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July 26, 2007 I want to post a disclaimer here before I begin my article; I am basing what I am about to say on an old episode of Law & Order. It struck a chord within me that I had never given much thought too so I am going to write what I feel based on what I felt, rather than the format in which it was presented. The episode in question was about a former decorated soldier who, after listening to taped conversations, engaging in bank transaction searches, getting help from a reporter and a source from The State Department, determined that a particular individual was a "Sleeper". He was, in the mind of this former trained soldier, a terrorist about to help launch an attack on our country. The soldier killed the SUSPECTED terrorist and blew up his residence to cover up his crime. Jack McCoy of the DA's office prosecuted him for murder in the second degree making the claim that if we take the law into our own hands and murder someone, regardless of what we believe to be true, we are guilty of murder, plain and simple. The defense council represented that the former soldier was only doing what he had been trained to do and that we are being told every day since 9/11 to be vigilant, to report suspicious behavior and to pay attention to the government warnings, the elevated terror levels and the media. He maintained that the former soldier had a duty to his country to destroy someone who posed a threat to all of us. Who was right? McCoy closed his case by arguing that if we allow such a person to take the life of someone suspected (but not proven to be a terrorist) we are giving the terrorists exactly what they want. We are losing who we are as a people and as a country. We are ignoring the Justice System and the premise that everyone is innocent until proven guilty. By the end of the show information reached McCoy that the dead man was indeed a real terrorist and he was part of a cell that was determined to attack America, but that did not change his mind about why he had to prosecute the case and why he had to convince a jury to uphold the law or risk losing America to fear. The jury found the former soldier guilty but the tag line at the end of the program was a shot of McCoy speaking into the camera, saying, "Give us your tried, your poor....your terrorists..." I thought to myself..."Who was right?" If I was seated on that jury could I convict that former soldier for the murderer that he turned out to be or would I agree with him that he was doing what we have all been told to do...defend and protect our country and each other. Would I know who's instructions to follow regarding something that I perceived to be a threat or would I uphold the law as I know it and the way our founders wrote it? I have to admit that as wrong as this probably is, I am afraid too, and I would probably not have voted to convict that former soldier. What does this mean? It means that if people have the same feelings that this thought provoking fictional television show brought out in me, that the terrorists have already won a major victory. What's even more frightening.....I could be willing to give up my belief in the American Justice System and a major part of our way of life, in order to defend the country that I live in and hold dear. I am not a layperson when it comes to understanding the laws of the land. I studied those laws.......could I ignore them if I felt that a real threat existed? I'm not really sure; but, the possibility exists. ------------ About the author: Meri has a Medical/Legal background and is a former forensic researcher specializing in psychological profiling. Visit the Xlibris Bookstore! Email: writers2@cox.net Comment on this article here! ------------ All articles are EXCLUSIVE to Useless-Knowledge.com. Please link to this article rather than copying and pasting it onto your site (which would be unauthorized and illegal). |
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