Blog Posts


A Government Afraid Of Conscience

I wonder what the Government told grand jurors in the case of United States of America versus Julian P. Heicklen. The 78-year-old retired college professor was indicted on charges of jury tampering. He was charged under a statute designed and intended to make it a crime to try to influence a juror...

Why Not Responsible Juries?

My sense of things is that most jurors struggle to do the right thing. They work at the decisions we ask them to make. They try to follow the law. There are failures, to be sure. But in general, I trust a jury far more than I trust the weary eye of a judge. Lay jurors bring common sense...

Why Not Responsible Juries?

My sense of things is that most jurors struggle to do the right thing. They work at the decisions we ask them to make. They try to follow the law. There are failures, to be sure. But in general, I trust a jury far more than I trust the weary eye of a judge. Lay jurors bring common sense...

The Joy of Anarchy

I read this morning's newspapers with more than the usual fascination. The sight of protestors on the streets of Egypt thrills me, even though I do not know what comes next. Reports of economic despair, a lack of social mobility and opportunity, and a regime out of touch with the demands of...

How About Accountability Statements for Juries?

The criminal justice system stumbles along on the road mumbling lip service to complete transparency, but we still lie to jurors. When jurors find out about these lies, they are often unhappy. A potential jury in Montana took matters in its own hands the other day, revolting during jury selection...

Romeo, Juliet and Jury Nullification

The most profound form of "stranger danger" apparent in the nation's criminal justice system arises not in the form of a sexual predator lurking in the shadows. No, the stranger who presents the gravest danger to our society is the lawmaker, judge or prosecutor who seeks to transform the criminal...

© Norm Pattis is represented by Elite Lawyer Management, managing agents for Exceptional American Lawyers
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