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Show Page 2 The UTAH INDEPENDENT ' I I I October 13, 1972 , Independent Dedicated To The Constitution, Liberty, Morality, and Truth Free men can vote themselves into slavery, but slaves cannot vote themselves free." J. Reese Hunter Editors Outlook 1 Why We Oppose Proposition 2 J. Reese Hunter In law, there is sometimes a fine line drawn between that which is justice and that which is tyranny. Our forebears in America established a premise in criminal law that was the reverse of the established procedures in the tyrannies from which they fled. That wonderful premise which protected American citizens from being legally victimized was that, A person is innocent until proven It logically followed that, being innocent until guilty proven otherwise, he should not be held in jail while awaiting trial for an offense of which he was only accused, not convicted. Therefore, the principle of allowing the accused the opportunity to post bail and to be free until his trial was firmly established in this country. If. a person were assumed guilty until proven innocent, as was the case in the European countries from which our forefathers came, it naturally followed that a guilty person should be held in jail until proven otherwise. Once a certain premise is established things proceed logically to their natural end. The main thing which distinguished our legal system from the past was the basic premise from which all other assumptions followed. The European cultures which assumed a person guilty until proven innocent versus the American premise that a person is innocent until proven guilty is the difference between tyranny and justice. Proposition 2 is a step backward toward the tyranny which our ancestors tried to leave behind. It would establish the principle that, because a person is accused of a felony while on probation or parole, or while free on bail awaiting trial on a previous felony .charge, he should not be allowed the basic American presumption of innocence before proven guilty and should therefore be put in jail and not allowed bail until his trial. That little clause, where the proof is evident or the presumption is has been inserted as the strong argument in order to get this proposition passed. Some people would erroneously think that it is a protection. Remember, someone has to supply the proof and somewhere along the line someone is going to have to decide when the presumption is strong. That phrase was wisely inserted into our present constitution to apply only in cases of a capital offense. The tyrants from which our forefathers fled would have liked that argument because it would have given them the power to determine -- foot-in-the-do- or Independent published by the Utah Independent each Friday at 1399 South 7th East, Suite 9f Salt Lake City, Utah 84105. Yearly subscription rate is $5.00 per year by surface mail in the United States. The Utah Independent is Send change of address forms and correspondence to 2459 Major Street, Salt Lake City, Utah 84115 Utah's Largest and Fastest-Growin- g Subscription Weekly Its in the Bag: the guilt or innocence of a suspect without a trial. Even if he were later proven to be innocent he would have had to serve a jail sentence and be deprived of his freedom. Under this proposition, if it became law, a person who was hot guilty of a first offense, but who was out on bail awaiting trial, could easily be framed by unscrupulous people and taken into custody until his trial. Sheriff Hayward said that some people have waited for up to 28 months before actually having a trial. Imagine a person being held in jail that long while awaiting a trial to prove his guilt or innocence. Proposition 2 paves the way for just that type of injustice. We have no argument with the police in this matter and realize the burden under which they labor. However, we feel that the cry for law and order cannot be allowed to drown out the equally important principle of equity and justice. It is possible to have law and order without justice. For example, even the Communist tyrants have law and order in the countries over which they rule but they lack the principles of equity and justice which exalt the individual. There is one serious problem in our judicial system which, if corrected, would negate even the consideration of laws like Proposition 2. The problem was touched Continued on Page 3 Readers ytfDook How Many? Gentlemen: In a locally delivered paper the other day, was a front page article anent the activities of Rightwing, groups in this area who, on the specious excuse of para-milita- ry combatting non-existe- nt Communists, pose a threat to our liberties. They were depicted as rabid gun enthusiasts and, according to the report of undercover agents, intrepid sowing distrust of our elected leaders, the exposure of which sounds very admirable. But there were deleted, what I consider, a few pertinent points. What is their infamous record in the following categories of public relations? 1 . How many banks have they bombed and burned out? 2. How many political figures have they assassinated? 3. How many law enforcement officers have they killed? .4. How many riots have they instigated? 5. How many campuses have they disrupted? 6. How many courts of law have they reduced to a circus? 7. How many kidnappings have they perpetrated? - 8. How many state capitols have they invaded in full armed regalia? 9. How many county courthouses have been seized and occupied? 10. How many 'planes have they hijacked? You might wonder why I do not direct this epistle to the newspaper in question. I assure you that it would be an exercise in futility. Its readers column is reserved for the type of mentality that boasts the only reason he signed a recall petition against Continued on Page 3 |
