Let me ask you a question. Do you believe that the McMichaels deserve a fair trial?
Think about your answer for a moment.
Now, allow me to rephrase it.
Do the McMichaels, human beings and citizens of the United States, deserve the presumption of innocence until proven guilty in a court of law?
If you say No, you are denying the most fundamental principle of our justice system.
Let me be clear. I think it is likely that the McMichaels are guilty of a heinous crime. I believe that they should be tried in a court of law, and, if convicted, be punished for that crime.
Again, let me be clear. Public outcry was warranted. They should have been (and now have been) charged and put on trial for their acts.
But they do deserve that trial. They deserve to have their day in court.
Even war criminals get a trial.
Even serial killers get a trial.
Even terrorists get a trial.
Even the McMichaels deserve a trial.
And these trials are not mere formalities. They are genuine, fair trials in a court of law. This is a fundamental human right, and to deny that is to uproot many of the foundational principles of our nation.
Public outcries have called for justice, and rightly so, but many of those voices seem to be skipping the trial and jumping straight to sentencing. There is video evidence, and it appears to be damning, but that is not the whole story. The video is never the whole story. The video will be presented as part of the evidence in the trial, and the jury will make a decision. That's how justice is supposed to work.
But justice is not being executed, right? That's the whole problem, right?
Right, which is why we must call for justice, not another lynching.
We cannot procure justice by subverting it. To lynch the McMichaels in the court of public opinion reduces us to their level. To truncate the process of justice, presuming to know what happened that fateful day, makes us no better than the accused. The answer to injustice is justice, not more injustice. As the proverb goes, two wrongs don't make a right. We cannot correct injustice by perpetrating more of it.
As Christians, justice should be a priority, both legal and social justice. We should be shocked and appalled at the historic treatment of our black brethren and we should call for all men to receive justice, regardless of the color of their skin. This is why it has been distressing to see how many Christians have skipped the trial and have gone straight to condemning the McMichaels. As we work for social justice, we must not ignore the basic tenets of legal justice. A fair trial is not simply an American concept, but a Biblical one. If we are insulted by the miscarriage of justice in this case, the answer is not to bypass justice and make public opinion the judge, jury, and executioner. Presuming guilt is not the Christian thing to do. If justice is what we want, then we must follow the legal process to justice. If we are infuriated that the McMichaels took justice into their own hands, presuming Ahmaud's guilt because of the color of his skin, we must not respond by denying justice to them.
Do I think that they are guilty? Sure. Do I think that they deserve a fair trial? Absolutely. 36 seconds of shaky video, as damning and disturbing as it is, isn't enough to incarcerate two men for the rest of their lives. I wasn't there. You weren't there. There is more to the story. The McMichaels deserve a fair trial in a court of law.
Think about your answer for a moment.
Now, allow me to rephrase it.
Do the McMichaels, human beings and citizens of the United States, deserve the presumption of innocence until proven guilty in a court of law?
If you say No, you are denying the most fundamental principle of our justice system.
Let me be clear. I think it is likely that the McMichaels are guilty of a heinous crime. I believe that they should be tried in a court of law, and, if convicted, be punished for that crime.
Again, let me be clear. Public outcry was warranted. They should have been (and now have been) charged and put on trial for their acts.
But they do deserve that trial. They deserve to have their day in court.
Even war criminals get a trial.
Even serial killers get a trial.
Even terrorists get a trial.
Even the McMichaels deserve a trial.
And these trials are not mere formalities. They are genuine, fair trials in a court of law. This is a fundamental human right, and to deny that is to uproot many of the foundational principles of our nation.
Public outcries have called for justice, and rightly so, but many of those voices seem to be skipping the trial and jumping straight to sentencing. There is video evidence, and it appears to be damning, but that is not the whole story. The video is never the whole story. The video will be presented as part of the evidence in the trial, and the jury will make a decision. That's how justice is supposed to work.
But justice is not being executed, right? That's the whole problem, right?
Right, which is why we must call for justice, not another lynching.
We cannot procure justice by subverting it. To lynch the McMichaels in the court of public opinion reduces us to their level. To truncate the process of justice, presuming to know what happened that fateful day, makes us no better than the accused. The answer to injustice is justice, not more injustice. As the proverb goes, two wrongs don't make a right. We cannot correct injustice by perpetrating more of it.
As Christians, justice should be a priority, both legal and social justice. We should be shocked and appalled at the historic treatment of our black brethren and we should call for all men to receive justice, regardless of the color of their skin. This is why it has been distressing to see how many Christians have skipped the trial and have gone straight to condemning the McMichaels. As we work for social justice, we must not ignore the basic tenets of legal justice. A fair trial is not simply an American concept, but a Biblical one. If we are insulted by the miscarriage of justice in this case, the answer is not to bypass justice and make public opinion the judge, jury, and executioner. Presuming guilt is not the Christian thing to do. If justice is what we want, then we must follow the legal process to justice. If we are infuriated that the McMichaels took justice into their own hands, presuming Ahmaud's guilt because of the color of his skin, we must not respond by denying justice to them.
Do I think that they are guilty? Sure. Do I think that they deserve a fair trial? Absolutely. 36 seconds of shaky video, as damning and disturbing as it is, isn't enough to incarcerate two men for the rest of their lives. I wasn't there. You weren't there. There is more to the story. The McMichaels deserve a fair trial in a court of law.
Comments
Post a Comment