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#131
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#132
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Tom Sherman wrote:
Bob Hunt wrote: I'll stand by my original statement. Anyone that thinks O.J. Simpson and Robert Blake were not guilty either doesn't have even a passing knowledge of the evidence against them or they possess an I.Q. lower than room temperature. I never thought either was guilty because I do not care enough about retired athletes and washed up actors to pay enough attention to have an opinion. -- Tom Sherman - Earth (Downstate Illinois, North of Forgottonia) You're entitled to ignore any news story you choose but you miss the point, Tom. What is important in this conversation is not what they did years ago on a football field or in front of a camera but that they both got away with murder, Blake on a deserted street and Simpson in a secluded entrance to private property. I mentioned both as cautionary tales to those that had a kneejerk ("He should have been flayed alive!", etc.) reaction to a plea agreement that sent a reckless driver to prison for less time than they thought appropriate. Plea agreements are seldom satisfying but there's a very real risk, especially in a murder trial, that the guilty will walk away simply because they don't *look* guilty to just one jury member and the State won't invest another fifty thousand to five hundred thousand dollars on a second trial. Regards, Bob Hunt |
#133
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On Sat, 19 Mar 2005 11:57:07 -0800, Zoot Katz wrote:
Sat, 19 Mar 2005 12:57:43 -0600, , Mark Mitchell wrote: Even if I accept that your claim, 'the majority of so called "accidents" can be traced directly to operator error.' is accurate (and I do not), that still means that some fatalities are not caused by the driver. Speed, inexperience, alcohol, willful or malicious acts on behalf of one party (aggressive driving), distractions and drowsiness _are_ the recognised major causes. Look it up. I think if you read back, you'll notice that I agreed with you on this. However, there *are* *other* causes of accidents. And treating those drivers as if they were drunk, inexperienced, or whatever is an injustice. That's all I've said. Zoot, you and I are almost in agreement. The only place I take issue with your point of view is in your absolutism. With an acknowledgement from you that "ban 'em all, forever" is not your position and that you'll take circumstances into account when deciding what's just and I'll vote for you for traffic judge. Those are all examples of operator error and the documented major causes of collisions. Broadly they can be categorised as negligent or reckless behaviour. Agreed, not arguing this point. Mark Mitchell |
#134
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In article .com,
"Bob" writes: I mentioned both as cautionary tales to those that had a kneejerk ("He should have been flayed alive!", etc.) reaction to a plea agreement that sent a reckless driver to prison for less time than they thought appropriate. Plea agreements are seldom satisfying but there's a very real risk, especially in a murder trial, that the guilty will walk away simply because they don't *look* guilty to just one jury member and the State won't invest another fifty thousand to five hundred thousand dollars on a second trial. Well, I perceive -- maybe rightly, maybe wrongly -- a growing public intolerance of dangerous drivers, especially those who have killed or caused serious injury. As the body count increases there will be more and more people who will sympathize more with the victims than with the accused dangerous/negligent driver. I suppose a summary conviction with a guilty plea and a relatively trivial penalty is better than nothing. Or /is/ it? But I'm not up to playing jurisprudence and IsureANAL -- I just want killer drivers off the road, permanently. I'm sure you do, too. We pretty much all do. If my perceptions (about growing intolerance of dangerous drivers) are correct, maybe going ahead with indictable offense charges is worth any risks involved in trial by jury? cheers, Tom -- -- Nothing is safe from me. Above address is just a spam midden. I'm really at: tkeats [curlicue] vcn [point] bc [point] ca |
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