Emotions, Justice, and a Little Girl

Today on FaceBook I was invited to "attend" A day of silence/support for Caylee Anthony on her birthday. I accepted and will do so not just for Caylee, but for all the other children that have been victims as well.

I have read many people today say that justice was not served today, that our judicial system is broken. These are emotional statements, and I completely understand the emotion behind them. I understand how it fuels them. I understand and feel as well the outrage of the violent loss of a life barely begun. But there is a time and place for emotional response, and the justice system is NOT that place.

I will be the first person to tell you that our justice system is not perfect. Nor can it be. It was created by imperfect beings. (I think even atheist would agree that as a species, we are far from perfect.) NO SYSTEM OF JUSTICE CREATED BY MAN WILL BE 100%! Our founding fathers knew this to be true, and in knowing this set out to not make a perfect system, but the best one that could exist. They created a system that put the emphasis on protecting the innocent over punishing the guilty. The whole basis of the system is, "innocent until proven guilty." The burden of that proof lies with the prosecution, not the defense, and must be done beyond the shadow of a doubt. Everyone has a right to legal representation, and to be tried before a jury of your peers.

I do not envy the prosecution team in this trial. From the last sighting of Caylee to the police being called to investigate, there was a 30 day gap. One month is a long time when attempting to secure indisputable evidence. It's even less help when her remains were not found for 6 months, and then after whether & animals had taken their toll. Yet with what they had to go on, the DA's Office put together a better case than anyone could have hoped for, and for that I admire them greatly. It was to the point, concise, logical and compelling. What they could not make it was iron clad, which is what it needed to be.

I do not envy the jury that served on this trial. The rules of deciding a verdict are set in stone. They must look at all the evidence from both sides, then ask themselves one question, "does it prove beyond a shadow of a doubt they did it?" It is a question that is based on facts and the facts only. There is no place for emotions & gut feelings. It would seem simple enough, but those jurors are mere morals. Though it may not have been the popular decision, it was the one they needed to make according to the laws of the land.

As a people, we desire fairness in life. A 2 year old girl is no longer with us, and the person responsible must be appropriately punished. But the world doesn't always work the way we want. Finding Casey guilty today would serve more to feed our sense of an eye for an eye.