Re: Internet and Civil Liberties?

> Innocent people accused of crimes have the same protections they have
>> always had -- the truth -- and the truth is that we all do very >> predictable things at very predictable times, in full view of dozens, if >> not hundreds, of witnesses. Innocent people seldom have trouble proving >> that they are what they seem.

I have a bridge I will sell you, cheap. It is magic; it leads somewhere over the ra> I'm glad that you have never been in trouble or ever accused of doing

something wrong. But the real world is not so perfect or nice. > Through DNA testing we have learned that some criminals who proclaimed > innocence were indeed guilty. But we also learned that some weren't > guilty and spent years in prison for crimes they clearly did not > commit. The system is not perfect.

There are two kinds of people: those who believe that the police would never _dream_ of 'planting' evidence, lying on the witness stand or otherwise 'framing' a suspect, and those who believe that it happens all the time.

Cheers,

Henry

[TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: We know, of course, that it happens all the time; what is interesting is that now and then it slips out into the daily media, which normally serves as cheerleaders for police. One instance I will _not_ forget for a long time, if ever, occurred to be back in the middle 1980's: The apartment where I was living had been burglarized (this was in Chicago, naturally) and although I did not see the persons, police had a couple young black guys they had arrested for it. It got to court, we were in the little anteroom where police/prosecutors/victims sit to discuss their case before the trial.

Police were quite persistent: _you did see these two guys carrying stuff from your apartment, right_? I told the cops I did not see it. The prosecutor cleared his throat and said to the police, "uh, tell Mr. Townson how things like this work out in those cases; I will be back in a few minutes." Whereupon the prosecutor _left the room_. The cop looks at me and says, and I quote (I could not forget this even if I wanted to) "when we go in there for trial in a few minutes, if you tell the judge what you just now told the prosecutor and myself -- that you did not see those NIGGERS (my emphasis) with your stuff, then the judge is going to cut them loose; let them walk. On the other hand, if you tell the judge you saw them carrying your computer then the judge will send them away for a couple years. Wouldn't it be better to have NIGGERS all off the street and locked up in jail? You think about that, Mr. Townson."

Frankly I was a little shocked, but as I think about it now, I do not know why I should have been. There was nothing new or unusual about a police officer being racist and making up lies. The police officer made a sort of motion with his hand, and almost immediatly the prosecutor came back in the room. He was obviously not going to be put in the position of having heard such a statement be made and risk some legal action against himself (as prosecutor) which is why he was absent when the damning lie against those two guys was extended by the police officer. I told them both to count me out of the deal; getting couple of (in this instance, at least) innocent guys sent to prison as revenge for the burglary of my house was not worth it to me. The cop and prosecutor gave me a total cold shoulder for the rest of the court session. PAT]