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76 lines
3.6 KiB
Plaintext
76 lines
3.6 KiB
Plaintext
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THE GUERRILLA FIJA FIGHTER
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A few more ideas you can use to spread the word and help us
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get this job done:
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1. Attend candidate forums and ask the candidates what they
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think of FIJA.
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2. If a group that you belong to sends questionnaires out
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to political candidates, try to get a question about FIJA
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included, to the effect that you want to know whether he or she
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would, if elected, support or sponsor a FIJA amendment.
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3. If you have access to a booth or table at a fair, swap
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meet, gun show, or any other public event or gathering, pass out
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FIJA literature (and talk to and recruit activists).
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FIJA volunteers staffing a table can have a supply of
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writing paper and envelopes, sample letters to editors and sample
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requests for legislative action, accompanied by lists of
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legislators and their districts, and extra chairs. Then when an
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enthusiast is identified, hand that person a pen!
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4. A tactic which has been used by constitutionalists for
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years is to show up at the local courthouse with pamphlets on
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jury rights (lately, with FIJA brochures). It's easier, more
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educational and less dangerous to give the literature to
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everyone, not just jurors. That makes it harder to accuse you of
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"jury tampering", as happened to Chuck Bower of California.
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(Want to help him out with court expenses? His mailing address
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is P.O. Box 457, Pine Grove, CA 95665).
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5. Similarly, if you can get a copy of the current district
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jury pool (it's part of the public record), mail FIJA literature
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to prospective jurors. Notice that this does nothing to interfere
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with or influence any particular jury trial, which is what must
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be proven if you are to be convicted of jury tampering.
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IF YOU'RE CALLED FOR JURY DUTY...
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Show up, of course. If this happens before FIJA becomes
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law, just remember that it is always your right to decide on the
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justice of any law you're being asked to apply to the accused.
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So if the judge insists that you must consent to follow and apply
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the law as he or she describes it, do not be intimidated: you may
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in fact safely follow your conscience.
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You can't be punished for voting your conscience, but may be
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harassed (interrogated before or after serving, reprimanded, or
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possibly even disempaneled if you urge other jurors to do
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likewise; unbelievably, it has happened). But jurors are not
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bound to do anything against their wills, nor bound by oaths
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given under duress, nor required to return a unanimous verdict.
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You shouldn't look at jury duty as an onerous task which is
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to be avoided if possible. For one thing, it's your chance to do
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some real good for yourself and the community. In many cases,
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this may mean voting to convict someone whose behavior is truly
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dangerous to life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness.
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In other cases, it may mean acquitting someone because the
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evidence to convict is not convincing, or because the law or its
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application to the accused person appears wrong. Defense of the
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rights of the citizens of your community is the whole point of a
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jury system, and those include the rights of the accused and of
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the jurors themselves. Justice therefore demands that common law
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jurors insist on their right to consider both the facts of the
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case and the merits of the law.
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For these reasons, we urge you to regard jury service as an
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opportunity, a right worth defending, or a personal duty, despite
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whatever obstacles may be thrown in your path. Since most states
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select jurors from voter registration lists, consider the chance
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to serve on a jury as another reason to register to vote!
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