Roscoe Pound Quote - Liberty Quotes Blog

"Jury lawlessness is the greatest corrective of law in its actual administration."

by:	Roscoe Pound Legal scholar
Date:	1910
Rating:
Categories:	Jury
	Tweet

Reader comments about this quote:

The lawlessness references the applied legal positivism of the anti-natural law usurpers. Oh how great it would be if we would return to a government of law instead of the government of men that is killing this once great nation. -- Mike, Norwalk
Pound's use of the term "jury lawlessness" precludes a higher rating. Jury nullification of formal criminal charges is anything but lawless. Their refusal to convict, despite abundant evidence of 'guilt', is usually because they've determined that the manner in which the charges have been applied in the case they've just heard, would constitute gross INJUSTICE and should never have been brought in the first place. Rendering a conviction under such circumstances would thus be immoral. In America, the jury's decision is supposed to be the last act of the law, prior to full release or final sentencing. This still-intact legal convention is one of the few beacons remaining in the churning, 'lock-em'-up fer good' mill of American jurisprudence. We the People should exercise it far more often. God preserve it. -- Mann, Kalamazoo
Mann,Kalamazoo is right and you will never hear a judge tell a jury of this age old method of nullifying bad law. Several years ago, I asked my brother-in law about jury nullification and he had never even heard of it. He is also one of the best defence lawyers in Ohio. They must not be teaching this in law schools now days. -- jim k, Austin, Tx
I know I keep saying this but for those that don't get it: The Constitution and the de jure States united were "Natural Law" entities, to expand on 'Common Law' applications as their foundation. Jury nullification, the jury being the actual judges, the jury trying both fact and law are all part of a common law jurisprudence. At natural law, it is understood that each and every, any and all law is eternal - all ready existing. Man can only use such tools as codes,decrees, ordinances, regulations, rules, and statutes to define existing law (by way of example 1st & 2nd degree murder & manslaughter define the societal administration of natural law murder) Legal Positivism is where man decides he is as god and can make law. Man's codes, decrees, ordinances, regulations, rules, statutes, etc. are considered to be and, acted on as though they were/are law. Legal Positivism is almost always despotic, tyrannous, anti-Constitution, anti-freedom, and anti-inalienable rights. The jury lawlessness relates to man's legal positivism, not natural law or the Constitution. -- Mike, Norwalk

Bio of Roscoe Pound
More Roscoe Pound Quotes
Books by or about Roscoe Pound
Roscoe Pound Videos
Wikipedia
This Roscoe Pound quote is found in these quote Categories:
Jury Quotes

Quotes & Quotations - Send This Quote to a Friend

© 1998-2024 Liberty-Tree.ca