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Justice in American Society:
Influenced by the Court or the People?
By Alicia Shifflett
Justice is one of the largest and most important factors in the
conclusion of a court case, including criminal cases. From what we see on
the television, it seems as though only what is presented in court determines
justice for either the defendant or the prosecution. However, justice is not
always “fair” in the eyes of some people. One of the biggest problems that
we face as a society is that of racial injustice in our justice system. We all
know that a verdict for a defendant is determined by a jury of their peers,
but what influences the jury to make that decision? This question can be
explained by looking at two criminal cases from the 1990s. These cases
show, despite what we want to think or believe, justice in America is
determined by the pressures of society, especially when it comes to the
issue of race.
One of the purest examples of racial injustice was the Rodney King
trial. As explained by law professor Douglas Linder, in 1991, African
American motorist Rodney King was pulled over by several police officers
after a high-speed chase. King was forced out of his car and brutally beaten
by all four officers. These officers would later be charged with excessive
force. Those accused were Sargent Stacey Koon, and officers Lawrence
Powell, Theodore Briseno, and Timothy Wind. Despite the infamous
videotape of the beating being shown on television all over the country and
being the key piece of evidence presented in the court, it was not enough to
convince the members of the jury. On April 29, 1992, Koon, Briseno, and
Wind were acquitted of all excessive force charges, with the jury being hung
on the charges against Powell (Linder, “Los Angeles”).
If there is one thing that we have to keep in mind about this case, it
would be the members of the jury, which consisted of one Hispanic, one
Filipino, and ten whites. Now, while the jury’s racial makeup does not
necessarily prove that the decision was based on racial injustice, it gave a
reason as to why many African Americans were outraged at the verdict. As
scholar Cynthia Rose says, “Similar to the O.J. Simpson trial, reaction to the
Rodney King trial was very polarized by race.” Despite what anyone thought
during the trial, Rose pointed out that it seemed “America in the 1990s was
generally not interested in discussing race.” Little did America know that the
verdict of this case would bring one of the most well-known and televised
events in history.
Later that same day, one of the most famous acts of protest began.
The 1992 Los Angeles Riots, also known as “The Rodney King Riots,”
unveiled the anger and injustice that African Americans felt about the
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verdict. These emotions were driven by two facts: that the videotape was
seemingly ignored by the jury and that the majority of the jury consisted of
white people. Because of these facts, race played a major factor in the riots.
In the first day of the riots, the violence in Southern California quickly
reached its peak. One of the most infamous events in the riots took place on
that day when a white truck driver named Reginald Denny was forced out of
his car and severely beaten by a black man (Chardon). Throughout the
entire five days of the riots, this event became a focal point and represented
the riots as a whole: “Liquor stores, chain stores, fast-food places, and white
people were the main targets for looting, fire, and violence” (Chardon). After
the five-day period of rioting was over, over fifty citizens of Los Angeles
were killed, more than 20,000 others were injured, and over $1 billion in
damages had occurred all over the city. It was a message from African
Americans who were “speaking out against oppression; against being held
down for so long” (Chardon). After the riots ceased, it seemed like they
would soon be a thing of the past, nothing more than a piece of history, but
they would soon be a contributing factor to one of the biggest criminal trials
in the 1990s.
This trial, known as “the trial of the century” (Linder, “O.J. Simpson”),
was another example of racial injustice and how justice as a whole is
influenced by society. In the Los Angeles neighborhood of Brentwood, Nicole
Brown Simpson and her friend Ronald Goldman were found viciously killed
outside of her condo. Her ex-husband, the former NFL running back O.J.
Simpson, was later arrested and charged with both murders. The
significance of this trial further divided whites and blacks in society, and
racial tension once again rose. Just like during the Rodney King trial, the
verdict would come back as “not guilty” for O.J. Simpson and would cause
an uproar of anger and betrayal of a race by the justice system (Linder,
“O.J. Simpson”).
Before we try to understand the reasoning behind the jury’s decision in
this trial, it is important to look at all the evidence presented not only to the
court but to all of society. The first piece of the puzzle occurs before O.J. and
his wife were ever divorced. Many people believe their relationship was
abusive. These people point to instances like when Nicole contacted the
police over a domestic dispute. During the conversation with the operator,
Nicole made statements such as, “He’s going to beat the (expletive) out of
me,” and “He’s O.J. Simpson. I think you know his record” (Vargas). The
volatile relationship, however, would not be the only piece of evidence in the
case that proved O.J. as the murderer.
In a 20/20 special on ABC titled “The OJ Simpson Tapes,” a further
look at the crime scene exposed more evidence than anyone else could
imagine. The host of the special, Elizabeth Vargas states, “There was an
avalanche of evidence connecting Simpson to the crime scene.” The
evidence at the scene included Simpson’s hair found on Ron Goldman’s
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body, his blood type found in certain areas, Nicole’s blood on Simpson’s
socks, a bloody shoeprint that matched Simpson’s shoes, and the most
famous and controversial piece to the puzzle: the gloves. One glove was
found at the crime scene, and the other was found at O.J.’s residence. Much
more evidence would later be found at the scene, and with it all piling up,
the case seemed like a slam-dunk for the prosecution. However, the jury
found O.J. “not guilty.” With all of the evidence presented, a lot of people,
especially whites, wondered how and why he could be determined innocent.
When we look at this particular case, it resembles that of the Rodney
King trial. The largest resemblance with both trials was that they dealt with
violence between whites and blacks. However, in another way, the O.J.
Simpson case is also a complete opposite of the Rodney King trial. The
majority of the jurors in the King trial consisted of whites, while the jurors in
the O.J. Simpson trial consisted of mostly African Americans. When looking
further into the understanding of the verdict, Vargas concludes that “A lot of
African Americans…didn’t want these police officers [the ones who had
arrested O.J. Simpson] to win.”
While race played a large, important factor in this case, it was not the
only factor presented to the court or society. In his article “Race, Science,
And ‘Just-Us’: Understanding Jurors’ Reasonable Doubt in the O.J. Simpson
Trial,” James Stewart states that there was “no doubt that the verdict in the
O.J. Simpson trial depended critically on…massive amounts of money by the
defense.” He also makes an interesting point on role reversal for blacks and
whites by stating that the trial was “the first highly-visible opportunity for
many white Americans to experience collectively what they perceived as
misconduct by the criminal justice system” (Stewart). Finally, Stewart also
believes that the Rodney King trial played a critical role in the Simpson trial,
commenting that perhaps the jurors feared more rioting from African
Americans had they found O.J. Simpson guilty of the crime. Ironically,
Simpson sits in prison today for robbery.
Today, the issue of determining justice in racial trials is still very
polarized by race. One of the latest cases revolving around race was the
Trayvon Martin shooting and trial. While the trial had no evidence to convict
George Zimmerman, the entire case was still plugged as racial injustice.
To understand people’s opinions on these two court cases, I conducted
a survey, focusing on people who were present and old enough at the time
to understand what was happening. When I asked about their beliefs on how
justice is determined, the majority of the answers focused on social and
racial pressures being the key factor in how justice is decided. However, one
respondent opposed this argument. This person mentioned that “a false
sense of justice, however, can be obtained even with lack of evidence
brought on by the support of societal pressures, but remains unsupported by
fact nonetheless.” After researching the Rodney King and O.J. Simpson
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trials, I side with the majority and believe that justice is determined by the
pressures of American society.
In conclusion, the cases examined above prove that justice is
determined by social and racial pressures in society. While what we see
presented in court may seem to damning for the defendant, we cannot
always believe that the court alone (or the court at all) can determine what
justice is.
Works Cited
Chardon, Phillip. “L.A. Riots.” South Central History. N.p, n.d. Web. 10 Dec.
2015.
Linder, Douglas O. “Los Angeles Police Officers' (Rodney King Beating)
Trials.” Famous Trials. University of Missouri, Kansas City, 2014.Web.
9 Dec. 2015.
Linder, Douglas O. “The O.J. Simpson Trial.” Famous Trials. University of
Missouri, Kansas City, 2014.Web. 1 Dec. 2015.
Shifflett, Alicia. Personal survey. 7 Dec. 2015.
Stewart, James B. “Race, Science, and ‘Just-Us’: Understanding Jurors’
Reasonable Doubt in
the OJ Simpson Trial.” Black Scholar 25. (1995): 43. Biography
Reference Bank. Web. 30 Nov. 2015.
Rose, Cynthia. “The Rodney King Videotape: Why the Case Was Not Black
and White.” American Decades Primary Sources. Vol. 10: 1990-1999.
Detroit: Gale, 2004. 299-303.
Biography in Context. Web. 1 Dec. 2015.
Vargas, Elizabeth. “The OJ Simpson Tapes.” 20/20 (ABC) (2015): 1.
Newspaper Source. Web. 1
Dec. 2015.
About the Author
I never would have expected to have this published, but I am so
excited! I have just completed my first year at NWACC, where I am working
on getting a degree in Nursing. My writing process is to find a topic
interesting to me, and my writing inspiration usually involves either a
personal experience or a historical event. This essay was the most
interesting essay to write in Composition I, and it is my favorite piece of
writing so far. For me, writing is like solving a mystery. I have to investigate
and collect evidence before finalizing my conclusion.