Justice Robert H. Jackson Quote

"If the prosecutor is obliged to choose his case, it follows that he can choose his defendants. Therein is the most dangerous power of the prosecutor: that he will pick people he thinks he should get, rather than cases that need to be prosecuted. With the law books filled with a great assortment of crimes, a prosecutor stands a fair chance of finding at least a technical violation of some act on the part of almost anyone. In such a case, it is not a question of discovering the commission of a crime and then looking for the man who has committed it, it is a question of picking the man and then searching the law books, or putting investigators to work, to pin some offense on him. It is in this realm -- in which the prosecutor picks some person whom he dislikes or desires to embarrass, or selects some group of unpopular persons and then looks for an offense, that the greatest danger of abuse of prosecuting power lies. It is here that law enforcement becomes personal, and the real crime becomes that of being unpopular with the predominant or governing group, being attached to the wrong political views, or being personally obnoxious to or in the way of the prosecutor himself."

by:	Justice Robert H. Jackson (1892-1954), U. S. Supreme Court Justice
Rating:
Categories:	Law, Due Process, Crime, Corruption
	Tweet

Not shooting the messenger, ABSOLUTELY ! All courts in the Unified Socialists of Amerika (USA), representing the unconstitutional occupying statist theocracy that infests this land, are no longer bound by law or justice. Such malignant body tribunals are on witch hunts (for financial gain and elimination of non-patrons of differing thoughts and actions, with much more intrusive means than early Salem, with greater tyranny enforcement abilities than early Salem and, with an exaggerated deadly blood lust).  -- Mike, Norwalk      1
This is true worldwide. There was never a greater and more abusive prosecutor than Josef Stalin.  -- Cal, lewisville, tx      1
Law is always selectively enforced, which is why independent juries are so important a part of maintaining genuine freedom. Samuel Butler summed up the potential for official corruption best. "Authority intoxicates, And makes mere sots of magistrates; The fumes of it invade the brain, and make men giddy, proud and vain." Fully informed juries are great deflaters of preening prosecutors, overstepping judges and trial lawyers without conscience - which is precisely why all 'sides' work so diligently together in keeping independently minded people OFF juries. Be proud to serve on one. It's one of the few times you'll have a chance of being the most important person in the room.  -- Mann, Kalamazoo      1
Corrupt counties such as Lincoln, know well this subtilty of power to prosecute !  -- Ronw13, USA
Sounds like the US Attorney General, whomever he/she is. Always furthering an agenda to further the party line and destroy enemies. It's a form of war. The Department of Justice is an oxymoron.  -- E Archer, NYC

Tweet  Rate this quote! How many stars? 0 1 2 3 4 5	What do YOU think?
Your name:	Your town:     CLICK JUST ONCE!

Get a Quote-A-Day! Free!
Liberty Quotes sent to your mail box.
Email: