Penn, William - Jury Goes to Prison

                       

                               Trial transcript of William Penn and William Mead.  Image online courtesy Google Books.

The question is not,
whether I am Guilty of this Indictment,
but whether this Indictment be legal.

William Penn
Trial of William Penn (1670)
6 Howell's State Trials, Page 951

 

Juries today listen to a phrase they don't believe:

You shall deliberate this case,
without food and water,
until you reach a verdict.

One can imagine the average juror's reaction:

Right! I don't think so!!

Typical response from a modern juror. In today's world, who would actually think a judge could order folks not to eat or drink until they decided a case?

But ... in years past ... it is exactly what would be expected. It is exactly what happened to William Penn's jury.

That and much, much more.

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Author: Carole D. Bos, J.D.

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Original Release Date:  October, 1999
Updated Quarterly, or as Needed