Free Essay

Jury in Danger

In:

Submitted By Imran786
Words 839
Pages 4
Jury in Danger.

There were twelve people on the jury. Every one of them killed. No one knew who to blame, but they all suspected the prosecutor, Ash Mayfield. He had been accused of killing his wife, Jessica.
The jury members were told to take their seats, as the bailiff announced that court was in session.
Everyone had taken their seats while Mr Sultan called up his first witness. After about ten minutes or so, Mr Evans, Ash's lawyer, brought up his witnesses.

It continued this way for about another hour or so and then it was time for everyone to go home.
The judge announced that the very next day, the jury should have a verdict. When that day came,
Mayfield was found not guilty. Five days later, the killings began.
The twelve jury members from the Mayfield case were Karen, Linda, Diane, Martin, Louise, Tracey,
Ben, Michael, Robert, Samantha, Simon, and John. If only they had known how miserable their lives were about to become. John was at a restaurant with his wife, Suzy. It was their first anniversary, and so they wanted to make it special. It was special alright, but for the worst. John and his wife were talking, when John had to go to the men's room. John was standing over the sink washing his hands. He suspected he was alone, but then out of nowhere someone came up from behind him and wrapped a rope tightly around his neck. He struggled and fought but his attacker was too strong. As
John's face turned from pale to purple, he hit the ground.

That same night, Karen was in her bedroom. Her long, luscious hair flowed as she walked, over to one of her drawers, searching for her favourite outfit. Not knowing her fate she turned around to meet the edge of large dagger, stabbed twenty four times. Blood everywhere. She yelled for help, but by the time her neighbours came, her killer was gone and she was dead.

Now the police began to get suspicious. Two jury members, killed on the same day. Was it just a coincidence? They decided not to assume anything right away. But after four more strange occurrences the following day, the police began to pull suspects. Linda’s' body was found in the local park. At first the police could not make out the body because it seems she had been cut up, into pieces. Tracey, Ben, Michael, and Diane had all been reported missing by family members. Usually, search parties are only sent out when people are missing for over twenty four hours, but since all of these people were previous jury members on the Ash Mayfield case, they made an exception. After about an hour of searching, all four bodies were finally found at the same location. Apparently the killer locked all four of them in a deserted caravan in the woods. The killer then lit the place on fire and went on to his next three victims, Samantha, Martin, and Michael. Witnesses claimed to have seen someone drag three bodies out of the back of their boot and throw each one into the lake. Police went to check it out, and sure enough they were also jury members. They realised the only two jury members left were Robert and Simon and they knew that the two were in great danger. Before anybody could warn them, Robert was found dead near his home from an "accidental" fatal car crash. Who was doing these inhumane things? And how were they moving so fast, escaping the cops every time? A day later Simon was found buried alive in the cemetery. He died from suffocation. An end to the killings. But why did they start? Who had done it? Later on that day, they brought in Ash
Mayfield for questioning. It turns out that Ash had been out of town while these murders were taking place.

But I knew Ash didn't kill the jury. I know. I killed them. They all deserved to die because they couldn't see the truth and they let Ash Mayfield walk free when he should have been convicted.
Jessica, Ash's wife, was my daughter. One night she called and told me he was physically hurting her.
I told her I was coming over, but when I got there, Ash was gone and she was dead. He had beaten her to death. Ash had never met me before because I never liked the idea of my daughter getting married in the first place, which is why he didn't recognise me in the courtroom. The jury should have seen past his lies. But they didn't. They had to pay. My next mission is to get rid of Ash and then I will be satisfied. I know what you're thinking. You're probably thinking that they'll catch me, right? Wrong. No one will ever suspect it's me. I mean after all, would you suspect the judge?

Similar Documents

Free Essay

Assumption of Risk

...sues a skier that feel and thereby knocking down the plaintiff who feel and injured his back. The jury came back with a defendant verdict and the plaintiff files a motion for a new trial on the grounds that the court made an error in instructing the jury as to the Vermont Sports Injury Statute and its relation to the doctrine of assumption of risk and the applications to this case. The appellate court denied their motion for a new trial and stated “that the sports injury statute applied to participants in any sport.” The Assumption of Risk doctrine states that “when a risk or danger is obvious such that it is widely known by reasonable people under the particular circumstances and necessary such that it is impossible or unreasonably difficult or expensive to eliminate, the person engaged in the dangerous activity assumes those obvious and necessary risks,” such as with the risks of falling in downhill skiing and risk that when done in groups other skiers will fall. The plaintiff in attempt to appeal stated that the assumption of risk only applied to the ski resort operators and their actions not that of other skiers, and that the defendant could be accountable for comparative negligence, as the skier was negligent and that negligence caused the plaintiff’s injuries.The sports injury doctrine, relating to 12 V.S.A. § 1037 “which established that there are inherent dangers to be accepted by skiers as a matter of law.” The motion for a new trial was denied and “ found...

Words: 785 - Pages: 4

Premium Essay

Jury Nullification the Alternative Verdict

...Betty Waltermire Critical Issues in Criminal Justice JUS-250 April 19, 2014 Jury Nullification the Alternative Verdict In 1771, John Adams wrote, “It is not only the juror’s right, but his duty to find the verdict according to his own best understanding, judgment and conscience, though in direct opposition to the instructions of the court” (Craig, 2010). No matter the way in which it is written the issue of jury nullification will never disappear. It seems that morality and law are in conflict. This is the beginning for jurors to feel the duty to prevent unfair or unjust criminal law on a person, the people are not willing to punish (Sheflin, 2001). Although the meaning of jury nullification has been written by numerous people and numerous courts have made rulings on jury nullification it still reads the same. Jury nullification occurs when a jury returns a verdict of “Not Guilty” despite its belief that the defendant is guilty of the violation charged. The jury in effect nullifies a law that it believes is either immoral or wrongly applied to the defendant whose fate they are deciding (Linder, 2001). The Grand Jury in states has the job of determining probable cause existed and believes that the defendant actually committed the crime. This group of people holds an enormous amount of power; they can change an offense to a lesser offense, numerous counts to only one, and change a capital offense to...

Words: 1118 - Pages: 5

Premium Essay

Hot Coffee

...consumers clashed recently in McMahon v. Bunn-O-Matic,l wherein the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals held that a coffee maker manufacturer did not have a duty to warn consumers that its coffee would be served at 180 degrees, and that the coffee maker was not defectively designed. The decision, which affirmed a lower court's entry of summary judgment in favor of the coffee maker manufacturer, is consistent with a majority of courts, which have held in recent years that such claims leave no issue of material fact for trial.' However, not every jurisdiction has routinely dismissed these "coffee" cases. In fact, McMahon referred to Nadel v. Burger King,3 which held that a products liability claim for excessively hot coffee was appropriate for a jury to decide. This Note will discuss the facts and procedural history of McMahon, as well as the Seventh Circuit's ruling on the duty to warn and defectiveness of the product's design. This note will next examine the Ohio Court of Appeals' contrasting decision in Nadel. This comparison will...

Words: 3301 - Pages: 14

Free Essay

Defenses

...condition on the land, if but only if, he: a. knows or by the exercise of reasonable care would discover the condition, and should realize that it involves an unreasonable risk of harm to such invitees, and b. should expect that they will not discover or realize the danger, or will fail to protect themselves against it, and c. fails to exercise reasonable care to protect them against the danger. Section 343A of the Restatement provides: a possessor of land is not liable to his invitees for physical harm caused to them by any activity or condition on the land whose danger is known or obvious to them, unless the possessor should anticipate the harm despite such knowledge or obviousness. Sections 343 and 343A of the Restatement (Second) of Torts preclude liability for a possessor of land where an invitee is injured as a result of a condition whose danger is known or obvious to the invitee, unless the possessor anticipated the injury despite the invitee’s knowledge or the obviousness of the condition. Restatement (Second) of Torts §343A(1). As the cases below illustrate, where a danger is “open or obvious,” the possessor of land does not owe the invitee a duty to take precautions against or warn of open or obvious dangers. Under Pennsylvania law the assumption of the risk doctrine applies to absolve the landowner from liability for injuries sustained if the plaintiff: (1) knows of the risk or hazard, and (2) voluntarily proceeds in that activity. There is substantial uncertainty...

Words: 4686 - Pages: 19

Premium Essay

Logan's Negligence Case Study

...The plaintiff, Logan, is obligated to prove her negligence claim against Defendant Rios with a preponderance of the evidence. As the supplemental commentary notes to the Franklin Supreme Court Approved Jury instructions note, it is necessary that Logan persuade a jury considering the evidence, that her proposition is more probable than not. A jury will evaluate the evidence, including witness testimony, and the weight to be given to it, and make a determination as to whether it is more probable than not that Rios’s negligence, through her employees at the store she owns, Trina’s Toys, was the direct and proximate cause of Logan’s injuries. Further, a jury will have to decide Rios’s affirmative defense of contributory negligence. There...

Words: 1806 - Pages: 8

Premium Essay

Constitutional Safeguards

...4th Amendment was put into place to prohibit unreasonable search and seizures of ones property without reasonable cause and without a warrant. Over time the Supreme Court has allowed some changes to this Amendment such as; allowing the police to search a person that has been arrested, the officer sees something in plain sight and search property where the officer feels that there may be danger to their self or the suspect. When it comes to juveniles there are restrictions on this amendment. Only juveniles under age 18 that have been accused of criminal conduct are granted the 4th amendment rights. If the juvenile is being accused of non-criminal behavior the constitution has not been defined (Kenneth T. Hanley, Fourth Amendment Protection for the Juvenile Offender: State, Fordham L. Rev. 1140, 1981). The 5th Amendment states that “No person shall be held to answer for a capital, or otherwise infamous crime, unless on a presentment or indictment of a grand jury, except in cases arising in the land or naval forces, or in the militia, when in actual service in time of war or public danger; nor shall any person be subject for the same offense to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb; nor shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself, nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor shall private property be taken for public use, without...

Words: 759 - Pages: 4

Free Essay

Economics

...ECO 4751 Spring 2013 D. Butterfield Assignment 3 Stella Liebeck v. McDonalds Corporation Facts of the Case Stella Liebeck of Albuquerque, New Mexico, was in the passenger seat of her grandson's car when she was severely burned by McDonalds' coffee in February 1992. Liebeck, 79 at the time, ordered coffee that was served in a styrofoam cup at the drivethrough window of a local McDonalds. After receiving the order, the grandson pulled his car forward and stopped momentarily so that Liebeck could add cream and sugar to her coffee. Liebeck placed the cup between her knees and attempted to remove the plastic lid from the cup. As she removed the lid, the entire contents of the cup spilled into her lap. The sweatpants Liebeck was wearing absorbed the coffee and held it next to her skin. A vascular surgeon determined that Liebeck suffered full thickness burns (or third-degree burns) over 6 percent of her body, including her inner thighs, perineum, buttocks, and genital and groin areas. She was hospitalized for eight days, during which time she underwent skin grafting. Liebeck, who also underwent debridement treatments [removal of dead skin], sought...

Words: 1823 - Pages: 8

Premium Essay

Vitamins

... * Individuals arrested have the right to receive Miranda warnings. * The purpose of the procedures is to punish the guilty. * Individuals on trial have the constitutional right to a jury trial. * Court jurisdiction is determined by age. * Individuals have the right to counsel. * Individuals on trial do not have a right to a jury trial. * There is the ability to negotiate and plea bargain. * Court proceedings are public. * Purpose of procedures is to protect and treat. * Proceedings are not considered criminal. * Justice system personnel use discretion. * Court proceedings are private. * Court jurisdiction is determined by offense. * Proceedings are considered criminal. * Prosecutors and defense attorneys are key players in proceedings. Juvenile Justice System | Adult Justice System | Both | Court jurisdiction is determined by age.Court proceedings are private. | Court proceedings are public.Court jurisdiction is determined by offense. | Individuals arrested have the right to receive Miranda warnings.The purpose of the procedures is to punish the guilty.Individuals on trial have the constitutional right to a jury trial.Individuals have the right to counsel.Individuals on trial do not have a right to a jury trial.There is the ability to negotiate and plea bargain.Purpose of procedures is to protect and treat.Proceedings are not considered criminal.Justice system personnel use discretion.Proceedings are...

Words: 733 - Pages: 3

Premium Essay

Couture V. Commonwealth Case Summary

...answering a question from the jury during deliberation (leagle.com). Officer Couture believes it was a sufficient amount of evidence proving it was self-defense in this case. According to the jury the amount of evidence provided at the time of trial; supports that officer Couture had no right to kill Santanna Olavarria.As ruled Officer Couture was found guilty of voluntary man slaughter, and the jury recommendations stands as no jail time with a $2500.00 fine. In this case, the agreement was completely correct, the jury did have enough evidence to convict Officer Couture of voluntary manslaughter. The decision was based on officer Couture admitting he fired a shoot in self-defense and testifying he did not see a weapon, and the fact the suspect complied with all orders from the police officers. The suspect Olavarria showed no signs of resisting, in fact he raised both his hands asking officer Couture not to...

Words: 621 - Pages: 3

Premium Essay

Study Guide

...Study Guide: Adopted by Great Britain, their form of common law Constitutional: establishes basic character, concepts and principles of government, its organization, individual rights and privileges. Outlines duties of branches Federalism: Bill of Rights: Common law: Discovered law because magistrates discovered solutions to disputes by looking to situations in the past. Inductive. Laws because they have always been laws. Equity law: decisions of chancery court were made on the basis of fairness. Equity law begins where common law stops. Laws designed to address justice without criminal intent. (fairness) Administrative law: Rules that govern industry. Ex. FCC Statutory law: Created by government rep. Written law formally enacted by city, county, state and federal legislative bodies. Executive orders- orders from executive branch Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble and to petition the government for a redress of grievances. Freedom of speech, press, religion, petition, assembly Laws establish boundaries and allow for punishment of violators, they limit government power, and establish fundamental rights/liberties. They carry sanctions. Policy is adopted to achieve a social goal,they lack sanctions. Laws are passed in the U.S. to support policy. FCC- Federal Communication Commission is an...

Words: 1709 - Pages: 7

Free Essay

Individual Paper 2

...Individual Assignment 2: Case Study Wardell Johnson AMBA 610 Professor M. Frank Introduction It takes constant work to ensure that any given system maintains order. The universe has a natural tendency to lead to entropy “a process of degradation or running down or a trend to disorder” (Merrim-webster.com). What guides Humanity to function in a society in concert with their fellow man? It’s the ability to set up laws to govern the actions of the members of said society. According to researchers Kubasek, Brennan, & Browne (2011) great minds have always debated the purpose of laws. For instance, Plato expressed that law is a form of social control, and Aristotle posited that law is a rule conduct, an ideal of reason (Kubasek et al., 2011). No matter what ones philosophical views are in regards to legal systems whether good or bad, laws help societies maintain a sense of order, setting and maintaining a sense of normalcy, in efforts to prevent societal entropy. In America the foundation of our legal system is based on the U.S. Constitution created the nation’s founding fathers to ensure every citizen equal access to justice. Liebeck v. McDonalds and Pearson v. Chung are two highly publicize cases of Tort law. “The primary goal of tort law is to compensate the innocent persons who are injured or whose property as result of another conduct (Kubasel et al 2011, p.309). Both of these cases involve people who wanted to turn to the American legal system to obtain justice...

Words: 2747 - Pages: 11

Free Essay

Essay

...valiant warrior. In the beginning, they both began as characters that cared about the common good of their people. Both characters were similar in the sense that they showed traits of a leader who fights for justice and show that they care about the good of their people. Soon both stories begin to unfold and we begin to see how malicious Macbeth is, Macbeth shows the reader that he put his own priorities before the people of Scotland by murdering the beloved king Duncan and in this case left the kingdom in jeopardy. Atticus is different because he is willing to put his family in danger to defend a innocent man and look past his skin color. He put Tom Robinson’s priorities before his. In the end both characters unveil their true personalities. Macbeth realizes that he made the wrong choices .He fights to his bitter death even when everyone is against him and dies. Atticus on the other hand knew the jury was still going to convict Tom Robinson of rape. We learn that everyone has a evil inside of them, it teaches us that inside of us there is greater evil that cannot be...

Words: 939 - Pages: 4

Premium Essay

Criminal Defenses and Criminal Punishments

...justified; secondly, if the act or force was immediate and necessary to defend yourself; and lastly, if the circumstances were reasonable enough to warrant the amount of force applied in the act. When determining the reasonableness of force used, one would have to take into account the relationship of those involved along with their size and age, and whether the assault was aggressive, and the type of weapon used (Gardner, & Anderson, 2012). Another approach to take when determining lawfulness of the use of force would be, the use of Deadly Force in a Self-Defense or the Defense of Others, would be the Stand Your Ground Law, a Florida Statute, that if and when a person feels that they are in fear of their life, and believe that they are in danger, then they have the right to defend themselves by using force with force including deadly force. Only if they reasonably believe that using force is the only way to prevent death or bodily harm, without the duty to retreat (Gardner, & Anderson, 2012). Again, the court looks for key points such as, Unlawfulness, Necessity, and Reasonableness, in determining if the force used was indeed justified. As for using the Good Samaritan Laws,...

Words: 1627 - Pages: 7

Free Essay

Miss

...Filed 1/7/16 P. v. Cole CA2/4 NOT TO BE PUBLISHED IN THE OFFICIAL REPORTS California Rules of Court, rule 8.1115(a), prohibits courts and parties from citing or relying on opinions not certified for publication or ordered published, except as specified by rule 8.1115(b). This opinion has not been certified for publication or ordered published for purposes of rule 8.1115. IN THE COURT OF APPEAL OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA SECOND APPELLATE DISTRICT DIVISION FOUR |THE PEOPLE, | B254915 | | | | |Plaintiff and Respondent, |(Los Angeles County | | |Super. Ct. No. MA055457) | |v. | | | | | |TOMMIE LEE COLE, | ...

Words: 4265 - Pages: 18

Premium Essay

Tort

...pants that she was wearing. This caused third degree burns that resulted in a seven day stay in the hospital along with skin grafting to repair the damage that was done (Schostok, 2000). What are the Issues? The issue that is specific to this case is whether or not McDonald’s should be liable for selling coffee that is too hot? The broader issue is, should businesses be responsible for the safety of their customers? What Law Applies? The product liability law applies in this case, specifically the “implied warranty of fitness [that is] imposed by the Uniform Commercial Code” (Morgan, n.d.). What did the Jury decide? The jury decided to award Liebeck $200,000 for compensatory damages. They also penalized McDonald’s $2,700,000 as punishment (Fleisher-Black, 2004). Did the jury make an appropriate decision? Based on the evidence presented, the jury made the right decision; however, the amount of the punitive damages awarded was high when considering New Mexico statutes and court rules. McDonald’s has a history of burn complaints from coffee and even...

Words: 1528 - Pages: 7