General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: And Then There Were Three: Third Grand Jury Refuser Goes to Prison [View all]sabrina 1
(62,325 posts)force immunity on a protester, who is not accused of any crime, is a bad law. That law was not put in place to persecute people like this woman who was not even at the May Day protests.
The law is being used, as the first one was used to catch 'commies' back in the fifties when Congress passed legislation out of frustration with people who took the fifth rather than be bullied into fingering other mostly innocent people for Joe McCarthy.
That was a shameful reason to pass a law and a very disgraceful chapter in US history.
When that law was repealed, it was not because of morality, it was because the government wanted to make it even more effective in forcing people to testify. But they passed it with the claim that it would only be used to force testimony from people who were likely guilty of crimes themselves, but lesser crimes than say, Mob Bosses. They were given immunity to get information on major criminals. Maybe there is some argument for that IF it is used only to catch major criminals, murderers, torturers etc.
But now it has been abused and used for the sole purpose of forcing a person NOT GUILTY of any crime, to rat out her friends. If it can so easily be used for such a vile purpose, to deprive an innocent person of their rights, then it is a bad law.