As with any criminal case, there are always a number of issues pertaining the stages of the crime and also the media and the general public’s opinion of the case. Many of the issues and explicit actions of certain individuals that had happened during the Corryn Rayney case had affected the interpretation of the case in someway for both government workers and the general public. By analysing the issues of the case, it allows a much more detailed view on the case and how most of the issues are linked in one way or another.
The outcome of Tom Robinson’s trial was most certainly unfair and based on the racism in Maycomb. There was a plethora of evidence that he was not guilty in any way. There were marks of two hands’ fingers around Mayella Ewell’s neck, bruises that were mostly concentrated on the right side of her face (meaning that the attacker would be left handed as Bob Ewell was, and Tom had a crippled left arm), and the changing stories told by the each of the Ewells. As Atticus, the man defending Tom, makes his closing statement, he remarks on all of the evidence against the Ewells, and states that if Thomas Jefferson was correct, all men are equal; so, Tom Robinson should be parallel to Robert E. Lee Ewell, especially in the court. When the verdict is
The Baldus study itself was a combination of two studies. Both studies reviewed over 2,000 cases in the state of Georgia during the 1970’s. The study’s main focus was to evaluate the influence of racial factors in the death sentencing phase. In most aspects of the study, the findings were not surprising except for one outcome. The study concluded that there was a racial disparity in the sentencing process. The biggest disparity that was found was when a death penalty case involved a white victim and a black defendant. After reviewing the death penalty cases, there was an indication that “twenty-two percent of cases received the death penalty when a black defendant and white victim were involved….compared to only three percent when there was a black victim and white defendant involved.” The study broke this data down further and looked at the percentages of when a prosecutor seeks the death penalty. The study found that prosecutors sought the death penalty in “seventy percent of cases that involved white victims and black defendants and only nineteen percent when the roles were reversed.” However, despite all of the racial disparities found, there was one conclusion that was quite surprising and contradicting. The figures from the cases reviewed suggested that there is a reverse racial disparity in the sentencing process. After
For years now there has been a lot of controversy involving the looming question: Is the criminal justice system racist? Racism is prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism directed against someone of a different race based on the belief that one 's own race is superior. Ever since the Trayvon Martin case of 2012, the justice system has been in a complete downfall including all of the police brutality cases since then also. According to sources, 1 of every 4 African American males born this decade are expected to go to prison in their lifetime. Census Bureau reports that the U.S. is 13 percent percent black, 61 percent white, and 17 percent latino.
‘To Kill a Mockingbird’, the classic novel by Harper Lee, is centered around the case of a black man being framed for raping a white woman. In the 1930s there was a similar case. The Scottsboro Boys were a group of nine black teenagers accused of raping two white woman on a train. Neither of these cases had any substantial evidence, but the men were still convicted based on the racial inequality of this time period. Although the Scottsboro case and the fictional Tom Robinson case are very similar, the one critical difference was the fate of each of the defendants as prompted by the community. Though the Scottsboro case was terrible and morally wrong, in the end each of the boys was released from prison. Yet unfortunately for Tom Robinson, he
To kill a mockingbird is to destroy innocence. Mockingbirds do not cause harm or trouble; in fact their only purpose is to convince others with beautiful music. Tom Robinson’s death can easily be compared to that of a mockingbird; it did no good but also prevented no evil.
In my eyes, Mr. Gilmer does not do a great job of proving Tom’s guilt. My reasoning behind this is because of how Mr. Gilmer provides no real evidence to prove that Tom is guilty of raping Mayella. Instead, he relies upon the word of two white people against one Negro man. Clearly, the majority of the jury thought otherwise because they found Tom guilty. I believe that this might not only be because of the racism during that time period, but also because of the condescending way in which Mr. Gilmer spoke to Tom. I think that because of this, it gave him a false aura of power and intelligence; to me, this might also play a possible role in the jury’s decision. However, our opinions may be different because of the time period in which we were raised. Back then, racism was a common concept; on the other hand, in modern day, racism is not tolerated in society. I believe that these two very different time eras play a major role in the viewpoints of this case.
Since the beginning of history, the death penalty has been utilized as a means of punishment for a crime. Capital punishment has taken on multiple forms and been used as punishment wide range of crimes; from stealing to murder. Questions and theories have risen that suggest that the penal system is racially biased when considering punishment and deciding when the death penalty is a congruent punishment to the crime committed. In David Gilboa’s report entitled, “Is the Death Penalty in America Racist?” Gilboa analyzes and studies three common conceptions on the death penalty and how it pertains to the African American race and Caucasian race. The three allegations Gilboa argues are: African Americans are at higher risk of receiving the death penalty because of the bias against them, no matter the racial identification, a person is more likely to receive the death penalty if the victim of the committed crime is white, and that
“ According to the National Association of Social Workers Web site, racism is “the ideology or practice through demonstrated power or perceived superiority of one group over others by reasons of race, color, ethnicity, or cultural heritage....” The definition further goes on to note that “racism is manifested at the individual, group, and institutional level.” (Blank, 2013)
When Atticus Finch states that one day people will settle the accounts for discrimination that happened back in the day and today, he means that white people will get revenge, or some sort of punishment for inciting horrific words, and acts upon black people. In the novel, an example of white people settling the account for discrimination against black people is Bob Ewell. This man falsely accuses an innocent black man, Tom Robinson, for raping his daughter Mayella. Days later, he was killed trying to murder two innocent children. The consequence for him causing harm to Tom Robinson was death. In this day and age we see many white cops shooting young, unarmed, black males almost every week, but the cops do not get any punishment. Therefore,
In 2009 Robert H. Richards IV a white father and heir to DuPont a chemical company, was arrested for sexual abuse of his wife, and raping his beloved 3-year old daughter. Instead of getting sentenced to jail like any other person that fails to meet the law requirements, he was put on probation because the judge thought he wouldn 't fit right in prison. Meanwhile Sanesha Taylor a, homeless black mother was arrested for leaving her two children, aged 6 months and 2 years in the car, so she can attend her job interview. She wasn 't as lucky as Mr. Richards though. She had her life turned upside down just because she was poor AND a minority. Taylor not the first victim. This problem has been occurring for past few years, where the U.S justice
Mr. Gilmer would have said it’s the jury duty to convict Tom Robinson for what he has done. That Mayella will never know peace until Tom is hung for his crimes. That with Tom running free no women would be safe. He would want to play up the stereotypes of savage black man that can’t be trusted with white women, because that would hit home with the men on the jury. This tact Mr. Glimer hopes to distract them from the lack of facts.
Now a days 98% of the death penalty is associated with white people. While only 2% percent is involve with black people. Back in scouts time those numbers were flipped. This disproportion shows that black people are not as crazy as white people. On top of that the crimes that whites commit are not similar in any way to those of African Americans.
In the classic novel To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, Tom Robinson, a black man, is unfairly accused and later found guilty of a crime he didn 't commit. While talking to Jem and Scout Finch, Ms. Maudie says “Atticus Finch won’t win, he can’t win, but he’s the only man in these parts who can keep a jury out so long in a case like that. And I thought to myself, well, we’re making a step – it’s just a baby-step, but it’s a step.” During our recent “Socratic Seminar”, Adam Ross made an insightful comment. He argued that the events that took place in the courtroom that night were not a step in the right direction, as the time that the jury took was just part of the due process of the court. He stated that the time the jury took wasn’t a representation
The moment Atticus is appointed to be the defender of Tom Robinson, he knows that if he really takes on this role of a defender, Maycomb’s society is going to ostracize him. Defending a black male who is accused of having raped a white woman is not only Alabama in the 1930s a capital offense in Alabama in the 1930s, but lands him in difficulties as he and his kids have to face hostility in Maycomb. A classmate tells Scout that “my folks say your daddy was a disgrace an’ that nigger oughta hand from the water-tank!” (Lee 87). She discovers what Maycomb’s population thinks of her father.