Fully Informed Jury Association

Professor of law and former federal prosecutor Paul Butler trusts jurors over power-grabbing prosecutors.

Jurors Need to Know That They Can Say No

How one feels about jury nullification ultimately depends on how much confidence one has in the jury system. Based on my experience, I trust jurors a lot. I first became interested in nullification when I prosecuted low-level drug crimes in Washington in 1990. Jurors here, who were predominantly African-American, nullified regularly because they were concerned about racially selective enforcement of the law.

Across the country, crime has fallen, but incarceration rates remain at near record levels. Last year, the New York City police made 50,000 arrests just for marijuana possession. Because prosecutors have discretion over whether to charge a suspect, and for what offense, they have more power than judges over the outcome of a case. They tend to throw the book at defendants, to compel them to plead guilty in return for less harsh sentences. In some jurisdictions, like Washington, prosecutors have responded to jurors who are fed up with their draconian tactics by lobbying lawmakers to take away the right to a jury trial in drug cases. That is precisely the kind of power grab that the Constitution’s framers were so concerned about.

Click through for the entire editorial.

Tags: jury, Jury Nullification, justice, nullification, Paul Butler, rights

Oral arguments are scheduled for next month in a malicious prosecution of an activist distributing juror outreach brochures in New York. In a brief filed with the court, the prosecution reveals its ignorance of the function of the jury.

Prosecution Explains Jury Tampering Charge

“His speech is not protected by the First Amendment,” prosecutors wrote.

“No legal system could long survive,” they added, “if it gave every individual the option of disregarding with impunity any law which by his personal standard was judged morally untenable.”

Perhaps the prosecution is unaware that legal systems have survived just fine for centuries. Jury nullification was, after all, formally recognized in the Magna Carta in 1215.

Christopher Dunn, associate legal director of the New York Civil Liberties Union, also corrects the prosecutor’s ignorance:

“The government is dangerously wrong in claiming it can criminalize sidewalk advocacy supporting jury nullification. Other than the extremely limited situations in which someone seeks to influence a known juror in a case, jury nullification advocacy is squarely protected by the First Amendment.”

The prosecutor is apparently so entirely ignorant of the role of the jury that she is seeking to deny the defendant – who is at risk of six months in jail – his right to a trial by jury:

Mr. Heicklen, who could face a six-month sentence if convicted, has asked for a jury trial. Ms. Mermelstein, opposing that demand, cited as one reason Mr. Heicklen’s ardent stance that juries should nullify. He would probably “urge a jury to do so in a case against him,” she wrote.

Click through for the entire article.

Tags: jury, Jury Nullification, justice, nullification, rights

Big thank you to Neal Weeks whose letter to the editor was published in today’s Naples Daily News in Naples, FL, complete with a link to FIJA’s website so readers can easily find more information!

Letter: Are jurors aware of this power?, by Neal Weeks

After years of dissatisfaction of our court system and wondering how a judge could overturn a jury decision, or why juries seemed to have no room for personal judgment of the case they are deciding, I came across a term I had never heard before: jury nullification.

This is a powerful term which apparently is never discussed or admitted to prospective jurors or sitting jurors.

Click through for the entire letter to the editor.

Tags: jurors' rights, jury, jury duty, Jury Nullification, jury rights, jury veto, justice, nullification, rights

Let a Thousand “Rogue” Grand Juries Bloom!

Harris County’s 185th criminal court grand jury, which had been investigating problems with the BAT vans, called Culbertson to testify, along with former Harris County Prosecutor Brent Mayr. Lykos dispatched two members of her flying monkey corps – assistant DAs Carl Hobbs and Steve Morris – to “monitor” the grand jury testimony.

Since Lykos and her office were suspected of covering up the use of tainted evidence and retaliating against a whistleblower, the DA and her underlings were barred from being present in any capacity other than as sworn witnesses. Accordingly, when Lykos’s minions materialized during Culbertson’s testimony, the Grand Jury Foreman ordered them to leave. When that directive was ignored, the Foreman instructed the Baliff to remove them or place them under arrest.

“Today, the grand jury is the total captive of the prosecutor, who, if he is candid, will concede that he can indict anybody, at any time, for almost anything, before any grand jury,” wrote federal District Judge William J. Campbell in a 1973 law journal article calling for formal abolition of the institution on the grounds of redundancy. This isn’t to say that the grand jury is considered useless by the prosecutorial caste: It helps maintain the pretense that prosecutors are servants of the public will.

What is happening in Harris County is not an example of a grand jury going “rogue,” but rather one behaving exactly as it should. It is interposing itself on behalf of the public by investigating a federally subsidized revenue-collection racket, and the abusive prosecutor who presides over it. Hopefully its example will prove to be contagious.

Click through for the full article.

Mitch Ricahards, FIJA State Contact for Missouri,
will speak at the
Cannabis Revival Music and Arts Festival
in Landreth Park;Joplin, MO
Saturday, 24 September at 1:15 pm

The festival is FREE, but organizers suggest a modest $10 donation (or whatever you deem fit) at the gate that comes with a give-a-way for your donation for you to remember the event by. Mitch will also host an outreach table starting around 11:00 am and will be there until about 6:00-7:00 pm. Volunteers are welcome to join him at the table.

Tags: Cannabis Revival, FIJA, Joplin, Missouri, outreach

East Moline’s Labor Day Parade was a fun filled day for many folks on Monday, September the 5th. Members of a local Ron Paul meetup and the local Fully Informed Jury Association (FIJA) in Illinois teamed up together to educate the large crowds that gathered together to watch East Moline’s Labor Day parade. Although Labor Day coincided with Jury Rights Day the year, the groups believe it provided for a unique opportunity to promote the importance of jury rights in our system of government.

The Illinois Liberty Alliance entry rolled through the parade with 11 volunteers, a white Ron Paul 2012 decorated van playing Ron Paul supporting music, two FIJA banners which read, “Called for Jury Duty? Know your Rights. FIJA.ORG”, over 3,500 pieces of literature, and bags of candy and balloons. The literature included Ron Paul newspapers made by an Iowa grassroots group and Jury Rights Day cards created by the Fully Informed Jury Association (FIJA).

Nancy Brandt of Henry County was the coordinator of this event. “We spent 5 1/2 hours stamping the literature with “Illinois Liberty Alliance. Find us at: SuperLiberty.com”. We enjoyed walking with the banners, and we distributed 1600-1700 Jury Rights Day cards at East Moline, Illinois’ Labor Day Parade. One man I gave a card to said, ‘I better look at this. I’ve got jury duty coming up.’ I told him to go to the FIJA website.” Nancy expects the cards to be good advertising tools for their local group.

Rafe Thrasher, a Ron Paul supporter in Illinois said, “Ron Paul is a huge promoter and educator of jury rights, so it makes sense that we join forces with the local Fully Informed Jury Association (FIJA) and help them promote Jury Rights Day in a Labor Day parade.”

Tags: jurors' rights, jury, Jury Nullification, Jury Rights Day, justice, nullificaiton, rights

In celebration of Jury Rights Day, David and Leona Merrick and other Montana volunteers hosted a FIJA outreach table at the Ravalli County Fair. The fair, which has been held annually for more than a century, took place in Hamilton, Montana from 31 August through 3 September 2011. Drawing approximately 20,000 people, the Ravalli County Fair is the largest event in the county.

The outreach table featured FIJA outreach literature, including our brand new Fresh Air for Justice brochure, freely available for anyone to take. One of our brand new 6′ wide by 3′ high FIJA banners hung on the wall next to the table was easily visible all the way across the building. The banner was also carried in the Fair Parade kicking off the event.

Volunteers at the table were available to offer literature to passersby and to invite them to sign petitions for state initiatives, including a fully informed jury initiative. While FIJA National is a strictly educational organization that does not engage in political activities, state level groups and individuals not covered under our 501(c)3 status may do so at their discretion.

David and Leona Merrick reported that most responses to juror education outreach efforts were positive. “If they’re not in favor of jury nullification and they think that we’re kind of going against the grain, we just thank them for stopping by and for listening to our pitch. We try to give them, if they will take it, some further information on what the fully informed jury means,” David said.

“There are probably about a thousand or so, I’d guess, that we have talked to,” David estimated over the course of 4 days of outreach. He noted that they have distributed FIJA literature every year for the last few years at the fair. Several people who visited the table recognized the outreach effort from previous years.

Leona also credited FIJA’s eye-catching, yellow “We Are Everywhere” t-shirts for attracting people to the table to learn more. “I think we have passed out the most literature ever this year,” she said.

Tags: juror education, jurors' rights, Jury Nullification, jury rights, Jury Rights Day, justice, nullification, outreach, Ravalli County Fair

A Jury Rights Day editorial, written by Richard Schwartzman:

Freedom by Jury

We should be celebrating September 5 with at least as much exuberance and respect as we celebrate July 4 or Thanksgiving. It’s Jury Rights Day.

Little is made of the date. Most people are completely unaware of its historic significance and have never heard that jurors have rights. Yet it was on that date in 1670 when a group of jurors in London used their right and power to invalidate an unjust law.

We can draw a direct link between several of our First Amendment guarantees to jurors who decided that some laws are so bad that they would refuse to convict defendants prosecuted under those laws, even when directed to do so by a presiding judge.

It’s jury nullification. Some jurors risked their own freedom to exercise that right.

Click through to read the entire article.

Tags: jurors' rights, Jury Nullification, justice, Jyry Rights Day, nullification, William Penn

FIJA Director Iloilo Jones be on AmericanNewsNet.com radio show, KHNC 1360AM, on Wednesday, September 7, from 4-6 PM Mountain time. The call-in number is 877-254-7524.

She will be talking about Jury Rights Day and the growing need for informed jurors across the nation as government employees and politicians stray further away from the Constitution and Bill of Rights. Jurors are the primary protection of our human rights against corrupt government.

She will be commenting on the present case in Northern Idaho, regarding father who is being persecuted for protecting his children from a bear in the backyard. She will also discuss the protection that comes from our neighbors who form our juries—to protect us from the predatory, vicious actions of government, whether government is a king, a politician, a paid lackey, or a local bureaucrat who lives on your taxes.

Tags: jurors' rights, Jury Nullification, Jury Rights Day, justice, nullification

Today, 5 September, is Jury Rights Day!

Dick Marple, FIJA State Contact for New Hampshire, sends us this proclamation from New Hampshire Governor John H. Lynch, declaring today Jury Appreciation Day in the State of New Hampshire:

We will be featuring news of more Jury Rights Day celebrations and outreach as reports come in. To let us know about YOUR event, please e-mail us details to aji(AT)fija(DOT)org.

Tags: jurors' rights, Jury Nullification, jury rights, Jury Rights Day, justice, nullification

Another easy way to celebrate Jury Rights Day and help spread FIJA’s message is to submit a guest editorial or letter to the editor to your local newspaper, to websites you read, and so on, or publish it yourself on your own blog. Visit our online Library for reference materials such as quotes on jury authority and jury nullification, essays and editorials, our juror’s guide, and more. See also our Jury Rights Day page for talking points specific to this event.

If you submit an editorial or letter to the editor, please be sure to send us a link to it on the web or a hard copy so we can refer to it from our website. Even if it is not published, please let us know about it as we may feature it on our website or in our newsletter!

Tags: jurors' rights, jury, Jury Nullification, Jury Rights Day, nullification

How will YOU be celebrating Jury Rights Day?

Here’s something simple you can do RIGHT NOW to help celebrate Jury Rights Day and get the word out about the juror’s authority and responsibility in delivering justice.

Add one of our Jury Rights Day graphics to your website and link back to our site. Be sure to email us at aji(AT)fija(DOT)org to let us know where you have posted it.

Use one of these banners to show your support for Jury Rights Day. Please don’t link directly to the image. Download the image and upload it to your own website.

For those who have an event or activity scheduled, please let us know! You may e-mail aji(AT)fija(DOT)org with the details and we will be happy to help get the word out through our social media circles. We would also appreciate it if you would send a write-up on your event, with pictures if you have them, after it takes place to be featured on our website or in our newsletter. If you post video from your event, please send us those links as well!

For more ideas and resources for your outreach events and activities, please visit our Jury Rights Day page.

Tags: jurors' rights, jury, Jury Nullification, Jury Rights Day, nullification

Jury Rights Day falls on 5 September in commemoration of the William Penn case in 1670 which firmly established protection for the jury, and firmly established the right of the jurors to refuse to accept bad government laws. FIJA Activists across the country will be conducting educational outreach on this day to help raise awareness of this important protection for free people against government tyranny.

How will YOU be celebrating Jury Rights Day?

For those who do not yet have plans, we will be posting a variety of suggestions in the next few weeks to help you out. For those who have an event or activity scheduled, please let us know! You may e-mail aji(AT)fija(DOT)org with the details and we will be happy to help get the word out through our social media circles. We would also appreciate it if you would send a write-up on your event, with pictures if you have them, after it takes place to be featured on our website or in our newsletter. If you post video from your event, please send us those links as well!

This week we want to let you know about a very simple Jury Rights Day promotion that anyone can do. If you will be out of town for Jury Rights Day, which happens to coincide with Labor Day this year, you can still participate! For the first time, we are offering Jury Rights Day announcements in postcard size this year:

These 4.25″ X 5.5″ cards come in assorted colors, all with a glossy finish. The front of the card shows our Jury Rights Day logo, website, toll-free number, and the following text:
FIJA Activists
-Inform potential jurors of their traditional, legal authority to refuse to enforce corrupt laws;
-Inform potential jurors that they cannot be required to check their conscience at the courthouse door;
-Inform potential jurors that they cannot be punished for their verdict;
-Inform everyone to protect human rights against government tyranny.
That is FIJA’s message.

The back side of each card is blank so you can address and stamp them to mail to people or print your local organization’s information on the back to hand out at events. These cards are great for announcing Jury Rights Day events. The date is marked on the cards with no year specified. Since Jury Rights Day is on September 5th each year, if you have cards leftover this year, you can still put them to use next year.

Jury Rights Day announcement postcards can be ordered online through our Media Catalog, or you can give us a call in the office at (406) 442-7800 to order by phone. For more ideas and resources for your outreach events and activities, please visit our Jury Rights Day page.

Tags: jurors' rights, jury, Jury Nullification, Jury Rights Day, nullification

An editorial on the recent sentencing in the Tim DeChristopher case and ways the system was manipulated to tilt the playing field in favor of the prosecution:

The Sentence: A Take on the DeChristopher Case

I’m not suggesting that Benson wears jackboots, but the treatment DeChristopher got wasn’t much better than what he’d have received in a Third Reich tribunal. He was prevented from testifying—to any significant degree, anyway—that his motivation was to halt crimes against the environment, to thwart a land grab in which public-land leases were being sold at a fraction of their value (there are no “minimum bids,” and a good-old-boy system may exist among drillers), that he was prevented from later buying the properties he’d won, or that the Interior Department later invalidated most of the leases because environmental-impact studies had not been done and some parcels were within eyeshot of prized national parks.

Another example of unfairness was that the prosecution’s key witnesses said he’d been sent and read a regular flow of press clippings about DeChristopher and his group Peaceful Uprising. The content of those items, however, was never made available to the jury.

I attended the July 26 sentencing hearing expecting more of the same. I was pleasantly surprised, however, that DeChristopher and his attorneys were finally allowed to say what they would have been able to present at trial if we didn’t live in an age when judges can pre-censor exactly what a jury hears and deprive it of material facts needed to come to a fair verdict. The jurors’ historical options should have included the power to void the charges altogether due to the unfairness of the law itself … a basic principle of Common Law called jury nullification.

I won’t go into the details of DeChristopher’s eloquent address, but I thought it had fallen on completely deaf ears since Benson’s remarks that followed were a sermon on the necessity for all citizens to bend to the rule of law and operate only within the system to work for change.

Tags: BLM, environment, jury, Jury Nullification, justice, nullification, Peaceful Uprising, rights, Tim DeChristopher

Is Grand Jury Tampering Rooted In Fed’s Psychological Disorders?

Is the tampering of Nevada’s Federal Grand jury rooted in psychological disorders? That is a question being asked by Network CEO Phil Stimac after a recent ruling by U.S. District Judge Robert Jones that he and not the grand jury has the right to weigh and act upon grand jury evidence.

Click through for entire article.

Tags: grand jury, jury, jury tampering, justice, rights