White Lies: Are They That Harmless in Court?

Editorial

White Lies: Are they that harmless in court?

Recent trial of Tom Robinson has brought the weary County of Maycomb to a fevered frenzy. Multifarious heated discussions were made over a nagging question: Had fair play really been carried out in the courtroom? Issues raised will be preceded with a concise background information of the lawsuit: Black defendant, Tom Robinson was apparently found guilty of raping white plaintiff, Mayella Ewell.

In a small town consisting of both white and black communities, especially with whites in dominance, racial prejudice is unavoidable. Blacks were scorned upon sight by the uppity whites as "niggers". However, given a case as colossal as a rape case, punishable by death, more thought would have been given to it. Instead of inducing careful analysis of the trial, all decisions have been rushed in one day. Where was the medical evidence, the careful investigation, and the feeling of fairness in the ruling of his sentence? Should the society condemn a man just by the words of a few? If so, this community would have lost a valuable commodity, a striver, and most of all, justice.

Another question clamors immediate attention to a steadily rising issue. The trial, which had been conducted in an accelerated manner, was perhaps due to the involvement of blacks in this case. Outward shows of racism seemed to be dormant lately; the rallies have toned down manifold since the retreat of the Ku Klux Klan. However, the roots of racial prejudice have not been completely eradicated in the hearts of many. Having been in presence at the trial, Miss Mayella Ewell was observed to be having a nervous breakdown in the presence of the defending party. Her fidgety movements and acquiescence to defense lawyer, Atticus Finch occurred many times during the trial; her reluctance to acknowledge the man whom she said had raped her, was bewildering