The problem with your whole "we are the jury" argument is we haven't heard all of the evidence. You are assuming that Bucky is telling the whole story (not calling Bucky a liar so don't start in on me with that). The only evidence that has been presented to this "jury" by the prosecutor is heresay. The arresting officer has not testified or presented any evidence.
Finding someone guilty based solely on one side of the argument is not right. Finding someone not guilty based on the same criteria is just as bad.
I agree that we haven't heard all the evidence. We have discussed this case, as you said, on the evidence we do have.
As you saw, however, some were ready to convict the accused for things he did that were not a part of the charges against him. By discussing those issues, I think we may have all learned something from it. If nothing else, I hope I have caused the potential jurors reading this thread to think about the consequences of their decisions by weighing evidence presented by both sides in a case carefully along with only the applicable law instead of jumping to conclusions and accepting only what officers have said as credible evidence or considering other laws that do not apply.
I have often wondered if a game warden could make it stick if he cited me for violating that law simply because I didn't unload my rifle before getting back to my truck after hunting. I'm convinced now that I could present a good case against such charges, because I do it for self defense. I have found case law to support my position while discussing this, and I shared it with you so you would have the information as well. What you choose to do with that information is your decision to make.
There is something else I am aware of that had an influence on my interest in this case. There is a friend of mine who was accused of having a loaded rifle and hunting near the road when he was a young man. His version of the story is that he had unloaded his rifle well before he got to the road.
Two game wardens came by on the road in a personal vehicle and stopped. They cited him for hunting near the road and claimed that his rifle was loaded when it was not, and that he was hunting when he was not. It was their word against his. His dad is also a friend of mine, and he confirmed the son's story to be true. They both do not trust game wardens to this day, and I have confidence in both of them to be telling the truth.
I wish all enforcement officers were honest. The truth is, some are not.
