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2002-05-31 - 7:17 a.m.

PERCEPTION VERSUS TRUTH

One of my high school history teachers once told me that perception often matters more than truth. It wasn�t that he agreed that it should, mind you. It�s just that it did. Perception influences human behavior far more than truth ever does. What we believe to be true is generally a more powerful part of human action than the truth.

Tuesday, there was a shooting at our courthouse. After the jury verdict in a felony murder trial was read, the defendant leaped for the windows. When a deputy moved in to grab him, he struggled with the deputy, got control of the deputy�s gun, and the deputy was shot in the leg. A second deputy managed to control the gun after that, by putting his finger in the slide so it would not go off. The police detective who had been sitting with the assistant district attorney then shot the defendant dead.

Early reports, however, suggested that the defendant was going after the jury, instead of the window behind the jury. The early reports also did not explain where the gun came from. While these mistakes are understandable, they are all that many people remember. Even without the early reports, the archetype of a criminal defendant shooting up a courtroom is so powerful that no one remembers that the most dangerous place to be statistically is in family court where melees are not uncommon. No one remembers that this sort of thing has never happened in the courthouse before although several years ago a man stabbed his ex to death outside of family court.

But none of that will matter. Already some are suggesting that all defendants wear stun belts in courtrooms. Already some are suggesting that all defendants be separated from the jury by glass, even embezzlers and shoplifters. Already some are suggesting fewer entrances into the courthouse (as if that would have made any difference here.) Already some are suggesting anonymous jurors to make juries feel safer (as if that were the issue here.) And yesterday, some poor defendant who had nothing to do with the event appeared for sentencing in full shackles and with six deputies just because it was in the courtroom where the shooting occurred.

The truth of what happened and how unusual it is doesn�t matter. The truth that one is more likely to be injured by defective chairs (happened to one of our judges and at least one of our jurors) or toxic mold or bacteria (happened to several assistant district attorneys) or improperly inserted heavy duty staples (happened to me). Never mind that total safety is an illusion. We feel unsafe and we must do something�just about anything.

There is very little that I am absolutely sure of in this world. I�m reasonably certain that my history teacher was correct but there is room for doubt. I am sure, however, that when people are seeking safety from the bogeyman, none of us are safe. The next time I enter the courthouse, I�ll be afraid�but it won�t be of the defendants.

LAST YEAR: Don�t You Dare!

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