The Oath Keeper Juror
By Don Doig
The Constitution is the supreme law of the land, and the Oath is to the Constitution, not to the government, or to any official. This has implications for persons summoned for jury duty. It has implications for judges and prosecutors too, should they be interested in obeying their oath.
Trial by jury is secured by the Constitution (Art. III Section 2) and in the Six Amendment and Seventh Amendment of the Bill of Rights, and also in the Due Process clause of the Fifth. The power (and right and responsibility) of the jury to vote according to conscience and to judge the merits (and constitutionality) of the law as well as the facts in the case is what makes trial by jury an important bulwark of liberty. Trial by Jury places protection of the rights of the citizens in the hands of the citizens directly.
The Founders believed that trial by jury would preserve and protect our rights, and they put a lot of emphasis on it as a bedrock principle of a free society, going back to the Magna carta.
Thomas Jefferson said, “I consider trial by jury as the only anchor yet imagined by man, by which a government can be held to the principles of its constitution.”
John Adams said of the juror, “it is not only his right, but his duty – to find the verdict according to his own best understanding, judgment, and conscience, though in direct opposition to the direction of the court.” (Yale Law Journal, 1964:173)
The trials of the Quaker William Penn in England for preaching an illegal religion to an unlawful assembly and the publisher John Peter Zenger for publishing unlawful (but true) criticism of the royal governor of New York colony helped establish
our legal traditions of freedom of religion and speech. In both cases, rebellious, conscientious jurors voted for acquittal against the law and the instructions of the judge.
The power of the jury stems from several features. A verdict of Not Guilty in a criminal trial is final and may not be appealed. The prohibition of double jeopardy prevents a retrial.
Jurors may not be punished for their verdicts.
A verdict of Guilty must be unanimous. A hung jury stops the prosecution and that is a good thing if necessary to protect a defendant’s legitimate rights. One person can and should hang a jury if conscience so dictates.
Jurors have the right and responsibility to vote according to conscience, and the defendant has the right to expect that his jurors will do that. Jurors can judge the law itself and ask themselves if it is constitutional. If it is not, a Not Guilty verdict
on all counts is appropriate.
Unlike voting in an election, your vote as a juror really counts for something. Trial by jury is a crucial safeguard of the individual against bad laws and malicious prosecution. It is the only real direct power the individual citizen has over the actions of the government.
Trial by jury is under attack in America. The forces of tyranny view it as an impediment to top down control of the people. Prosecutors stack the jury with people who promise to take the
law as the judge says and convict no matter whether it is the right thing to do. Judges intimidate jurors into thinking they have no choice but to convict if the evidence shows guilt, that they might even get into trouble if they vote their consciences. In fact, though, jurors can not be punished for their verdicts.
For more information, see the Juror’s Handbook at http://fija.org/
In the federal system, if you re charged with a “misdemeanor” you are not granted your right to a trial by jury, and that can mean six months in federal prison – and then they multiply charges, so you can spend years in prison with no jury trial.
Prosecutors intimidate defendants into giving up their right to trial by jury by multiplying charges, then offering them a plea bargain if they will plead guilty to so-called lesser charges. Sometimes even people who are actually completely innocent will be intimidated into pleading guilty to avoid a long prison sentence.
Prosecutors and judges, acting in collusion, exclude evidence favorable to the defense. They limit what the defense is allowed to say! How can that be?
And now, the federal government, using the Patriot Act and other homeland security laws has completely eliminated due process and trial by jury. Any American citizen can now be declared an “enemy combatant”, incarcerated in secret prisons and tortured with no due process at all, no trial by jury at all. Habeas corpus has been eliminated, so you can be held indefinitely and nothing can be done about it.
It has been said that there are four boxes available to us to protect our liberty: The Soap Box, the Ballot Box, the Jury Box, and the Cartridge Box. The forces of tryanny have all four boxes under attack.
As an Oath Keeper, the Oath you took to the Constitution supersedes any “oath” the judge may extract from you. Any attempt by the judge to abrogate your higher oath should be seen for what it is, an illegitimate usurpation of your rights as a citizen and as an Oath Keeper. Do whatever you need to do to get yourself seated as a juror when your turn comes.
Once on the jury, Oath Keepers should ref lect on whether the law which the defendant is accused of violating is in fact constitutional. If you are in state court, the same principles apply. Hold the states to the principles of the Constitution and Bill of Rights too!
Don Doig is a citizen Oath Keeper who lives in Montana. An assistant editor for The Oath Keeper newspaper, Don is a long time freedom fighter and is one of the original co-founders of the Fully Informed Jury Association.
“The general rule is that an unconstitutional statute, though having the form and name of law, is in reality no law, but is wholly void, and ineffective for any purpose; since unconstitutionality dates from the time of its enactment, and not merely from the date of the decision so branding it. An unconstitutional law, in legal contemplation, is as inoperative as if it had never been passed. Such a statute leaves the question that it purports to settle just as it would be had the statute not been enacted.
“Since an unconstitutional law is void, the general principles follow that it imposes no duties, confers no rights, creates no office, bestows no power or authority on anyone, affords no protection, and justifies no acts performed under it. . . .
A void act cannot be legally consistent with a valid one. An unconstitutional law cannot operate to supersede any existing valid law. Indeed, insofar as a statute runs counter to the fundamental law of the land, it is superseded thereby. No one
is bound to obey an unconstitutional law and no courts are bound to enforce it.” American Jurisprudence, Vol 16, 177
There’s no way to rule innocent men. The only power any government has is the power to crack down on criminals. Well, when there aren’t enough criminals, one makes them. One declares so many things to be a crime that it becomes impossible to live without breaking laws. —
Ayn Rand, Atlas Shrugged
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The Fully Informed Jury Association works to preserve the right to trial by jury as it was envisioned by the Founders.
P.O. Box 5570, Helena MT
59604-5570. www.fija.org
Phone 406-442-7800,
Fax 406-442-9332
Please donate and support Oath Keepers mission, every little bit helps!
June 29th, 2010 at 8:49 pm
This is very enlightening and reassuring information. I have yet to be summoned for jury duty and always dreaded the possibility. Now, I look quite forward to it.
June 30th, 2010 at 7:53 am
Nothing real here, except bad advice.
Anyone who quotes Ayn Rand on anything is a few clowns short of a circus.
June 30th, 2010 at 5:41 pm
I think the front left guy in that jury box is playing with some wood.
July 6th, 2010 at 9:03 pm
The judge will tell you that you must decide the verdict under strict rules that he will outline. He is lying to you. If it were nothing more than an exercise in checking the box, a jury would not be needed. The judge could decide the case himself. No, the jury is there for justice. A person may be guilty of an violating an unjust, unconstitutional law, but the duty of the jury is to judge the law, as well as the facts. If the law is bad, find the defendant ‘not guilty’.
The jury is the final check on a corrupt judicial system.
Now that Buck has stated his opposition, everyone can move forward with confidence.
July 7th, 2010 at 7:33 am
Ryan sez “I think the front left guy in that jury box is playing with some wood”
OMG! It’s Corbin!
July 12th, 2010 at 9:53 am
Please, explain all the bad advice you see in the article. Personal insults, usually, indicate that one has run out of rational discourse. Is that what happened here?
Come on, Buck! Don’t give up that easily!
July 15th, 2010 at 3:04 pm
Gentlemen:
I’m glad to see Oath Keepers spreading the word about FIJA. This is lost knowledge. Your great grandfather knew about this but its no longer taught in schools. (Imagine that) This is the key to our freedoms. Even if legislators make bad law, we can fix it.
August 9th, 2010 at 7:22 pm
I for one appreciate the advice and hard work behind it presented here.
BTW Bucky, which agency planted you here? Ever been to prison on a false conviction? just wondering…..
August 19th, 2010 at 10:18 am
Dear Ryan; I very strongly agree with you that all Americans, owe their beliefs to both the Constitution and the Bill of Rights. Yours in Brotherhood, gatorrebel12
August 24th, 2010 at 8:04 pm
thanks don for an excellent, well-informed article
good quote from ayn rand too