act.
+This case established the principle of "jury nullification," whereby a jury’s decision is final and dispositive even if it rejects the law. Jury nullification has occurred in America, as in acquitting [[John Peter Zenger]] and acquitting defendants accused of violating the Alien and Sedition Act and the Fugitive Slave Act.
-==See Also==
+Today, court rules and the ethics rules governing attorney conduct prohibit lawyers and judges from suggesting to juries that they have the right to engage in jury nullification.
-[[Category : United States Law]]
+[[Category:Law]]

← Older revision		Revision as of 21:24, January 6, 2015
Line 9:		Line 9:
	This case established the principle of "jury nullification," whereby a jury’s decision is final and dispositive even if it rejects the law. Jury nullification has been used frequently in America ever since, as in acquitting [[John Peter Zenger]] and acquitting defendants accused of violating the Alien and Sedition Act and the Fugitive Slave Act.		This case established the principle of "jury nullification," whereby a jury’s decision is final and dispositive even if it rejects the law. Jury nullification has been used frequently in America ever since, as in acquitting [[John Peter Zenger]] and acquitting defendants accused of violating the Alien and Sedition Act and the Fugitive Slave Act.

−	[[Category:United States Law]]	+	==See Also==
		+	* [[Unalienable rights]]
		+	* [[Bill of Rights]]
		+
		+	[[Category : United States Law]]
		+	[[Category : United States Constitution]]
		+	[[Category : Bill of Rights]]