Changing the jury system

May 19, 1992

Regarding the editorial about the jury in the Rodney King case, "Trial by Jury," May 8: The editorial's conclusion, and only call for change, is in the one area where absolutely no change is required. The system has adequate safeguards built in for these cases; the people administering the system, however, are not impartial. No legal system can completely prevent prejudiced decisions if the people involved are themselves prejudiced.

The question is not whether trial by jury should be abandoned; the question is whether we as a nation are willing to confront the hard facts of racial bigotry that still pervade our society and work to change those facts. The editorial does nothing to further this change. Ben Shulman, North Hollywood, Cali1f.

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