Re: Nice Plant #7: Get me off of this planet
My take on the Texas case is this. If the father witnessed his children killed by this drunk driver had then reached into his car, and in front of a bunch of witnesses, shot the guy dead, the jury would probably have convicted him. It would likely have been of some sort of lesser charge, based upon the passion or emotion involved. The jury would have felt terrible about it, but I believe they would have done it.
However, as I understand the case that was presented, there was some lack of direct evidence connecting the father to the crime. He certainly had a motive. There was no weapon found. I don't think anyone saw him shoot the guy. I think there was some relevant evidence like similar ammunition in the father's house, or something.
Do I think he killed the guy? Of course. Are we supposed to believe some random stranger happened upon the scene and did it? Do I think he had a right to be angry? Yes. Do I think it's right he took the law into his own hands? Of course not.
But the diminished evidence in this case (no witnesses, no weapon) gave the jury an "out" that they took, out of sympathy for the father. It's not right, but it's the system we have and I'm not going to lose a ton of sleep over it. It's also not the first time a jury has done this, or the last.