Monday, January 25, 2010

Tom Woods on State Nullification of Unconstitutional "Laws"

Thomas Woods Speech - C4L Rigional Conference
Thomas Woods Jr. gives speech on "NULLIFICATION" to the Campaign for Liberty Regional Conference, Atlanta Georgia 1/15/2010.





This fits right in with Jury Nullification of bad laws, and unconstitutional laws.
See the concept of Jury nullification at  http://www.fija.org/
Jury nullification is in full force and effect at law in Montana and all other states.

But the judges don't want you to know your power on the Jury. They will ask you if you will take the law as the judge gives it to you. If you answer no they will surely exclude you from serving as a juror. If you answer yes, they might ask you to take an oath to that effect, but they can not stop you from voting your conscience in the jury room. They can't stop you from nullifying bad law. They can not stop you from refusing to apply a specific statute to a specific set of facts if you decide that it is not appropriate, thereby nullifying that law.

A single nullification verdict against a particular law may or may not alter or reform the government, but thousands of such verdicts certainly do. Witness the decisive role of jury nullification in establishing freedom of speech and press in the American Colonies, defeating the Fugitive Slave Act and ending alcohol prohibition.
The concept of nullification also fits with the concept of the Grand Jury which has been subjugated to control by prosecutors and judges. Grand Juries should stand as a barrier between the over-zealous and power hungry government, over-zealous prosecutors, and We the People.
Study at  http://www.americangrandjury.org/

See language on jury nullification as contained in current state law here:
http://www.fija.org/docs/JG_state_language_on_jury_nullification.pdf

See Jury power and the system of checks and balances here:
http://www.fija.org/docs/JG_Jurors_Handbook.pdf

As a juror you already have these powers. You don't have to lobby and get new laws passed. You don't have to have a judge's permission. You don't have to spend any money to have these powers. You don't have to beg any government agent for these rights and duties.

The only law we might want to pass is one the commands all judges to make sure the jury understands these rights to nullify bad law with specific language to be read to the jury before each case is sent to the jury. We might also want to have a statute that makes it a crime for anyone, including judges and prosecutors, to hide these facts from the jury.

This article should start a lively discussion in the comments section on the subject of using jury nullification and grand jury powers to reign in out of control agents of government, especially those who work in the judicial system. Please comment at the "comments" link below.

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