Legal system alternatives

[Adam]

What systems of judgement (of innocence or guilt) are available in legal systems?

There's the "jury of your peers" idea. I don't like it. I dislike mob mentality. This is a bunch of mooks who can be swayed by emotional arguments. Heck, why judge the evidence pertaining to the case when you can simply call Furman a NAZI and have the whole thing thrown out?

What about judged by a panel of judges, who I personally think are more likely to look at the evidence? The problem here is that they are part of the establishment, and may sentence people according to some agenda. The only suitable safety measure, I think, would be giving the public absolute access to all materials from cases so they can be thoroughly reviewed. Maybe include a process allowing for cases to be re-opened and examined by the public.

Maybe define all crimes so thoroughly that they include points which can be recognised by a computer programme?

What else is there?

 

[zanket]

Good thoughts. Perhaps much larger and better qualified jury pools. There’d have to be a lot of control, they couldn’t be anonymous people posting to sciforums for example. You’d have to guarantee that they heard or read all the testimony. Many practical problems, but there’s gotta be a better way than now.

Incidentally, I probably would have voted to acquit O.J. based on the tainted chain of evidence combined with the lead detective being demonstrably racist.