One documentary that I watched is called the Long Shot, and is on Netflix, if you keep reading there are SPOILERS.
It is about a man that was arrested and accused of murdering a 16 year old girl that had testified against a gang in which his brother was a member.
He claimed his innocence, said he was at a Dodgers game with his daughter. His daughter testified that they were at a Dodgers game, they were able to prove that he was there at 9:45pm. The problem is that the deceased was killed around 10:40pm.
By a series of unique circumstances his attorney was able to prove that he was indeed at the Dodgers game.
How was is innocence was proven? A camera crew was filming a tv series that particular night. They just happened to be assigned to seats down from the defendant. When he took his daughter to get candy the camera crew happened to let him through even though they were filming. His girlfriend called his cellphone which they were able to get the ping from a tower that was a mile from the stadium, no where near where the murder took place.
Listening to his story, which the documentary is only about 40 minutes, you hear the anguish in his voice, you see it on his face. I like to call it the "what if" scenarios. The documentary even talks about them. What if he hadn't gone to the game? What if the tv show hadn't filmed in his section of the stadium? What if his girlfriend hadn't called to see what time they would be home?
We hear a lot about people being found innocent after they have spent years in prison. Some have been freed after spending over 30 years in prison. Most have been found innocent after DNA testing came onto the scene. They didn't have their "what if" moments, or did they? Do they spend those years thinking about "What if I had taken a different way home?", "what if I had done......?"
We hear about the person being "guilty in the court of public opinion". What happens when the person is innocent? As a society we are likely to judge based on our experiences, what we have been taught. How can we put that aside?
I have been on a jury. I have sat and listened to the evidence presented. And yes, I have argued "beyond a reasonable doubt" with other jurors, who even though there was a lack of evidence presented, a severe lack, they wanted to vote guilty. My undergraduate degree, Political Science, and at one point in my life I wanted to attend Law School.
It's hard to take yourself, your personal experiences, out of the equation. The way I look at the situation is that everyone deserves a fair hearing. If I was accused of a crime, that I didn't commit, I would want the jury to not already think me guilty before they even hear the evidence. Just because the crime was so horrific that they feel that someone, anyone needs to pay. Make sure that you believe the person is guilty, beyond a reasonable doubt.
Until next time!
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