Has The New York Judicial System Become A Clown Show?
Yup…But Nobody Is Laughing
People of New York, how much does it take for you to be embarrassed into doing something? I would have thought that Harvey Weinstein’s verdict being overturned would have been the tipping point for change but so far, nothing.
This is From the AP.
New York’s Court of Appeals found the trial judge in the rape case prejudiced Weinstein with “egregious” improper rulings, including a decision to let women testify about allegations that Weinstein wasn’t charged with.
In its 4–3 decision, the court’s majority said it was an “abuse of judicial discretion” for Judge James Burke to allow testimony from these other women about “loathsome alleged bad acts and despicable behavior.”
Harvey Weinstein is now innocent until proven guilty, again, because of “egregious” errors by the judge. And by extension, “egregious” errors from the prosecutor for putting the judge in the position of having to rule on these witnesses. And these errors do not appear to be small technical mistakes, but “egregious” improprieties.
Trials in New York are no longer about justice. It is about the show and what sells.
Justice that does not sell.
Being a Jewish college student — thousands of Jewish college students in New York are afraid to go to class. They are being harassed and are now subject to hate speech. Where is their justice? I am not aware of any arrests related to harassment or hate speech in an attempt to defend these students. This is despite harassment being on display every evening on almost every news source. The problem with justice in New York is that it is no longer about what is right but what sells. Antisemitism does not sell in New York anymore.
Prosecuting migrants — one thing that sells in New York is being pro-migrant. Five or more migrants beat up a couple of New York Police officers, and it becomes better for public relations (aka selling the New York brand) to release them without bail than bringing justice to the people of New York and for those brave women and men who protect them. This is from Fox5 in New York.
“New York City — Two NYPD officers were attacked last month after police said they were trying to break up a gang of migrant men accused of acting disorderly near Times Square in New York City.
Police initially arrested four people, and then a fifth person a few days later, but outrage grew after all were released without bail.”
Harvey Weinstein victims — And back to where this column started, where is the justice for the women who were victims of Harvey Weinstein? Maybe in this case it is not about determining justice that sells, but about a void in legal capabilities brought on by emphasizing the show rather than the law and prosecuting the guilty.
Justice that does sell — The Show
The Show in New York is now all about Trump. And New York has hit the trifecta on this one.
1. E. Jean Carroll’s $92 million defamation judgment against Trump.
2. The $454 million fine imposed on the Trump organization for fraud against victims who testified they were not harmed.
3. And currently the trial about Trump’s improper hush money payments to influence an election.
As a non-lawyer I am like most Americans trying to apply some common sense and critical thinking to all of this.
1. E. Jean Caroll’s judgment may or may not stand but here is the irony. Trump has been defaming people for decades. When he was the darling of the New York real estate market he was not part of the lineup of New York judicial shows. But now that he is on the other side of politics in New York, prosecuting him is primetime show-worthy material.
2. The fraud conviction seems questionable in both the verdict and the fine amount. Prejudice and bias have their fingerprints all over this prosecution and judgment. It is well documented that New York’s attorney general ran on getting Trump. And now she has. The question many Americans have that no one has answered is how can there be fraud without having victims of a fraud? It is like being convicted of murder when no one was even injured let alone died. In the court of public opinion, this would seem to defy logic and eventually, it will find its way to an appeals court that agrees.
3. They should end the hush money payments trial now. If this trial is really about a conspiracy to influence the 2016 election, then I have tens of millions of reasons why each presidential candidate in the last 100 years has been equally guilty of conspiring to influence their respective election. This is from Axios.
“The prosecutors’ focus on election interference comes as some legal experts view the New York criminal trial as the weakest of Trump’s four criminal indictments.
But prosecutors, in an apparent attempt to refute those characterizations, are casting the case and allegations against Trump in much broader terms.
“Together they conspired to influence the 2016 presidential election,” Colangelo said of Trump, Michael Cohen and David Pecker, the former National Enquirer publisher.”
New York is a great city. I have visited there many times. The people, restaurants, and sights have never disappointed. But your judicial system is a joke. And like many people, I fail to see the humor or rationale of New Yorkers letting it continue.
Writer — Rick is a fiscal conservative with a dispassionate political bias (both sides are awful) and a moderate point of view towards social concerns. His ideas are framed based on common sense and open dialogue. His purpose in writing these articles is not to persuade you, but to offer a perspective that stirs respectful and thoughtful conversation.
© 2024 Rick Santangelo