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A right to jury trial is granted to criminal defendants in order to prevent oppression by the Government.
Byron White
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Interpretation

What this quote means

The right to a jury trial protects individuals from governmental abuse of power.

Byron White emphasizes the importance of the jury trial as a safeguard against governmental oppression. It serves as a critical check on state power, ensuring that defendants have a fair chance to contest criminal charges with the community's involvement, thereby upholding justice and individual rights.

Themes

Jury TrialGovernmentOppressionJusticeDefendants

In practice

Example use cases

In a courtroom setting to emphasize the importance of fair trials.

More from Byron White

Where the suspect poses no immediate threat to the officer and no threat to others, the harm resulting from the failing to apprehend him does not justify the use of deadly force to do so.
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To exclude all jurors who would be in the slightest way effected by the prospect of the death penalty would be to deprive the defendant of the impartial jury to which he or she is entitled under the law.
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The law is constantly based on notions of morality, and if all laws representing essentially moral choices are to be invalidated under the due process clause, the courts will be very busy indeed.
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The risk of racial prejudice infecting a capital sentencing proceeding is especially serious in light of the complete finality of the death sentence.
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The Court is most vulnerable and comes nearest to illegitimacy when it deals with judge-made constitutional law having little or no cognizable roots in the language or design of the Constitution.
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Sports constantly make demands on the participant for top performance, and they develop integrity, self-reliance and initiative. They teach you a lot about working in groups, without being unduly submerged in the group.
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