Jury duty? Yes, jury duty. If you are called, don’t complain or try to get out of it. Use that opportunity to effect change where it matters most – right in your own community.

I learned with amazement about jury nullification a few years ago. They sure don’t teach it in public schools, and you won’t hear about it from a judge when he’s charging the jury. You won’t even see it on TV. But it’s the truth about our jury system, and I encourage you to learn just what it means.

The following quiz is taken directly from the Fully Informed Jury Association (FIJA) website.  See if you’ve believed any government lies.

THE JURY QUIZ

TRUE OR FALSE?

1. The primary purpose of the jury is to prevent oppression by the government.

2. The jury is an independent arm of government.

3. The defendant is innocent of any criminal charge until proven guilty by the government.

4. The judge can require the jury to find the defendant guilty.

5. The jury can find the defendant not guilty, even if the defendant broke the law.

6. If the jury finds a defendant not guilty when he is clearly guilty, the judge can punish the jurors.

7. The judge decides all questions of law.

8. The jury is not required to reach a verdict.

9. The jurors can vote according to their consciences.

10. The jury must take the law as the Court gives it, whether they believe the law is right or wrong.

11. The jury can find the defendant not guilty, because they believe the law is unjust.

12. Ignorance of the law is no excuse.

ANSWERS & EXPLANATIONS

1. TRUE: The criminal trial jury was created by the constitutions of the Federal and State governments to be a guardian of the individual’s rights.

Its purpose is to prevent oppression by the Government.. A right to jury trial is granted to criminal defendants in order to prevent oppression by the Government. – Justice Byron White, U.S. Supreme Court Duncan v. Louisiana, 391 US 145, 155 (1968)

The purpose of a jury is to guard against the exercise of arbitrary power….– Justice Byron White, U.S. Supreme Court Taylor v. Louisiana, 419 US 522, 530 (1975)

2. TRUE: The Constitution divided the government into three branches –the Executive, Legislative, and Judicial – in order to prevent an unhealthy concentration of government’s powers. And it created the Jury – the Fourth Branch of Government – in order to hold the first three branches in check. In order to fulfill its purpose, the Jury must be independent of the other branches of government.

I consider trial by jury as the only anchor ever yet imagined by man, by which a government can be held to the principles of its constitution.– Thomas Jefferson, letter to Thomas Paine, 1789

3. TRUE: Under our system of government, it is a sacred principle of criminal law that the government has the burden of proving every element of a crime beyond a reasonable doubt and that the defendant has no burden to prove his innocence. The government makes the criminal accusation and must prove its accusation to the satisfaction of the jury.

4. FALSE: Not legally! The judge has no authority at all to compel the jury to find a defendant guilty. The jury is absolutely independent in this function.

If the jury feels the law is unjust, we recognize the undisputed power of the jury to acquit, even if its verdict is contrary to the law as given by a judge, and contrary to the evidence…If the jury feels that the law under which the defendant is accused is unjust, or that exigent circumstances justified the actions of the accused, or for any reason which appeals to their logic or passion, the jury has the power to acquit, and the courts must abide by that decision. – 4th Circuit Court of Appeals United States v. Moylan 417 F.2d 1006 (1969)

5. TRUE: The jury can find the defendant not guilty, regardless of what the law says, and regardless of the facts. The jury has the power to find the defendant not guilty for any reason which appeals to them. This is usually called “jury nullification” of the law. In short, the jury has a veto power over bad law and bad judges.

The jury has the power to bring a verdict in the teeth of both law and fact. – Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes Horning v. Dist. of Columbia 249 U.S. 596 (1920)

In criminal cases, a jury is entitled to acquit the defendant because it has no sympathy for the government’s position. – U.S. v. Wilson 629 F.2d 439, 443 (1980)

6. FALSE: No one has any authority to punish a juror because of his vote. Period. This issue was resolved in 1670 in London in the case of Edward Bushell – one of the jurors in William Penn’s trial.

But juries are not bound by what seems inescapable logic to judges. – Justice Robert H. Jackson Morisette v. United States, 342 U.S. 246

7. FALSE: The judge has the authority to declare to the jury what he believes the law to be. But the jury has the authority to ignore that advice, to determine for them what the law says, and to judge for themselves the justice of the law.

It is universally conceded that a verdict of acquittal, although rendered against the instructions of the judge, is final, and cannot be set aside; and consequently that the jury have the legal power to decide for themselves the law involved in the general issue of guilty or not guilty. – Justice Gray, U.S. Supreme Court, Dissenting Sparf v. U.S., 156 U.S. 51, 172 (1894)

8. TRUE: A verdict is the guilty or not guilty decision of a jury. All jurors must agree to the verdict. Otherwise, they must report a “hung jury.” That means that the jury was unable to agree upon a verdict. Each juror is free to vote in accordance with his or her conscience and cannot be forced to vote for conviction or acquittal just to reach a verdict. In the event of a hung jury, the government may bring the defendant to trial again in front of another jury.

9. TRUE: The jurors have not only the right, but the obligation to vote according to conscience. If the jurors believe that the law itself is unjust – for any reason – they have the power to do justice by simply voting not guilty. Every juror has a right to leave court with a clear conscience.

…it is the conscience of the jury that must pronounce the prisoner guilty or not guilty. – Lord Chief Justice Mathew Hale 2 Hale PC 312 (1665)

10. FALSE: The court has no authority to dictate the law to the jury. However, many courts will force jurors to swear an oath to accept the law as the Court dictates. Such an oath violates the Constitution. But anyone refusing to take the oath will be excluded from the jury, thereby depriving the defendant of an independent jury. Such an oath is taken under duress. And nothing agreed to or sworn to under duress is binding. It is ironic that the same judge who demands that jurors take such an oath is violating his own oath to uphold the Constitution.

The jury has a right to judge both the law as well as the fact in controversy. – Chief Justice John Jay State of Georgia v. Brailsford, 3 DALL. 1,4

The right to trial by jury shall remain inviolate…. In criminal cases, the defendant shall have a public and speedy trial by an impartial jury; and the jury shall be the judges of the law and the facts. – Georgia Constitution Art. I, § I, Par. XI (a)

11. TRUE: To be faithful to their duty, the jurors must vote not guilty, if they think the law is unjust.

It is not only [the juror’s] right, but his duty…to find the verdict according to his own best understanding, judgment, and conscience, though in direct opposition to the direction of the court. – John Adams (1771) Yale Law J. 74 (1964): 173

12. FALSE: “Ignorance of the law is no excuse” may have made sense centuries ago when the law confined itself to real crimes with real victims. Everyone knew that murder, rape, robbery, arson, and other such crimes were crimes. Today, with government passing thousands of new laws each year, no one can understand all his obligations under the law. If the jury does not believe that the defendant knew of his obligations under the law, it has the power to find the defendant not guilty. Ignorance of the law is an excuse if the jury says it is.

This preposterous doctrine, that “ignorance of the law excuses no one,” is asserted by courts because it is an indispensable one to the maintenance of absolute power in the government. –Lysander Spooner Massachusetts Attorney An Essay on the Trial by Jury, 1852

* * *

So, did you learn anything?  If you did, and you know other people who are ignorant of jury nullification, the FIJA website is a gold mine of information, including:

• several printable brochures, one of which includes the quiz above
• a juror’s handbook [pdf]
• advice about handing out FIJA literature around courthouses
• FIJA contacts by state

Help spread the word and maybe justice can prevail … at least in your neck of the woods.

So here are my top two stories that should have made headlines last year, but didn’t.

Based on sheer volume of hits, this is the top story for 2009:

Mainstream Media Ignores “Accidental” Bird Flu Contamination of Baxter Vaccine Shipments

Despite reports that Illinois-based pharmaceutical company Baxter International Inc. somehow managed to distribute flu vaccine contaminated with live bird flu virus to Austria, the Czech Republic, Slovenia and Germany

• Despite the report that this only came to light when a subcontractor in the Czech Republic inoculated ferrets with the product and they died
• Despite the report that Baxter confirmed the contamination, and the World Health Organization is “closely monitoring” the situation
• Despite reports that mixing the two viruses would make them extremely potent and contagious
• Despite reports from the medical community that the contamination could not possibly have been an accident
• Despite speculation in Czech newspapers that the contamination was a deliberate attempt to create a pandemic, for which Baxter would stand ready to profit through their vaccines
• Despite all these reports that have been circulating since March 3rd or before … I cannot find even one major news outlet that’s covering this story.

I normally avoid the “conspiracy” word, but …
can you spell c-o-n-s-p-i-r-a-c-y???

Here is my follow-up post.

Based on the story that most tore at my heart, here’s the other top story that MSM refused to report.  As of this date, the army still refuses to re-open the investigation.  In addition, Midtown Films is producing a documentary titled:  Lavena Johnson:  The Silent Truth.

Remember Pfc. LaVena Johnson? She’s Just Another Military Cover-Up

Back in August, I posted briefly about LaVena Johnson, quoting from a commentary by Elizabeth Higgs:

“According to the U.S. Department of Defense, Private LaVena Lynn Johnson killed herself on July 19, 2005, eight days before her twentieth birthday. Exactly how did she end her life? She punched herself in the face hard enough to blacken her eyes, break her nose, and knock her front teeth loose. She douched with an acid solution after mutilating her genital area. She poured a combustible liquid on herself and set it afire. She then shot herself in the head. Despite this massive self-inflicted trauma, she somehow managed to drag her then fully clothed body into the tent of a KBR contractor, leaving a trail of blood along the way and set the tent ablaze in a failed attempt to cover up her crimes against herself.

If this story sounds plausible to you, you may have missed your calling as an officer in the U.S. Army, because Army officers, speaking with a straight face, would have you believe that such a thing is not only possible, but actually happened.

In reality, LaVena Johnson was raped, beaten, and murdered by someone on a military base in Balad, Iraq, and the Army doesn’t want you to know about it.”

The Army doesn’t want her parents to know about it, either. Since LaVena died, they have had doubts about the suicide story. They had talked with her every day, and she had said nothing to lead them to believe she was emotionally unstable or even a little upset. And then her body was shipped home.

“In viewing his daughter’s body at the funeral home, Dr. Johnson was concerned about the bruising on her face. He was puzzled by the discrepancy in the autopsy report on the location of the gunshot wound. As a US Army veteran and a 25-year US Army civilian employee who had counseled veterans, he was mystified how the exit wound of an M-16 shot could be so small. The hole in Lavena’s head appeared to be more the size of a pistol shot rather than an M-16 round. He questioned why the exit hole was on the left side of her head, when she was right handed. But the gluing of military uniform white gloves onto Lavena’s hands hiding burns on one of her hands is what deepened Dr. Johnson’s concerns that the Army’s investigation into the death of his daughter was flawed.”

For more than three years, her father, Dr. John Johnson, and her mother Linda have done everything within their power to seek justice for their daughter – and the Army has fought them every step of the way. They have had to resort to FOIL requests to get copies of Army documents related to their daughter. They have had to call on their local congressman to pressure the Army to release these documents.

They have been interviewed by the media countless times. A website has been created in LaVena’s name. There have been multiple petitions signed, demanding a congressional investigation. (The latest is here, if you’d like to sign it.)

And there are many other women in the military who have died under suspicious circumstances. The Department of Defense’s own statistics state that one in three women who join the military will be sexually assaulted or raped.

Despite all this – despite the statistics, despite the efforts of the Johnson’s, despite the obvious attempts to cover up a horrendous crime – nothing has changed. The Army still calls her death a suicide. They have not re-opened the investigation. The Army is still protecting their own.

From the least to the greatest – from the murderer all the way through the chain of command to Secretary of Defense Robert Gates and President George W. Bush – they are all guilty. And if we continue to blindly support our military, we are guilty, too.

So the next time you’re waving the red, white and blue for a country that condones and covers-up the rape and murder of one of its own; the next time you’re singing about this land where some are more equal than others; the next time you pledge allegiance to support the United States of America, no matter what they do – you might spare a thought for LaVena Johnson and her parents. You might ask God to move His hand and provide justice for this family – because the military sure as hell won’t.

Justice, and only justice,
you shall pursue,
that you may live and possess the land
which the LORD your God is giving you.
(Deuteronomy 16:20)

This verse has popped up twice today:  once in Jim Wetzel’s WFW post, and again in a new Herescope series entitled Preparations for Suffering.  As I recently did my own post about suffering, I cannot ignore such a coincidence, so here’s a taste of today’s offerings.  He who has ears, let him hear.

Jim concluded his post this way:

Since James wrote in the immediate context of ferocious persecution of believers, both by the Jewish religious establishment and by Roman authority, I would suppose that the particular suffering he had in mind has already taken place. Still, the Lord’s return [verse 8] was not consummated then [or since], and it won’t come without plenty of trouble. So, preparation for patient suffering is very much in order for today’s believer, too.

The introduction to the Herescope article follows.

The Discernment Research Group has been publishing warnings about heresies and the activities of leaders promoting heresies since 2005. Recently we have been repeatedly asked by many believers to delve into the issue of “how do I prepare for the coming persecution?” While the world faith leaders lead their flocks into an ecumenical global church of massive proportions, there is a tiny remnant within each historical tradition or evangelical group that maintains adherence to the Bible. Increasingly we are getting reports about these believers being censored, ostracized, mocked, ridiculed, slandered, shut down and shut out, threatened, and more. Every possible tactic of persecution, short of suffering in the flesh, is now rapidly coming upon those in America who truly stand on the Word of God.

There are those who still hold out that we can change America (legislation) back to a Christian nation, and that this will somehow change the Church at large. But this is a Dominionist pipe dream, born of the hope that by changing externals it will change the hearts of men. This is neither Scriptural nor facing reality. The truth is that religious leaders are rapidly taking the church into emerging spirituality, as we have so often documented in posts on this blog. In one sense these calls to change America are simply “bread and circus” for the people in the churches, giving them false hopes and entertaining them with something to do.

In contrast to this, and in the spirit of exhortation, the following are words of encouragement that tell us how to face the coming persecution without fear or dismay. Below is the first post in a series where we will excerpt, review, and summary discussing in our modern context the classic work of John Flavel “Preparations for Sufferings: or the Best Work in the Worst Times.”[2] It is our hope and prayer that we will all stand firm in the days to come. May we be a light shining in darkness, living and preaching the true hope of the Gospel message of salvation in Jesus Christ.

They’ve sent an apology to Ron Paul, Bob Barr, and Chuck Baldwin.

Woop-de-doo.

The problem is not, as they seem to be saying, that the report wasn’t first reviewed by the top muckety-mucks. The problem is that “the land of the free and the home of the brave” is engaging in profiling of its citizens. Period.

All information contained in this newsletter should be considered LAW ENFORCEMENT SENSITIVE. Further distribution of information in this newsletter is restricted to law enforcement officers and agencies, intelligence agencies, and Department of Defense organizations only, unless prior approval is obtained from the published source. NO REPORT OR SEGMENT THEREOF MAY BE RELEASED TO ANY MEDIA SOURCES …

This is part of the disclaimer on a report [emphasis in the original] issued on 2/20/09 by MIAC, the Missouri Information Analysis Center.

This report is not unique to Missouri. I’m fairly certain that every state in the country, as well as multiple federal agencies, have issued many similar reports. This one just happened to go public.

Titled “The Modern Militia Movement,” it warns law officers that they are the enemy:

The militia subscribes to an anti-government and NWO [National World Order] mindset, which creates a threat to law enforcement officers. They view the military, National Guard, and law enforcement as a force that will confiscate their firearms and place them in FEMA concentration camps.

After an account of the movement’s supposed activities and its decline, the report talks about its “reemergence.”

Rightwing extremists and militia leaders continuously exploit current world events in order to increase participation in their movements. Due to the current economical and political situation, a lush environment for militia activity has been created. Unemployment rates are high, as well as cost of living expenses. Additionally, President Barrack Obama is seen as tight on gun control and many extremists fear that he will enact firearms confiscations. White supremacists from within the militia movement have further become angered due to the election of the first African American President. Many constitutionalists within the movement have claimed that President Elect Obama does not meet the residency requirements to hold the office of President, and therefore his election is unconstitutional.

Newer versions of the NWO [New World Order] conspiracy have been concocted in order to empower the movement. The NWO is seen as using law enforcement, military, national guard, and federal agencies in order to carry out its elitist one world government. Law enforcement and military forces are believed to be utilized in order to confiscate firearms and place individuals into FEMA concentration camps. This scenario has received additional attention due to the US Army NORTHCOM assigning homeland security functions to an active duty Infantry Brigade. The movement sees this brigade as the force that will take their firearms and that the unit is in violation of the Posse Comitatus Act. There are also concerns that the banking and media infrastructure are also being controlled by the Jewish elite and that these leaders are members of the NWO. There is a great deal of anger towards the Federal Reserve System (FRS) and all forms of tax collection.

The report identifies “additional motivators for militia activity.”

• The Ammunition Accountability Act, which requires an ID number on ammunition rounds
• Anticipation of economic collapse, which “militia” feel will result in Martial Law, confiscation of firearms, and imprisonment of many citizens
• Possible Constitutional Convention (Con Con), which has been called for by 32 states, needing only two more to be called to add a balanced budget amendment; “militia” fear the 1st and 2nd amendments will be altered or removed.
• North American Union (NAU) “Conspiracy theorists” claim this union would link Canada, the US, and Mexico with a Superhighway, also unifying its monetary system.
• Universal Service Program: Obama’s plan for mandatory service have led “extremists” to fear the creation of a Civilian Defense Force.
• Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) There is a fear that the government will enforce mass human implantations, making it possible for all citizens to be tracked.

The report further states that members of the militia movement often subscribe to these ideologies:

• Christian Identity
• White Nationalist
• Sovereign Citizen
• Militant Anti-Abortionists
• Tax Resistors
• Anti-Immigration

After identifying training methods, organizations, and the infrastructure at risk from the militia movement, the report addresses “Common Militia Symbols.”

Political and Anti-Government Rhetoric:

Political Paraphenalia: Militia members most commonly associate with 3rd party political groups. It is not uncommon for militia members to display Constitutional Party, Campaign for Liberty, or Libertarian material.

Anti-Government Propaganda: Militia members commonly display picture, cartoons, bumper stickers that contain anti-government rhetoric. Most of this material will depict the FRS, IRS, FBI, ATF, CIA, UN, Law Enforcement, and “The New World Order” in a derogatory manor. [sic] Additionally, Racial, anti-immigration, and anti-abortion, material may be displayed by militia members.

It then pictures many “Militia Symbols” including the Gadsden flag (Don’t Tread on Me) and the “Upside down US Flag: The militia uses this as a symbol of a nation in distress.”

It’s scary that anyone with a pro-life bumper sticker or a Ron Paul bumper sticker is now a target for trigger-happy cops.

It’s frightening that anyone who opposes RFID chips or Obama’s mandatory service plans is viewed as some kind of domestic terrorist to be feared.

It’s sad that section 8A of the National Flag Code, which states that “The flag should never be displayed with the union down, except as a signal of dire distress in instances of extreme danger to life or property” has been re-characterized as a “militia symbol.”

It’s also sad that the historical Gadsden flag, rooted in the founding of our nation, is now part of a witch hunt.

What’s truly ominous about this report, however, is that those who legally and peacefully oppose socialistic federal programs, those who want our government officials to return to the Constitution they have sworn to uphold, have been characterized as extremists who exploit current world events, who concoct “conspiracy theories,” and irrationally oppose the Army’s guns illegally being aimed at citizens.

In short, any opposition to the current administration has been demonized and marginalized.

The results of these tactics are predictable. First, it will silence many people, who will try to protect themselves by agreeing with whatever the government decrees.

Second, we are seeing our language and our history and our culture being re-written right before our eyes. Most of us will take the bribe, swallow the kool-aid, and agree that wrong is right, ignoring justice and common moral values – just like they did in Nazi Germany, just like sheep to the slaughter.

Étienne de La Boétie wrote these words in the 1500′s in a book (pdf file here) called THE POLITICS OF OBEDIENCE: THE DISCOURSE OF VOLUNTARY SERVITUDE.

Freedom from servitude comes not from violent action, but from the refusal to serve. Tyrants fall when the people withdraw their support.

Martin Niemoller, a Lutheran pastor in Nazi Germany, felt that he hadn’t done enough to stop the Holocaust, and wrote this poem after the war.

When the Nazis came for the communists,
I remained silent;
I was not a communist.

When they locked up the social democrats,
I remained silent;
I was not a social democrat.

When they came for the trade unionists,
I did not speak out;
I was not a trade unionist.

When they came for the Jews,
I remained silent;
I was not a Jew.

When they came for me,
there was no one left to speak out.

Samuel Adams wrote this in a letter to James Warren, February 12, 1779

A general dissolution of principles and manners will more surely overthrow the liberties of America than the whole force of the common enemy. While the people are virtuous they cannot be subdued; but when once they lose their virtue then will be ready to surrender their liberties to the first external or internal invader.

These words are attributed to Moses in the book of Deuteronomy, Chapter 16:19-20, around 1407 B.C.

You shall not distort justice; you shall not be partial, and you shall not take a bribe, for a bribe blinds the eyes of the wise and perverts the words of the righteous. Justice, and only justice, you shall pursue, that you may live and possess the land which the LORD your God is giving you.

When Jonathan Lopez read the dictionary definition of marriage and two Bible verses as part of an assigned presentation, speech professor John Matteson of Los Angeles City College stopped him mid-speech and called him a “fascist bastard” in front of the class.

Instead of allowing Lopez to finish, Matteson told the other students they could leave if they were offended. When no one left, Matteson dismissed the class. Refusing to grade the assigned speech, Matteson wrote on Lopez’s evaluation, ‘Ask God what your grade is.’

One week later, after seeing Lopez talking to the college’s dean of academic affairs, Matteson told Lopez that he would make sure he’d be expelled from school.

Senior Counsel David French of the Alliance Defense Fund, which has filed a lawsuit on behalf of Lopez, stated that “public institutions of higher learning cannot selectively censor Christian speech.”

Unfortunately, Professor Matteson’s view has become common. “Proselytizing is innappropriate [sic] in public school” is another comment on Lopez’s evaluation.

Then there’s the veteran counselor in Orange County who took some foster kids on a field trip. They went to a 5-K run and then to the beach. While they were eating lunch, they heard about 10 minutes of – horrors! – Christian music. The counselor was suspended for six weeks.

So now Christians have to file lawsuits in order to be … Christians. Despite our first amendment, which supposedly guarantees the freedom of religion …

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof …

… these clearly expressed words have been twisted into the common refrain “separation of church and state,” effectively keeping any expression of Christianity out of the public domain.

Patrick Henry would not be pleased … and I don’t think God is, either.

It cannot be emphasized too clearly and too often that this nation was founded, not by religionists, but by Christians; not on religion, but on the gospel of Jesus Christ. For this very reason, peoples of other faiths have been afforded asylum, prosperity, and freedom of worship here. [May 1765 Speech to the House of Burgesses]

Apparently, diversity doesn’t include The Almighty.