Right to Trial by Judge or Jury … and Marilyn Mosby
Marilyn Mosby is the Maryland prosecutor who elected to prosecute the six officers involved in a case that resulted in the death of Freddie gray, a suspect who was in their custody at the time of his unfortunate demise. Mosby failed to receive a conviction in either of the first four cases and on Monday, dropped the remaining charges against the rest of the officers awaiting trial.
Mosby, obviously frustrated because the officers chose to have their cases heard by a judge rather than a jury, said she wants to pursue greater prosecutorial power over whether a defendant can choose a bench trial over a jury trial. In short, she wants this particular and extremely important right taken away from all defendants, further stacking the deck against them as they face incarceration and other punishments that include the loss of even more rights.
“I have a number of ideas that I’m not yet going to talk about,” Mosby said. “I have it all written out. I have it all planned.”
One of the purposes of affording the option of trial type is to allow a defendant to have his/her case heard by a judge rather than a jury whose opinions may be swayed by emotions and public statements made prior to start of the courtroom proceedings. A great example of possible jury tainting is the case in question, the trials of the officers accused of murdering Freddie Gray.
A local jury pool most likely saw and heard Ms. Mosby’s emotionally-charged speech announcing the charges against the officers (depraved heart murder—a deliberate act that is so dangerous that it shows total indifference to someone else’s life, murder, and manslaughter, among others). She concluded her lengthy oration with, “… to the youth of the city. I will seek justice on your behalf. This is a moment. This is your moment. Let’s insure we have peaceful and productive rallies that will develop structural and systemic changes for generations to come. You’re at the forefront of this cause and as young people, our time is now.”
Many have considered Mosby’s dramatic speech as a one offered by an angry political activist rather than that of a unbiased prosecutor.
Potential jurors likely witnessed her appearances on national TV, in magazines, and on the stage with Prince at a concert that was billed as a Rally4Peace, an event in honor of Freddie Gray, the victim in the case. Not to mention that she’s married to City Councilman Nick Mosby, whose district includes the area where the Gray incident and much of the recent Baltimore rioting took place. She’s also friends with Gray family lawyer Billy Murphy. Murphy helped with Mosby’s campaign fund-raising.
So yes, the defendants in the case had just cause to fear the jury pool would be stacked against them. Therefore, as is their right, they opted to have their cases heard by a judge, an option Mosby wants to change.
I’ve included the below text, especially for Maryland prosecutor Marilyn Mosby, in the event this page is missing from the law books in her office. Please note the red text below.
Seriously (I suppose Ms. Mosby is at least aware of the law), I highlighted the line in red so to make it stand out to help those who aren’t aware that this indeed is the law. The right to trial by judge, or jury, is not a suggestion or something that can be instantly altered simply because someone doesn’t like it, or because the results produced by it are not favorable to an attorney involved in a court proceeding.
RULE 4-246. WAIVER OF JURY TRIAL–CIRCUIT COURT
West’s Annotated Code of Maryland
Maryland Rules
West’s Annotated Code of Maryland
Maryland Rules (Refs & Annos)
Title 4. Criminal Causes
(a) Generally. In the circuit court, a defendant having a right to trial by jury shall be tried by a jury unless the right is waived pursuant to section (b) of this Rule. The State does not have the right to elect a trial by jury.