Olivia, I wasn't actually responding to your posts directly so please don't take my comment personally. ;)  I was actually responding to a comment on the first page before I realized there were 2 more pages so I was late to the conversation.

In any case, I'm mixed on whether the system is broken.  Ultimately trial verdicts are decided by juries.  Juries even have the ability to disagree with the judge and pronounce someone not guilty -- even if their pronouncement is contrary to the law.  Its called Jury Nullification ([url]http://en.wikipedia.org/wik... Judges don't like it and you will rarely hear any judge instruct a jury that this option is available.  They typically say "You are here to decide the facts of the case, not interpret the law."  So ultimately if the system is failing I blame jurors who usually look for any excuse to get out of jury duty to begin with, and rarely take the time to truly learn how the courts and juror systems are supposed to work at all.  I don't know why the jury let OJ off the hook, but I'm sure they had their reasons, good or bad.  And thats exactly the reason its THEIR fault.  They are the ones that said "Not Guilty" and it is their responsibility.  Thats why jury duty should not be taken lightly.  Obviously the civil suit against him went the opposite way. ;)

All that said, I'm sure this guy is a criminal of some sort and does some other crimes that may or may not be as heinous as murder.  But he's still innocent until its PROVEN that he's guilty.   The mindset that says because someone is arrested they are probably guilty, or because they ran and hid they must have something to hide is a dangerous one.  That isn't presumption of innocence.  Thats presumption of guilt based on the idea that he was possibly guilty of some other unrelated crime or he "acted" guilty or he had a "bad" history.   The idea is that it is better to let a few criminals get away than put one innocent person in prison and I believe that.  The system isn't perfect by any means, because people are not perfect, but so far its the best one in the world. 

So, Smokey, what do you do for a living? You doth protest too much...

Sadly, many ARE children that these lowlifes peddle their wares to.

And why is that.

Bigdog, yes I remember the story, but not the details.  I have the memory of an ant.  Well.... of course unless youv'e done something to irk me, then it seems to stick.  Sorry  : (

Yeah, whatever, you people suck.  I think drug dealers are low life pieces of chit and I will continue to think that.  Hopefully God forbid one of them don't sell your 12 year old drugs...Because believe me, there is a demand for the crap, and dope dealers don't really care who they sell to.  Jewels, you don't suck, your'e my character witness.  Man I have a headache, I'm bloated, I'm out of sorts, I just asked the dr for an IV of LSD, .... He just looked at me like I was crazy.  I took that as a no? 

yeah...olivia...you can also use the "diminished capacity" or "twinkie defense" when you are on trial for the crimes committed under the influence of PMS :) Look out Big Dog she is rackin up her defense...better not piss her off.

I have to agree somewhat with wawa on this one. I think people are passing judgement on this man a little to quickly and without knowing the facts of the case. I do however hope that this man is judged fairly and if found guilty that he pays a hefty price for taking the life of this woman.

Drug dealers are nothing more than recreational pharmacists. If there weren't DRUG USERS in tehachapi (or anywhere else for that matter) there would be no DRUG DEALERS! It is simpy supply and demand.

Whoever said drug dealers ruin lives are completely mis-placing blame. Drug Dealers supply a product, they do not force people to buy it, they do no force people to use it, they do not force people to become addicted and neglect their families/lives...etc. They simply offer a product, if someone chooses to purchase it and use it that is on them. These are not children we are talking about, grown men and women capable of making informed, educated decisions.

many doctors are puppets of the pharmaceutical industry; they're nothing but glorified drug dealers! Perhaps we should track them all down and hang them also...

Stop blaming the person that supplies the product and realize the person/people that chose to use the product are doing that of their own volition. To blame a drug dealer for someone elses actions/problems/deficiencies is just as smart as blaming fast food for making people fat and television for making people lazy.

Olivia I thought I taught you better, It was called the twinkie defense. In 1978 disgruntled  Dan white killed S. F. Mayor George moscone and Gay Supervisor Harvey Milk. He was facing first degree murder charges. The jury accepted his Diminished Capacity argument and He was convicted of voluntary manslaughter and served only five years.  The so called twinkie defense is a widely accepted misinterpretation of Whites Deminished Capacity argument. In 1984 White was found in his car dead with garden hose was attached to his exhaust pipe.

So a rubber hose was found with him in his car? No mention of any Twinkie crumbs??

I'm being framed by an American Idol participant.  This really is better than soap operas.

No, actually he was the one who was murdered by Dan White - who ate too many twinkies...

He ate toooooo many twinkies!!!!!  What happened I forgot, he did something, killed someone and blamed it on the twinkies he ate?

Olivia - I'm ready! Locked and loaded (oops, no pun intended).

I don't believe WAWA is for real. I think he/she is pulling our chains...

Scott - it is presumed innocent until proven guilty. I didn't say that was broken. I said the system is broken. Why else would OJ be out there looking for the real killer on all those golf courses? I get such a kick out of how people misinterpret things said on these blogs.

Any one remember Harvey Milk and the Twinkie Defense? LOL!!!!!!

I think you mean Medicone is bringing the Twinkies!