The verdict was not thrown out because of any belief that what happened wasn't horrible or anything to that nature, or really anythign related to trying minors as adults. The verdict was thrown out because the jury was denied knowledge that the person they accused as a conpirator linking the boys to the murder was, in fact, acquitted earlier in a trial with the exact same prosecutor, who apparently found no problem with persuing conflicting accusational theories at the same time. posted by XQUZYPHYR at 9:48 AM on October 18, 2002
That last paragraph in the first linked article was pretty powerful, and pretty much in keeping with what I think about this case. I wasn't aware of the screaming homophobia surrounding the boys' upbringing either. Yuck. That prosecutor belongs in jail, surely there should be some law against the same person prosecuting two cases which conflict so radically. I thought the object of a trial was to find the truth, not to "win", perhaps it's time we got back to that. posted by biscotti at 9:53 AM on October 18, 2002
wins, not truth, are politically expedient. posted by tolkhan at 10:19 AM on October 18, 2002
Ack! I didn't find your thread in a very intensive search, XQUZYPHYR, because the King boys' names were never mentioned. Grr. I don't really like newsy follow-ups, so I probably wouldn't have posted this, although I think the first article is very interesting. I'm also obssessed with the idea of a prosecutor trying the same case with two different sets of defendants. I mean, wha? Huh? posted by RJ Reynolds at 11:01 AM on October 18, 2002
posted by spazzm at 9:24 AM on October 18, 2002