A major theme of the film is a reflection on the jury system. The original intention of this system was to limit the scope of the government's powers and prevent the government and the police from abusing their powers to infringe on citizens' rights and even frame citizens, so the power of adjudication was handed over to the jury that best represents the American people. In order to represent the public opinion to the greatest extent, all jurors are the most common people on the street, and there are no restrictions on education, education level or character. Therefore, we can say that the implementation effect of this system largely depends on the quality of citizens.
In my humble opinion, there are two problems with the jury system.
First, the quality of citizens is uneven, which can easily lead to the consequences of laymen guiding experts. Although Nick's self-interest in the lawyer's selection of the jury is disguised, it cannot be denied that there are people who want to avoid obligations in reality. And Herrera also exposed her heart in anger: "No matter how many sweet home videos that lawyer plays, I suffer more than that woman's worth. Fuck the law, even if the gun company buys it. I don't care if the donuts give away M16." Imagine if the jury were all selfish people, who regarded others' pursuit of justice as the pursuit of money, and did not want to let others escape the sea of misery because they were also suffering in life. , how absurd the result of the trial should be.
So, the first step in civic awareness is that the concept of "I care" needs to be deeply rooted in people's minds. No matter who the plaintiff is, no matter what his character is, whether he likes or dislikes, and no matter how much mess you have left in your home, you must have the awareness of "I care". In addition to caring about the plaintiff, there is also the law, justice and even the country. Maintaining the normal operation of the law and pursuing justice should not only be borne by some people in specific positions, but should be given to everyone. Consciousness, also known as "everyone is responsible".
Of course, consciousness is not enough, without quality, you can only do bad things with good intentions.
Second, jurors are still human after all, and the lack of relevant quality training makes it impossible for them to avoid the weakness of "human". For example, people are easily influenced, both easily influenced by past experiences and easily "incited". In order to avoid jurors' personal experience affecting the fairness of the trial, the court will exclude those who have had a similar experience. For example, if the defendant is a suspect in a rape-murder case, the court will not select citizens who have been sexually assaulted. After the jury members were confirmed, they were isolated from the media and public opinion.
Although so many layers of protection have been added, people are still people, and interference factors can only be reduced, not completely eliminated. Thus, the profession of "jury screening consultant" came into being. In the movie, Lorre originally intended to only use experience to select people, but was pressured to hire a masters in psychology. However, Lan Jin firmly grasped this loophole of the jury system, and would do anything to win the lawsuit. He has a strong team dedicated to investigating the background of jurors. The team's high efficiency and professionalism make it an intelligence agency-like presence. Through detailed observation, personality judgments, they try to single out those who are selfish and unsympathetic, in the hope that they will be on their side in the trial. In the end, Lan Jin even directly targeted the privacy of the jurors, using their secrets to threaten and intimidate.
Even if the use of these criminals is excluded, the jury is still limited by personal prejudice and level of knowledge. As social animals, they are still easily influenced by the environment and others. Although Nick said that what he did was to prevent criminals from cheating, the same "weapon of influence" fell into the hands of another villain, and the result was naturally different. Moreover, it is difficult for you to say that the final "justice" is under control. It is more like the result of losing control and then losing control again. It is like a monster similar to "negative and positive". There is only a fine line between victory and defeat. The obvious point is that the rationality of the jury cannot give us enough confidence. That's why Lan Jin said, "The trial is not child's play, and it cannot be left to the jury to decide."
The root of all problems is probably what Linda pointed out - "When any society under the rule of law is chasing its roots, it will face a confusion, that is, whether it is legislation or law enforcement, 'people' are there to carry out "Humans have emotions, they are easily influenced and even controlled, and it is impossible to become a cold machine that enforces the law completely. Just for this, Lanjin chose to use it, and Lore chose to include it and make it function reasonably.
About the jury system, I only know so much for the time being. Let’s talk about the other two points that impressed me the most—one is that when Lore and Mary were negotiating, Lore was surprised at the request made by Mary, and with a hint of pity in her anger, she grabbed Mary who was about to leave: “Who is it? Hurt you? Who made you like this?" Mary instantly lost her cold expression and became a little dazed, as if she had discovered a weakness.
Lore's thinking is amazing. For ordinary people, they are probably outraged, and they will rage at this person who is greedy for money, has no humanity, and is a beast, but Lore's thinking is reversed. He is thinking about what experience made this person so cruel. It can be seen from this point that Lore is a person who has insight into human nature and is worthy of admiration.
Another is the love between Nick and Mary. This otherworldly experience binds them firmly together and achieves complete spiritual integration. Mary maintained an almost cold sanity in front of her opponent, but she was well-behaved in front of Nick. In order to seek justice, Mary struggled away from home for several years. After the incident, they passed the school's basketball court, watching the children running and jumping, thinking about their safety and the happiness of their family. A happy smile appeared on his face.
"I want to go home," said Mary.
"Okay, let's go." Nick answered softly in her ear.
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