Comparison Of Trial By Fire And Snow Falling On Cedars

On June 12, 1994, the bodies of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman were found dead at her home in Brentwood, CA. Orenthal James Simpson, or O.J. Simpson was notified of their deaths and immediately taken into custody for questions. Upon the collection of various pieces of evidence from the crime scene, all avenues pointed to Simpson as the culprit for the double murder. The conclusion of Simpson criminal trial resulted in his acquittal. There were various reasons for this acquittal. The most prominent reasons include accusations of racism, evidence contamination, and the lack of faith in DNA profiling. This paper will discuss the issues that arose with the trial in depth and offer an explanation and solution to resolving issues

In 2003, possibly one of the worst wildfires in California’s history occurred. This fire, referred to as the Cedar Fire, spread across 273,246 acres.

A very significant case in Cook County Courts was the Bridgeport case, known as a “heater” case because of the publicity that surround it, and the racial overtones (Bogira 181). The Bridgeport case involved three white teenagers, Michael Kwidzinski, Jasas, and Caruso that were accused of brutally beating two young black boys who were riding their bikes in the predominantly white neighborhood. The entire summary of the case, in Courtroom 302, was based around the fact that one of the boys, Michael Kwidzinski, was most likely innocent. The question then turns to the boy himself, Michael Kwidzinski; if he was innocent, why did hid then accept a guilty plea bargain?

Almost every day, we hear about justice being served upon criminals and we, as a society, feel a sense of relief that another threat to the public has been sentenced to a term in prison, where they will no longer pose a risk to the world at large. However, there are very rare occasions where the integrity of the justice system gets skewed and people who should not have been convicted are made to serve heavy prison sentences. When word of this judicial misstep reaches the public, there is social outcry, and we begin to question the judicial system for committing such a serious faux pas.

Few in this country would argue with the fact that the United States criminal justice system possesses discrepancies which adversely affect Blacks in this country. Numerous studies and articles have been composed on the many facets in which discrimination, or at least disparity, is obvious. Even whites are forced to admit that statistics indicate that the Black community is disproportionately affected by the American legal system. Controversy arises when the issue of possible causes of, and also solutions to, these variations are discussed. It’s not just black versus white, it is white versus white, and white versus oriental, whatever the case may be, and it is not justice. If we see patterns then the judges should have the authority to say something. Jury nullifications cannot be overturned regardless of the cause. Exclusionary rule, according to CULS (2010) – Prevents the government from using most evidence gathered in violation of U.S. Constitution; like unreasonable search and seizure (Fourth Amendment).

Lantana and Snow Falling on Cedars present a variety of relationships that explore the restrictions of characters in a culturally limiting society, and ones with intertwining emotions and secrets that contain a darker reality. The crucial type of relationship in both texts is the forbidden connections that are abundant with unrealistic expectations, developed through characterisation as the plot progresses. The texts also display the relationships that have become dysfunctional after significant events, detailing the long term effects on the characters through dialogue. The two texts provide elaborate explanations on these relationships, while exploring the reactions of the characters and their position in the relationship.

Since 1923, when Judge Learned Hand said that the American judicial system “has always been haunted by the ghost of the innocent man convicted,” the issue of wrongful conviction has been acknowledged to man (Halstead, 1992; Huff, Rattner, Sagarin, & MacNamara, 1986). After the judge made his innocuous statements, serious study of this phenomenon began. Contrary to the statement the judge made, time and technology have revealed that an unquantifiable number of wrongfully convicted persons have served prison terms and even been executed for crimes they did not commit and some that did not even occur. Research into wrongful conviction was virtually nonexistent until Professor Edward Brochard of Yale University published his book Convicting the Innocent in 1932. This book documented 65 such cases, addressed the legal causes of miscarriage, and offered suggestions to reform. Subsequently, numerous other researchers began conducting case studies and publishing findings that affirmed that wrongful conviction represents a systematic problem within the American judicial process (Huff, 2002).

Crime can be defined as any action or omission which constitutes an offence and is punishable by law. The representations of crime in fiction has developed and changed dramatically over centuries according to shifts in values and perceptions. Each of the three texts Snow Falling on Cedars, Oceans 11 and Shift , explore different aspects of crime, centred around the duality of good and evil through the redefinition of justice. Societies are always changing. This means that texts will always embody different values according to their context and can influence the meaning and message of the texts.

Welcome esteemed guests, ladies and gentlemen, today I am here at this forum to speak to you about the power of the media, and the effect that it has on our lives. Like many things people experience, the media can change an individual’s perspective. It possesses the power to influence and sway existing attitudes, values and beliefs on issues in society. By doing so, text creators are able to create a desired context; an in invited reading in such was so that the audience has a narrow perspective. As such, through the use of specific literary and cinematic techniques created by these invited readings, media texts are able to persuade groups to favour values and ideas that align those of the text. The novel, ‘Snow Falling on Cedars’ by David

The New York Times bestseller book titled Reasonable Doubts: The Criminal Justice System and the O.J. Simpson Case examines the O.J. Simpson criminal trial of the mid-1990s. The author, Alan M. Dershowitz, relates the Simpson case to the broad functions and perspectives of the American criminal justice system as a whole. A Harvard law school teacher at the time and one of the most renowned legal minds in the country, Dershowitz served as one of O.J. Simpson’s twelve defense lawyers during the trial. Dershowitz utilizes the Simpson case to illustrate how today’s criminal justice system operates and relates it to the misperceptions of the public. Many outside spectators of the case firmly believed that Simpson committed the

In her memoir, My Life with Martin Luther King Jr., Coretta Scott King writes that “the struggle is a never-ending process. Freedom is never really won. You earn it and win it in every generation” (King). Snow Falling on Cedars, by David Guterson, describes the trial of Kabuo Miyamoto who sits falsely accused of murder largely because of circumstance and his Japanese race. Aggregately, this contributes to unattainability of equal justice under the law due to an emphasis on peer testimony in the legal system of Miyamoto’s world. Guterson’s direct and indirect characterizations convey a lack of communication between cultural groups and the ensuing hostility and misunderstanding that consequences to the near conviction of Kabuo. The novel’s account

Arguably three of the most sensational criminal trials in American history are the Commonwealth vs. Borden, California vs. Simpson and Los Angeles vs. Rodney King. All three of these cases received unprecedented amounts of media attention and verdicts from the jury that shocked the country. In my opinion justice, especially social and moral justice, was not achieved in these trials. Social class, race and gender all had a huge impact on the jury’s decisions in each of these cases. High priced defense attorneys were able to place reasonable doubt in the minds of the jurors despite the substantial amount of evidence proving the seemingly obvious guilt of Borden, Simpson and the Los Angeles Police department. This paper will focus on these

In the all states within the United States it is illegal to kill or cause the death of another human being. It is unlawful to kill or cause the death of another human being. Do we have laws that exist in some states that allow for senseless killing of another human being? Can a law that is in effect actually determine if a grown armed man can legally shoot and kill an unarmed black teenager? Does implicit racial bias play a role in how these cases are prosecuted and investigated? In Florida it most certainly can. This paper looks at a certain case I our recent history and how certain laws and biases may have played a role in the verdict of “not guilty.

In a perfect world every person’s rights would never be compromised, within a society that is free of crime. Everyone would be equal and treated fairly. Unfortunately this is not the case, our system was created to serve and to protect the lives and rights of every American. Although, the scary reality is that not everyone’s rights are always protected and some are even wrongfully convicted of crimes he or she is innocent of. This is an unnerving concept that seems like a plot to a popular crime fighting show. Sadly, this possibility was a reality for a man named Ryan Ferguson. Three key factors of the Ryan Ferguson case are: the Crime Control Model, the role of evidence, and the role of Appellate courts.

Throughout the history of the world, fire has been a common phenomenon. It has been a constant companion of humans ever since it was discovered by our ancestors. Wildfires can cause serious damage, both to property and human life, but can also have various beneficial effects on wilderness areas. Some plant ecosystems depend on the effects of fire for growth and reproduction, while large wildfire can possibly have negative ecological effects. The irony is that fire can both be beneficial to our survival and it can be a destructive force in its nature, which can threaten our very existence as living organisms.