Every once in a while, my teetering faith in the judicial system gets a boost, particularly when a jury finds a famous, wealthy, and/or powerful person guilty of a crime for which the prosecution had a boatload of convincing evidence. Usually, they walk free [a big hello to OJ and Robert Durst].
But once in a while, a Winona Ryder gets her legal due, shocked as she is for actually being found guilty of stealing, when in fact all she did was borrow without asking.
I guess I shouldn't be making jokes about Winona when I'm planning to talk about South Dakota's Bill Janklow case, because there's really nothing funny about it.
According to police, Janklow was behind the wheel of his Cadillac on August 16 when he ran a stop sign at a rural intersection about 10 miles south of Flandreau.Scott, of Hardwick, Minnesota, crashed into the side of Janklow's car and was killed.
Prosecutors said Janklow was driving at least 70 mph in a 55 mph zone at the time.
Janklow was found guilty of second degree manslaughter yesterday. I'm amazed: I think the verdict is just, but I never expected it to be. The guy had home field advantage like nobody's business.
The Deck Was Stacked ... In His Favor
First, he's popular and powerful in his home state. The man served as South Dakota state attorney general for four years and governor for 16 years. He's now [at least until January 20] the lone House Representative from South Dakota. And, second, he was being tried for a serious crime in the rural community in which he grew up.
When I first read that he was charged, I immediately thought that there was no way he'd be found guilty of a serious offense. Maybe a slap on the wrist, but not much more. But it seems the case against him was very strong, and the jurors didn't buy his "I'm a diabetic and didn't eat for 18 hours so I'm not responsible" defense. They reached their verdict in less than a day.
Article comments
1 - Eric Olsen
Excellent job bhw and I agree with your conclusions: it is amazing the sense of entitlement and being above the law that big fish in small ponds can develop and not have challenged until it is too late. This is a tragedy, but at least justice prevailed. Remember celebrity can cut both ways in the judicial system.