The beef is, Shameless, is that there was NO DNA of hers or Raffael's at the crime scene. She had no access to an interpreter, the jury wasn't given any real evidence and they were not sequestered. So yes, I agree that Italy's judicial system IS a joke. The jury didn't decide on the facts of the case. They convicted based on tabloid journalism.
I'm not privy to all details of the case. Actually, it doesn't interest me much. But even if this particular case was not so clear cut, do you think it's enough to bad-mouth all the system? I guess you never have questionable ruling in the American system, because if you have, I would be forced to call your system a joke, too.
Plus there is also reason to suspect that there was bias due to the national origin of the defendant...in other words, that this may be anti-American sentiment made manifest. It seemed a foregone conclusion from the very beginning, regardless of the evidence or lack thereof. Given that, and the other denials of basic rights to the defendant, it should be no wonder that this angers a good many Americans and that we feel about it the same way we would feel about an Iranian mock trial rather than a verdict reached by an American or British court.
Yeah, because Italy is not a civilized western European country, but a Middle-East brutal dictatorship. But I guess only English speaking countries are civilized. If there is something like a nationalist bias, is all in the words of the American media: here in Italy no one ever commented over the fact that Amanda Knox was an US citizen.
In the immortal words of Chief Archon Makbar, "The verdict is guilty. The sentence is death. Let the trial begin!"
Geez. Funny how someone that has an online fantasy of being a Cardassian is fast and loose to make comparison between a sci-fi fascist government and another country's legal system. In other words, be thankful this is not TNZ.
Choose your sarcasm. My opinion is an informed one. Their system is a joke.
And, in your informed opinion, how is Italy's system different from any other European country?
but the way the crowd reacted when she was convicted (rather like a thumbs-down at a gladiatorial match)
Oh, that's cute. I guess you shouldn't trust those swarthy foreigners, don't you agree?
Edited to add: You may find it interesting to read back on the "Have you ever been on a trial jury?" thread, where one of the posters talks about being on a federal jury in a trial where Wal-Mart was the defendant, and more than one juror apparently talked seriously about the possibility of delivering a punitive guilty verdict against Wal-Mart, to hurt them, simply because they didn't like Wal-Mart... blah blah blah
Yeah, and this is the reason why here in Italy we
don't have jury trial, but a quorum of popular and professional judges. Now, care to know what you are talking about before hitting the keyboard?
Jack Frost--not only do you have the fact that the tabloids were savaging her and that the jury was not sequestered from this influence, but the way the crowd reacted when she was convicted (rather like a thumbs-down at a gladiatorial match) makes it suspect as well. And it is a well-known fact that Americans ARE despised overseas, at least by the majorities, in many countries. While we can't 100% prove anti-American bias was at the root of the verdict, the multiple miscarriages of justice throughout the course of the trial render the entire proceedings suspect, that such influences could easily have gotten in.
Raffaele Sollecito, an Italian citizen, got the exact same treatment and he too was sentenced to 25 years in prison. So was there an Anti-Italian bias in rendering the decision as well?
Of course. Italians hates everybody, even themselves.
