Reply #19: The system worked

[tomhayes]

just because he wasn't charged doesn't mean the arrest was unwarranted.

People are arrested all the time and then files are not brought upon them

The system works like this:
1)A police officer arrest you if he thinks you have broken a law
2)A lawyer from the city/state/federal government decides if they think they have enough to prosecute you, and decide what charges to press and what charges to drop
3)The Judaical system arraigns you and decides if there is enough evidence present to take it to a trial
4)The prosecution and defense usually talk to see if their can be a plea bargain or if a trial should take place
5)If you plea bargain you enter a change of plea and the judge passes sentence
6)If you go to trail the prosecution has to be able to prove to a jury or judge (depends on type of case) that you are guilty
7)If you are found guilty you get a sentence

I think *this* case got dropped somewhere between step 2 and step 3. But that does NOT necessarily mean that legally step 1 was invalid.

Gunlovers never make it past step 1. It's *always* wrong for step 1 to occur to some people.

Now, again, there's a remedy under the law if you feel Step 1 was invalid - you sue for wrongful arrest, and if it got to step 2 you sue for wrongful procession. And probably under Civil Court for loss of Civil Rights.

But I doubt the facts in the case and arrest as we have seen presented would ever see a judgement in any action brought.

Let's review the facts: HUGE political party rally happens in a city where hundreds of thousands of people attend, in the lobby of the hotel for one of the party leaders a person is seen with firearms. The police talk to the person and determine the person has two concealed weapons in a suitcase. They briefly detain, confiscate weapons, arrest, and release the person. Later charges are dropped.

This seems like a pretty predictable and normal occurnce in our judical system.

Gunlovers (well liberal gunlovers) might want to focus on bigger/more real injustices like unequal sentencing, racial profiling, wrongful convictions of minorities, etc before the boo-hoo too much because a man with 4 guns got hassled (mind you, not beat like Rodney King) about having two concealed weapons.

-OR- go ahead and start some websites to get this guy to sue - it's really your choice.