Avizandam. In Scots law, this term describes the careful consideration given by the judge before an important decision. Join me each week as we explore various topics from a spiritual perspective and take matters Avisandum. The nation has been captivated by the Lindsey-Clancy case in Massachusetts. Lindsay was charged with the killing of her three children.
We recoiled as we heard of three innocent children being killed by their mother. I heard one of the prosecutors say her acts were murder.
Now, I'm not an expert in criminal law in Massachusetts. But at most legal jurisdictions, Murder is the premeditated killing of a person or requires a criminal intention to kill. Or The act resulting in death is so reckless that although there was no intention to kill, The accused may be guilty of a lesser offence such as culpable homicide. or involuntary manslaughter. The killing of children by mother in Scots criminal law is known as infanticide.
There was a recognition that the mental state of a mother after giving birth May be so disturbed that that although the act of killing children is horrendous, The woman is not guilty of murder. but of infanticide, which carried a substantially reduced sentence. It's interesting that the Mosaic law made a distinction between intentional killing and unintentional. I'm coding. from Deuteronomy.
If anyone kills his neighbor unintentionally without having hated him in the past, and the example is given of an axe slipping and killing a neighbor. The person with the axe can go to a city of refuge since he had not hated his neighbour in the past.
However, if any one hates his neighbor, and lies in wait for him, and attacks and strikes him fatally, So that he dies. if then he goes to one of the cities of refuge, the elders will hand him over to the avenger of blood.
Now What I'm saying is, my point is. that the intention behind the killing is all important. Most legal systems make a difference between a premeditated killing. a reckless act resulting in a death, or a pure accident resulting in a death, an intention to kill in the heat of the moment.
So there's all different circumstances, and the law recognizes this. Yeah. In the Lindsay Clancy case, alternative charges were presented to the jury. The central issue in the case related to the state of the mother's mind, at the time of the killing. Was she suffering from postpartum depression?
or postpartum psychosis? It seems that eleven jurors were not convinced, beyond a reasonable doubt, that Lindsay Clancy intentionally killed her children.
So they favored acquiddle. The result was a hung jury and so a missed trial. A jury, after all, has to assess all of the evidence, including the opinion of experts. Incidentally, If this case had been tried in Scotland, the mother would have been acquitted. In a Scottish jury for criminal cases there are fifteen jurors, and a decision can be made by a majority.
So, if a majority of the jurors considered that the prosecution had not proved their case beyond a reasonable doubt, they would have rendered a verdict of not guilty. It seems regrettable that one individual could cause a mistrial. I know the majority is not always right. But is it fair to Lindsey Clancy that the case has not yet been resolved? The question of reasonable doubt is a fascinating one.
After all, what is reasonable? From the evidence presented, is it rational or reasonable to say that the prosecution has proved their case? Very few facts can be established with one hundred percent certainty. Legal systems recognize that the diary does not to be theoretical or fanciful. But reasonable.
A multitude of accused have been acquitted, not because they did not commit an unlawful act, but because the evidence was not sufficient to convict them beyond a reasonable doubt.
Now, as I say, this case has attracted tremendous publicity, debate, outrage and emotion. I read that a pastor had described Clancy's murder of her three children as obviously demonic. He describes the reaction to the case as parallel to the depravity of ancient Israel in the last chapters of the Old Testament book of Judges. But is that a fair assessment? After all, it is a bedrock principle of jurisprudence, at least in the West.
that an individual is innocent until proven guilty.
So Lindsey Clancy certainly deserves a defense, even though the killing of three children by anyone. far less the mother is horrendous. But the question before the court was Was she guilty of murder? Or should she be convicted of a lesser charge? Because of possible postpartum depression or postpartum psychosis.
Eleven people on the jury apparently decided that the prosecution had not discharged their legal obligation to prove the guilt of the accused beyond reasonable doubt. And thus the jury's decision was not unanimous. A mistrial was the result. To say this case is the equivalent to the acts of the Menjemites at the end of the book of Judges in the Old Testament is an overreach. I don't know whether the mother was truly suffering.
From postpartum depression, or postpartum psychosis. But I do believe that she and everyone else before a law court should receive a fair trial. After all, there has to be an assessment of the evidence, rather than a rush to judgment based on feelings of revulsion. As followers of Jesus Christ, we are committed to justice. In the parable of the persistent widow in Luke 18, the Lord says, Hear what the unrighteous judge says.
and will not God give justice to His elect, who cry to Him day and night? Will he delay long over them? I tell you. He will give justice to them speedily. Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith?
On earth. Praise God that his justice is absolutely perfect. God alone knows the motives of the human heart. He not only knows what we do, but the motives behind what we do. He knows the intentions.
Of her heart. In Psalm 139, King David writes, O Lord, you have searched me and known me. You know me when I sit down and when I rise up. You discern my thoughts from afar. You search out my path and my lying down.
and are acquainted with all of my ways, God knows everything about everything, including our thoughts, our intentions, and our motives. When we stand before God, Our judge. there will be no reasonable doubt regarding our deeds, intentions, and motives. God knows all about them. How important it is then that we live in the fear of the Lord.
quickly confessing her sins. And ensuring that What we do is not only right, but comes from pure motives. When all of us, including Lindsay Clancy, stands before our great God, His judgment. is perfect. All of us have sins.
But for the believer in Jesus Christ, Our sins are totally forgiven. Scripture says that God will remember them no more. He is the perfect judge.
So live in the fear of the Lord. Avisander. You're listening to the weekly Avizandam podcast from The Verdict, featuring Pastor John Monroe. John is Senior Pastor at Calvary Church in Charlotte, North Carolina. Listen to John's daily program, The Verdict, on broadcast radio or major podcast platforms.
For more information about the Verdict Ministry, visit us online at calvarychurch.com/slash the verdict.
