How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #1
Judge what they bring up on the witness stand, and then deliver your just verdict. (2.79)
This is the ideal view of law: that the verdict will always be just.
Quote #2
What are we playing with this guy for? We don't need him. We got the case locked. (6.50)
If the detectives don't need him, why do they drag Steve into the fray? For the sake of justice? Or for another reason? We're catching a whiff of racism and it stinks.
Quote #3
O'BRIEN
[…] You're young, you're Black, and you're on trial. What else do they need to know?STEVE
I thought you're supposed to be innocent until you're proven guilty? (6.80-81)
Sure that's what the law says, but stereotypes speak louder than laws. And hey—he's in the courtroom, so there must be a reason… right? When looked at from this angle, it's easy to see that innocent until proven guilty is more of a dream than a reality.
Quote #4
"Once the trial actually begins there will be no talking," the teacher with them said. "This is part of the American judicial system, and we have to respect every part of it." (7.25)
The judicial system surely deserves our respect—without it, chaos or dictatorship might reign supreme. But that doesn't mean the whole system has been created equally. Are there some parts that deserve more respect than others? Does the handling of Steve's case deserve utmost respect?
Quote #5
PETROCELLI
Mr. Cruz, you're testifying against people you know. Are you testifying because you're getting a deal from the government?OSVALDO
Yeah. (8.17)
Plea bargains are tricky: Osvaldo gets less jail-time because he's admitted his guilt and is willing to speak against other guys he knows. This sounds a bit like the justice of the witch trials in The Crucible. On the other hand, using plea bargains may the only way to prove Steve's and King's involvement in the crime.
Quote #6
FEMALE NEWSCASTER
Mayor Rudy Giuliani says that he is determined to stop crime in all areas of the city.[…]
MAYOR GIULIANI
The idea that we're just trying to stop crime in white or middle-class areas is nonsense. Everyone living in the city deserves the same protection. (10.33,35)
This statement from the mayor sounds terrific, but is it reality? Is Mayor Giuliani speaking the truth or just saying what people want to hear?
Quote #7
THEN: MRS. HARMON rushes from the house, looks desperately around, and moves quickly down the street. She gets almost to the corner, then stops, realizing she doesn't know where STEVE is being taken. (10.53)
Why did the detectives leave without waiting for Mrs. Harmon? Again, we detect a hint of racism. Taking a parent's child away without them—particularly after they've made it clear they intend to come along—is intensely disrespectful. Do you think a white woman living behind a picket fence in the suburbs would have been disregarded so readily by the cops?
Quote #8
"I'm not guilty," I said to her.
"You should have said, 'I didn't do it,'" she said.
"I didn't do it," I said. (13.6-8)
At some points, it seems that Steve did commit the crime but still believes in his innocence. At other points, it seems that he didn't commit the crime at all. According to O'Brien, these are very different stands to make.
Quote #9
He said he wasn't guilty because he hadn't taken anything out of the store. He didn't even have a gun, just his hand in his pocket like he had a gun. (13.16)
Although he was caught red-handed, Ernie believes justice should only take effect when the crime is successfully completed. We're getting flashes of Minority Report right about now.