Passage A
The jury system was originally conceived not merely as a fact-finding body, but as the conscience of the community. In early common law, jurors were recognized as having the authority to judge both the facts of a case and the law itself. This prerogative allows a jury to acquit a defendant even when the evidence of guilt is overwhelming, provided they believe the law being applied is fundamentally unjust or its application in the specific case is morally repugnant. To strip the jury of this power is to reduce it to a mere administrative tool of the state, removing a crucial democratic check against legislative tyranny.
Passage B
Modern legal systems are built on the foundational principle of the rule of law, which requires that laws be applied consistently and predictably. To ensure this, the roles within a courtroom are strictly delineated: the judge determines the applicable law, and the jury determines the facts based on the evidence presented. Permitting juries to disregard the law based on their own moral compasses—however well-intentioned—invites chaos. It replaces the uniform application of democratically enacted statutes with the arbitrary and potentially biased whims of twelve individuals. Juries must therefore be bound by the judge's instructions regarding the law.
Based on the passages, is the following statement true or false?
The authors disagree over whether democratically enacted statutes can sometimes be fundamentally unjust.
Cevap: Cevap