First day of a rape trial in Cincinnati.
Today I observed the beginning of a trial in Cincinnati's county court -- several counts of rape against minors. Defendant is representing himself but only repeats that he does not consent to trial. Jurors questioned (only by prosecution) and three were dismissed.
The courtroom is fairly relaxed, which I sometimes found disconcerting. The assigned public defender moved to the public seats, near me. One juror dismissed presumably because wanted to know why case not pursued by a now retired detective circa 2012, as mentioned by prosecutor.
The accused repeatedly cites the UCC (Uniform Commercial Code), apparently claiming to be a “sovereign citizen” not subject to the state. Well, initially he argued w the judge about the type of trial, as if questioning whether it should be a bench or jury trial. But when the judge asked whether he wanted bench instead of jury trial, he didn’t respond directly. So she took that as a pass and proceeded with the jury.
Another juror dismissed, apparently because she did admin work for the public defenders office (though said she'd be fair and impartial). But a 3rd juror was dismissed because she clearly said she was troubled by the accusations and would be uncomfortable on the jury. I get that...
After lunch, the prosecutor gave her opening statement, a "roadmap" through the evidence to be presented. During jury selection, she'd already said the evidence was not scientific data, no forensic evidence. The charges are all based on testimony.
The accusations are disturbing, I won't detail them here.
In a matter-of-fact way, the prosecutor gave the chronology & context of the GSI (gross sexual imposition) and rape charges, from 2012 and ~2018. She explained that detailed victim reports were taken at Mayerson Ctr for Safe & Healthy Children.
As the sexual crimes were described, the accused sat quietly. A few times he fidgeted; at one point, he put his head in his hands (elbows on table).
It'll take courage and fortitude for the witnesses to speak tomorrow. Partly I want to be there, but not sure it's wise to put myself thru it...
https://www.facebook.com/hcgray/posts/10161743905840335
Today I observed the beginning of a trial in Cincinnati's county court -- several counts of rape against minors. Defendant is representing himself but only repeats that he does not consent to trial. Jurors questioned (only by prosecution) and three were dismissed.
The courtroom is fairly relaxed, which I sometimes found disconcerting. The assigned public defender moved to the public seats, near me. One juror dismissed presumably because wanted to know why case not pursued by a now retired detective circa 2012, as mentioned by prosecutor.
The accused repeatedly cites the UCC (Uniform Commercial Code), apparently claiming to be a “sovereign citizen” not subject to the state. Well, initially he argued w the judge about the type of trial, as if questioning whether it should be a bench or jury trial. But when the judge asked whether he wanted bench instead of jury trial, he didn’t respond directly. So she took that as a pass and proceeded with the jury.
Another juror dismissed, apparently because she did admin work for the public defenders office (though said she'd be fair and impartial). But a 3rd juror was dismissed because she clearly said she was troubled by the accusations and would be uncomfortable on the jury. I get that...
After lunch, the prosecutor gave her opening statement, a "roadmap" through the evidence to be presented. During jury selection, she'd already said the evidence was not scientific data, no forensic evidence. The charges are all based on testimony.
The accusations are disturbing, I won't detail them here.
In a matter-of-fact way, the prosecutor gave the chronology & context of the GSI (gross sexual imposition) and rape charges, from 2012 and ~2018. She explained that detailed victim reports were taken at Mayerson Ctr for Safe & Healthy Children.
As the sexual crimes were described, the accused sat quietly. A few times he fidgeted; at one point, he put his head in his hands (elbows on table).
It'll take courage and fortitude for the witnesses to speak tomorrow. Partly I want to be there, but not sure it's wise to put myself thru it...
https://www.facebook.com/hcgray/posts/10161743905840335
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