POST: "Two stories: The Harry Potter Edition: Voldemort in court," by Joe Gamso, published on Gamso for the defence on September 22, 2013.
GIST: "It was 1995 when the good people of the Land of Enchantment (New Mexico for you folks who haven't marveled at the Sangre de Cristo mountains), through their elected representatives in the state Senate, unanimously approved an amendment to a bit of legislation. "When a psychologist or psychiatrist testifies during a defendant's competency hearing, the psychologist or psychiatrist shall wear a cone-shaped hat that is not less than two feet tall. The surface of the hat shall be imprinted with stars and lightning bolts. Additionally, a psychologist or psychiatrist shall be required to don a white beard that is not less than 18 inches in length, and shall punctuate crucial elements of his testimony by stabbing the air with a wand. Whenever a psychologist or psychiatrist provides expert testimony regarding a defendant's competency, the bailiff shall contemporaneously dim the courtroom lights and administer two strikes to a Chinese gong." Did I mention that it passed unanimously?".........Barr has respectable credentials. He also has a point of view. That's one reason the prosecutors turn to him. The other is that he presents well. Jurors believe him. They believed him in that case, and the defendant's now serving time for murder. It's theoretically possible, I suppose, that Barr was right in that case. The thing is that the jurors didn't know either. But they believed - or believed enough. After all, proof in the courtroom and the law isn't about what happened. It isn't about what's true or correct. Proof, including proof beyond a reasonable doubt, is simply whatever the jury believes. (It's a bonus, of course, if what the jury believes comports with reality, but it's not a feature of the system.)"
PUBLISHER'S NOTE: My team of 1000 highly skilled researchers tells me that in 1995, New Mexico state senator Duncan Scott actually persuaded the state senate to unanimously pass his bill as a protest against a perceived overuse of psychiatric professionals as expert witnesses in the courts. However, the amendment was ultimately excised before a vote by the House.
SUPPLEMENTARY PUBLISHER'S NOTE! Since I had no idea who Voldemort was - having never read a word of "Harry Potter - I once again put my 1000 highly trained researchers to work. They inform me, as does Wikipedia, that "Voldemort is the archenemy of Harry Potter, who according to a prophecy has "the power to vanquish the Dark Lord".
The entire post can be found at:
http://gamso-forthedefense.blogspot.ca/2013/09/two-stories-harry-potter-edition.html
PUBLISHER'S NOTE:
Dear Reader. Keep your eye on the Charles Smith Blog. We are following these issues.
I have added a search box for content in this blog which now encompasses several thousand posts. The search box is located near the bottom of the screen just above the list of links. I am confident that this powerful search tool provided by "Blogger" will help our readers and myself get more out of the site.
The Toronto Star, my previous employer for more than twenty incredible years, has put considerable effort into exposing the harm caused by Dr. Charles Smith and his protectors - and into pushing for reform of Ontario's forensic pediatric pathology system. The Star has a "topic" section which focuses on recent stories related to Dr. Charles Smith. It can be found at:
http://www.thestar.com/topic/
Information on "The Charles Smith Blog Award"- and its nomination process - can be found at:
http://smithforensic.blogspot.
Please send any comments or information on other cases and issues of interest to the readers of this blog to: hlevy15@gmail.com
