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Thursday, November 12, 2009
No, confessing to a reporter during an interview is not the same as pleading guilty in a court of law. Even after the reporter writes a story reprinted in dozens of papers, the defendant still gets to insist on a trial. Really. I don't know why so many people in the general public have a hard time with that concept. A confession like that may make the state's case pretty easy. It may make a trial something with a foregone conclusion. But it doesn't get the state off the hook for presenting evidence in court. And, heck, even those guys who are "obviously" guilty still get to put the state through its paces at trial. Sorry if that frustrates you all, but that's just how it goes.
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2 comments:
Well, it doesn't make life easy for us if the client shoots her mouth off.
How did this happen in the first place?
No, it does not make life easy for the defense attorney, but fortunately this particular defendant is not my client. I don't know if the guy called the reporter or the other way around, but this particular defendant has been pretty willing to shoot his mouth off.
All of our regional papers have comment sections online and I have been frustrated at how many people have asked why there is even a trial still scheduled. As if a guy who has (allegedly) confessed (on the phone to a reporter) no longer gets a trial. I'm sure it won't be the easiest trial for his attorneys, but, yes, this defendant still gets a trial.
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