[Cynical] "The reality is the law/precedent SUCKED. He had to follow precedent."]
Bs. He did NOT "have to follow precedent" - either for purposes of ruling that the prosecution made out a prima facie case of the crimes charged, and certainly not on the subject of reasonable doubt and not guilty vs. guilty.
He came on here and admitted/stated that he essentially knew this had nothing to do with night hunting and AT MOST one of the young fellows peeled a shot off at the stop sign.
A smart and wise judge will simply ignore totally bs "precedent" and do the right thing for the sake of fundamental justice and to protect the Constitution and people's constitutional rights. It could have been handled totally differently from the beginning, and the prosecutor on the case bears some responsibility on this also.
Correct. The prosecutor brought a case that had no compelling evidence to back any of it up. Former GW heard a noise and assumed it came from the boys vehicle 140 yards away, past some trees, as they were at a stop sign waiting for traffic to cross. No physical evidence the gun in the truck was ever fired. No evidence the boys were attempting to hunt at night. No evidence for anything other than the hearing of a noise that could have been gunfire. Former GW pretended to be a current LEO and blocked the boys in so they could not leave. The deputies that arrived after the call by the former GW didn't think it was anything either, by the evidence that they let the boys go without any tickets or violations and gave them back their rifle. The judge did have a duty to use the law...very much so. If he would have, the case would have been thrown out early because there was no prima fascia evidence. It's very obvious that the prosecutor's and judge's definition of evidence in this case was off base. But when they put forth their case as actually meeting the prima fascia evidence standard, then the case law precedent could be used to make their case--sure. Distinction on the word could. District Court and Circuit court judges here had ample opportunity to make the correct rulings based on what was presented. They didn't. They were collecting fines on teenagers never thinking it would run all the way to the AL Supreme Court.
"The grass withers, the flower fades, But the word of our God stands forever." Isaiah 40:8
"Neither the wisest constitution nor the wisest laws will secure the liberty and happiness of a people whose manners are universally corrupt.� Samuel Adams
