Philadelphia judge's verdict abrogates the state Castle Doctrine law(PA)

mcall.com ^ | 2 June, 2012 | Paul Carpenter

[marktwain]

In the Lowe case, news stories said, a thug named Loren Manning Jr., accompanied by two other thugs, jumped Lowe on a city street last October.

Lowe, 57, is a disabled and retired Marine, who has had two strokes and two heart surgeries and wears a pacemaker.

Manning and his sidekicks attacked Lowe and witnesses said Manning chased him and tried to clobber him with a metal pole before catching him and pinning him to the ground, where Lowe managed to retrieve a small pocket knife and used it to stick Manning, who, tragically, died.

This is Philadelphia, mind you, so Lowe was charged with various crimes — the Castle Doctrine law be damned — because he did not wait for the police to come and handle things. He then agreed to a non-jury trial before Lerner, and you can decide for yourself whether that was a good idea.

For one thing, the defense was not allowed to mention that Manning had 18 criminal convictions before he went after Lowe. Also, when Lowe was attacked, Manning was awaiting trial on charges he robbed a woman and knocked out her teeth.

(It would not surprise me if the woman is charged with injuring Manning's knuckles with her teeth, this being Philadelphia.)

Anyway, Assistant District Attorney Carolyn Naylor stressed that Lowe used his little knife to stab Manning more than once, including in the back, and the back wounds proved that Lowe was acting with malice. That was even though Lowe stayed at the scene and cooperated with police after Manning's lights went out.

Yes, Lerner agreed Wednesday, finding Lowe guilty of voluntary manslaughter and other offenses, which means Lowe will face up to 25 years in prison when he is sentenced by Lerner later on.

Let all this be a lesson

[montag813]

IF no one is allowed to defend themselves, judges should be included. No more metal detectors or searching the people upon entering the CH. Everyone is disarmed? Right?

Agreed. No more police protection for "Judge" Lerner. Fair is fair. Let him call the police and wait while black thugs like Manning rape and murder him and his wife.

[montag813]

Justice Benjamin Lerner is an SOB of the lowest order. He convicts a disabled vet for defending his life, but in March he let off the hook two people who threatened witnesses with death in a double-homicide trial. (Details: Witnesses Dissatisfied With Sentences For Women Who Threatened Them". This douchebag has no place on the bench.

[Fresh Wind]

...Lowe managed to retrieve a small pocket knife and used it to stick Manning, who, tragically, died.

The tragedy is that Lowe was arrested, tried, and convicted. Lowe did the world a favor when he killed Manning.

[maxwellsmart_agent]

Judge’s full name for when we vote?

[ridesthemiles]

The real lesson here is DON’T live in Philadelphia.

[MadMax, the Grinning Reaper]

Drop the anti-semitic crap, vette6387. You sound like a Nazi or just a plain nut.

The judge sounds like a POS. So be it. The citizens should try to recall him if that is a legal option.

I lived in Phila for 4 years and back then, we had really good judges including Juanita Kidd Stout and a young DA named Arlen Spector who was tough on violent crime.

Today we get liberal shits for judges because people like you don’t know who to go about getting rid of them (without exhibiting anti-semitism or any other hate-guided “ism”).

The only solution besides a good APPEAL’S team is a change in the political landscape. It is acomin’.

[Red in Blue PA]

If the “justice” system was on fire, I wouldn’t cross.the street to urinate on it.

[Red in Blue PA]

If the “justice” system was on fire, I wouldn’t cross.the street to urinate on it.

[Red in Blue PA]

If the “justice” system was on fire, I wouldn’t cross.the street to urinate on it.

[Red in Blue PA]

If the “justice” system was on fire, I wouldn’t cross.the street to urinate on it.

[stevio]

Can this not be appealed?

[varmintman]

The “adversarrial(TM)” system of justice has outlived any purpose it might have ever served and is in bad need of being gotten rid of, along with the job of DA; nobody should ever have any sort of a money/career incentive to simply put as many people as possible into prison. We need to adopt something more like the “inquisitorial” system used in France in which the common motive of government workers involved in justice is to determine facts.