Understanding Law in the U.S.*
THE LAW
OF THE LAND
- The highest law of the land is the
U.S. Constitution
which incorporates the
Bill of Rights;
- Underlying the U.S. Constitution are the State Constitutions
/ Statutes;
- Underlying the Constitutions is English
Common Law.
Higher law overrules lower law. Lower
laws may not infringe or contradict or be in conflict with higher
laws. Laws must be ratified by "We the People". (See § 22 of
California Civil Procedure for a definition):
The Constitution is pretty straight forward. Most people when
they read it (or if they read it!), can understand what it says.
For example, taking the 1st Amendment which reads as follows:
"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of
religion," -[I.e. Congress cannot make a law specific to a
denomination or
religion],
"or prohibiting the free exercise thereof;" -[however, they also
cannot prevent the practice of religion -so the Court's telling you that
you cannot pray in school or put a cross or the 10 Commandments anywhere
is total bullshit, to put it politely]
"or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press;"
-[most people know this one, they can't stop you criticizing the
government, if someone wants to burn a flag (which does no harm other
than send a message) then they can express themselves. The
government cannot tell the press that they can't show pictures of our
soldiers coffins returning from Iraq, the press can print whatever they
want. Recognize that this freedom of speech is still subject to
libel law - you can't tell lies]
"or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition
the Government for a redress of grievances."
-[The government can also not stop people marching or gathering
peacefully to protest, they certainly cannot prevent someone who is
wearing an anti-war or anti-president tee-shirt from going anywhere!
You are allowed to say what you want when you want and you can do it
with as many people as you like - you can give the government and cops
the 'up-yours sign' any time you want]
That's no so hard. The law is pretty straight forward.
You do not need a lawyer of judge to understand the law, in fact if you
do, then it is not law! See the section on
Common-Law must be understood by
the common man.
There are so many tremendous rights our Founding Fathers embedded
within the constitution to prevent the government from messing with us.
Like the right to bear arms - The government cannot tell us we can't
have pistol grips on our rifles! The right to bear arms was
established so that We the People had just as powerful weapons as the
government (See 2nd
Amendment). Rights can't diminish either, see opposite:
Common Law
Common Law dictates that there are three mandatory elements for every
criminal charge:
- MENS REA - willful intent,
(menz ray-ah) n. Latin for a "guilty or evil mind," or criminal
intent in committing the act.
In order to determine intent, it is necessary for those judging to
understand the mind of the person charged. We need to ask if
intent can be tried by anyone but a jury of peers? i.e. if you form
a jury of people who think completely differently to the person
charged, the jury will not be able to judge whether the person
really intended to commit the crime.
- actus reus - the act or
crime,
- CORPUS DELICTI - the body of
the crime, the actual damage.
The fact of a crime having been actually committed as reflected in
the body of damage caused by the offence. I.e. to charge
someone with murder you need to show that a person has been
murdered, there needs to be a dead body.
The core construct to English Common Law, verses other legal
constructs such as Roman Dutch Las is the construct of "innocent until
proven guilty". Under Roman Dutch Law, which has typically been
employed by tyrannical regimes, you are "guilty until proven innocent".
Criminal vs. Civil Law
The Constitution distinguishes between Criminal and Civil law and
identifies Common Law as the underlying law for both. However the
Constitutions, both Federal and State overrule Common Law.
Civil Law: provides
remedy for wrongs
Criminal Law:
provides punishment for wrongs
Liability
Strict Liability: (No 'Mens Rea'/'willful intent' requirement):
Criminal Liability: Liable only if actually aware of the harmful or
wrongful nature of his/her conduct.
Objective Liability: Liable if a reasonable person in relevantly similar
circumstances would have been aware of the wrongful nature of or the
harm resulting from his/her act.
Public Law and Private Law:
Lawyers and Courts tend to differentiate between Public and Private
Law. Public Law is the Law of the Land
Private Law deals with contracts between persons. A person can
either be an human or a corporation. Contracts under Private Law
can effectively enforce almost anything. All law is however under
Public Law.
|
Rights Shall Not Diminish
Remember your rights cannot diminish - any right you are granted
cannot later be taken away by the government
U.S. Const. Amend IX:
"The enumeration in the Constitution, of certain rights, shall
not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the
people."
The 9th is critical law which wipes out most of what the government
has passed, including the right to be free of property taxes, including
the Patriot Act, including all the Presidential Executive Orders like
Roosevelt's theft of gold, the draft, bench warrants, traffic
tickets, and the governments ridiculous claim to sovereign immunity etc.
etc.
In England, the Queen claimed that because God put her on the throne,
she could commit no wrong and she therefore claimed "sovereign
immunity". However, Art. I Sec. 9 of the U.S. Constitution
dictates:
"No Title of Nobility shall be granted by the United States: And
no Person holding any Office or Trust under them, shall, without the
Consent of the Congress, accept of any present, Emolument, Office,
or Title, of any kind whatever, from any King, Prince or foreign
State."
It is impossible for government employees to claim 'sovereign
immunity' for crimes they commit. Trial By Jury or Judge
The U.S. Constitution guarantees any person accused of a crime the
right to choose a Trial by Judge or a Trial By Jury (U.S.
Const. Art III, Sec 2; U.S.
Const. Amend VI) and any party to a civil matter entailing damages
of more than $20 also has the right to choose between a Trial By Judge
or a Trial By Jury (U.S. Const. Amend
VII). And that such trials shall be speedy and follow due
process.
The elements of a Trial By Jury are so critically important we have
placed them on a separate page. The most critically important
element is to realize that you the Jury members decide on both the Law
and the Fact - The Courts are treasonously denying this well established
right.
Courts of Equity
You cannot be forced into a Court of Equity where there is a legal
remedy. See Federal Judiciary Act (1789 ) SEC. 16. "And be it
further enacted, That suits in equity shall not be sustained in
either of the courts of the United States, in any case where plain,
adequate and complete remedy may be had at law." This
means that anyone who has been told that they are not entitled to a
Trial By Jury in Family Court has been lied to. They may go back
to court and reverse any and all decisions corrupt judges forced on them
through divorce cases. This is extraordinarily significant and yet
another example of how utterly corrupt and criminal in form and nature
courts and the judiciary has been over the last 50 years in the U.S.
Law of Torts
Tort law is concerned with breaches of legal duty that result in some
kind of injury that merits compensation. Torts are used to
categorize allegations. There are three major Tort categories:
Intentional torts, negligence, and strict liability:
- Intentional Torts: Trespass, defamation (libel/slander), assault
and battery, and false imprisonment.
- Negligence: A breach of the duty of “due care”. Everyone in
society has a duty to refrain from taking unreasonable risks
associated with certain kinds of actions and omissions.
- Strict Liability: Strict liability torts involve narrow classes
of action where the person performing the action is liable for harms
he produces even if the harms are unintentional and could not have
been prevented by exercising reasonable care.
Contracts
A contract is an agreement that involves the exchange of legal rights
(to money, property, one’s labor, etc.). Anything can be put in a
contract, however, contracts cannot undermine the Law of the land, you
can still be criminally liable/responsible. Failure to perform
one’s part of an agreement can lead to a charge of breach of contract.
It is suggested that much of our government's actions against us are
conducted under the guise of Contract Law - that is they get us to agree
to be subject to contractual obligations, such as in signing a ticket
they get us to agree to appear in "Their Court" under "Their Code" - see
Infractions. |
