The laws that we are subject to are written down and in theory, enforced upon the people in an equal and fair way. Yet, the problem with laws, no matter how carefully written, and no matter how brilliant these laws are in conceptualizing all of the possible contingencies, thereof, is that a law that does not or cannot take into fair consideration, all of the situations, intentions, or the general consciousness of those so accused of being on the wrong side of the law, is indicative that the justice that we expect in a court of law, may not be just, at all.
That is to say, we tend to want to believe that the best laws are those laws that are unequivocal, but the problem with the belief in that type of law, is that those who are adherents of believing such are the very type that will ignore the spirit of the law, to conform only to the letter of the law, of which, because of that belief, injustice may well occur. In any judicial decision in which there are two or even more sides to a story, it is vital to get as much of the full story as possible, because only in obtaining that full story, is it truly conceivable that a just decision can be made, for when we do not care or take the time to live in the other person’s shoes, we then do not know the consciousness of that person, and in not knowing that or in not considering that, we cannot then reasonably come up with a fair decision, though via the law as written, we can however simply follow the law.
There are lots of things in life, which depending upon the prism in which such is viewed, can be seen as being justified and subsequently viewed as being legal; whereas, when viewed through a different prism, are considered to be unjustified and therefore illegal. Indeed, for example, the perception that a given person has pulled the trigger of their gun in self-defense will often render a judgment that is completely the opposite of the pulling of the trigger of a gun which is considered to have been done as an aggressive and unnecessary act.
When we see what we believe to be a crime, but do not know the beginning of what occurred for that crime to have happened, and do not know the intention of the supposed perpetrator or do not care to investigate such, then we haven’t done justice to what has so occurred. To believe then that right is always right, and wrong is always wrong, is to simplify what happens in life to such a degree that we don’t take into account all of the nuances and other factors that should be considered before a person has been adjudged to be guilty or not. Those then who believe that justice is always cut and dry, are the very same, that can’t seem to remember all the times in their life, when they felt that their parents or other authority figures misinterpreted their actions and then they duly suffered for that which they considered to be unfair, which is why it is so important that we provide each party to a dispute, the fair opportunity, to state their case in detail, formal or not.