Should Jurors Pledge to US?

Posted on July 8, 2003 by glasscastle

In a case in Denver Federal District Court, to begin a jury selection
session, the judge led all of the prospective jurors in reciting the Pledge
of Allegiance (to the United States, the plantiff in the case). His next
words, asking prosecutors if they were ready to begin jury selection:"Is
the United States of America ready to proceed?"

Frank Herbert Wonschik, 46, was convicted of possessing parts to convert
a semiautomatic rifle into an illegal machine gun and sentenced to 27
months in prison . Now his lawyer is asking for a retrial on the grounds
that Jurors cannot be asked to pledge allegiance to one of the parties
in a court case…..

From
Channel 7, Denver
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13 Responses to Should Jurors Pledge to US?

  1. RexCurry.net says:
    April 14, 2004 at 1:22 pm

    As an attorney, I am asked about the Pledge of Allegiance court case (Newdow) and whether anyone must recite the Pledge (answer: No). But an even bigger case than Newdow is headed for the U.S. Supreme Court. U.S. v Wonschik (at http://members.ij.net/rex/pledge4.html ) argues that judges should not lead jurors in reciting the Pledge.

    Wonschik argues that jurors feel that they are forced to recite the Pledge, and that criminal defendants are denied a fair trial due to the appearance that the Judge favors the prosecution.

    The argument is bolstered by the fact that jurors today are mostly from government schools, and some states led jurors to robotically chant the pledge en masse and on cue from the government daily for their entire educations. Even more frightening is that the original Pledge used a salute that was like the National Socialist German Workers’ Party salute (eye-popping historic photos at http://members.ij.net/rex/pledge2.html ). Today, most jurors are from government schools, and that was not the case historically in the U.S., where education is not mentioned in the constitution. The government was socializing schools when the Pledge was created, and one purpose of the original Pledge event was to push government schools, to replace all of the better alternatives. (as described at http://members.ij.net/rex/pledge1.html ).

    Arguments against the Pledge in court are also good objections to government schools and to jurors from government schools (see http://members.ij.net/rex/schoolsmain.html ).

    Jurors were taught by the government that they are required to render verdicts of guilty based on evidence in cases where many people believe that jurors should always render verdicts of acquittal regardless of the evidence (medical marijuana, gambling, vices, prostitution, drugs, gun possession, and all non-violent consensual activity that is criminalized) – cases that should not involve criminal charges at all. Government schools never teach jurors about nullification and jury pardon (the power jurors have to acquit regardless of the law and in rejection of the law).

    A Pledge of Allegiance in a courtroom merely reaffirms the non-libertarian indoctrination that most jurors have received all of their lives in government schools.

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