J.W. Carney, Jr. and Hank Brennan are not reckless lawyers. They are not about to go out on the limb with assertions that they cannot support. I’m trying to figure out what line of reasoning they are going to use to justify Whitey’s claim of immunity along with his claim that he is not an…
Author: mtc9393
Whitey’s Lawyers Tell Judge Stearns He Must Let The Jury Decide Immunity
J.W. Carney, Jr. and Henry B. Brennan have filed on behalf of Whitey answers to the questions Judge Stearns posed at the last hearing. The prosecutors, Zachary R. Hafer, Brian T. Kelly and Fred M. Wyshak, Jr. have also filed their submission. Carney and Brennan cut to the chase and deal strictly with the legal…
The Guesswork Involved Deciding On The Truth – II
The idea of “a preponderance of the evidence” or as “more likely than not” is used in civil cases. Another standard aside from that and “beyond a reasonable doubt” is “by clear and convincing evidence.” It’s difficult for most people to tell the difference between all these varying standards. These are fictions created by the…
The Guesswork Involved In Deciding On The Truth – I
One thing we know about our system of justice is that wrong decisions are made every day. This is because it is a human system which does not provide for certitude. We have people who don’t really know other people making judgments about them based on a minimal encounter. Even though my career was as…
Having The Judges Do Their Jobs
I mentioned how David Boeri and David Frank’s article Ortiz Under Fire got me thinking about other happenings in the justice system. I’ve told how I believe the cops are running the show in the Boston U.S. Attorney’s office. But there is another aspect to that story I’d like to speak about. I’ve pointed out in…
Wonderings About This And That: The Judiciary
The Judiciary: The argument before the First Circuit Court of Appeals on whether Judge Richard Stearns should step down from handling the Whitey Bulger case happened on January 8 of this year. The issue seemed quite simple and clear-cut. It called for a yes or no answer. The judges on the panel were the most…