Just a short one today. Taking a day off.
New White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt on President Trump’s Immigration Policy
The Jury Nullification Rule
Steve: A few laws may have been passed in the last four years which may be unjust. Must a jury abide by them?
The answer is no. By what is called the Jury Nullification Rule, established by a landmark 1735 case, a jury can acquit a guilty person if it felt the law itself was unjust.
A jury acquitted publisher John Peter Zenger of libel charges against New York’s colonial governor even though it held that his conduct did violate the law. American Thinker explains:
“Zenger was tried for seditious libel, and, under British law … truth was no defense to the charge. … Zenger’s lawyer, Andrew Hamilton, argued to the jury that Zenger should not be punished for true statements criticizing the government. In the end, the jury agreed with Hamilton — ignoring the existing rule under the English common law and refusing to convict Zenger. This was an early example of jury nullification, with the jurors refusing to convict a guilty defendant (in this case, Zenger) for violating laws that the jurors deemed unjust. The case … came to stand for a core principle … that true statements criticizing the government cannot be punished.
“On November 5, 2024, the U.S. electorate acted like the Zenger jury and nullified President Trump’s political lawfare persecutions.” (1)
And further:
“Jury nullification occurs when a jury returns a verdict of “Not Guilty” despite its belief that the defendant is guilty of the violation charged. The jury in effect nullifies a law that it believes is either immoral or wrongly applied to the defendant whose fate they are charged with deciding. … Early in our history, judges often informed jurors of their nullification right. For example, our first Chief Justice, John Jay, told jurors: “You have a right to take upon yourselves to judge [both the facts and law].” In 1805, one of the charges against Justice Samuel Chase in his impeachment trial was that he wrongly prevented an attorney from arguing to a jury that the law should not be followed.” (2)
Footnotes
(1) Stephen I. Siller, “Jury Nullification in New York,” American Thinker, January 27, 2025, at https://www.americanthinker.com/articles/2025/01/jury_nullification_in_new_york.html.
(2) Loc. cit.
Elon Musk has been nominated for the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize by Branko Grims, a Slovenian Member of the European Parliament, in recognition of his efforts to advance free speech. 🏅 pic.twitter.com/GUvUKk7OZZ
— Sir Doge of the Coin ⚔️ (@dogeofficialceo) January 29, 2025
The proposal that Mr. Elon Musk, for his consistent support for the fundamental human right of freedom of speech and thus for peace, receives the Nobel Peace Prize 2025, was successfully submitted today. Sincere thanks to all the co-proposers and everyone who helped with this… pic.twitter.com/QdI4fnbzdU
— Branko Grims (@BrankoGrimsX1) January 29, 2025