Opinion | Trump impeachment: Senators must do better than run a kangaroo court or risk holding US justice up to ridicule
- Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell’s recent statements make a mockery of the high regard Americans have for the concept of justice
- US President Donald Trump would better serve his own interests by presenting evidence and witnesses in his defence
Americans take pride in their judicial system, which focuses on scrutiny of evidence and witnesses by both sides in open proceedings. The presiding judge must ensure that due process for a fair trial is followed so that justice is served. Justice is an essential component of the American value system, as are democracy and freedom.
Americans tend to scorn the judicial systems of countries that operate without due process, calling them kangaroo courts. I don’t know how that term originated; it seems insulting to an agile and smart animal.
The term “kangaroo court” refers to a system in which the verdict has been decided even before the trial begins. The proceedings are simply staged to give the appearance of fairness and justice, with witnesses hopping in and out notwithstanding.
Can one imagine this happening in other courts of law, in Kentucky or elsewhere in the United States? Anyone found to be attempting to tamper with a jury or interfere with the fair progress of proceedings in any other way would be reprimanded or sanctioned.