Newspaper Page Text
Page 10
February 26, 1985/The Maroon Tiger/Section A
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The Maroon Tiger is published each month of the academic semester
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EDITORIAL
Freddie Asinor
Editor-in-Chief
Johnny Crawford
Associate Editor
Charles Carpenter
Assistant Editor
Oscar Jenkins
Associate Editor
"... If there’s a wrong, we right it... ”
Hugh M. Gloster, Ph.D.
Founder's Day, 1985
Guest Editorial . . .
Building A Doctrine
Of Anticipatory Self-Defense?
by Charles Hampton Savage
Charges against him have now
been reduced to unlawful
firearms possession, but
Bernhard Hugo Goetz’s
appearance in court is likely to
stir public emotions to a higher
pitch yet, by the time the jury
delivers its verdict. Convicted or
acquitted, it will be the public
reaction, not his isolated act,
which makes the most forceful
imprint on law and order in the
United States.
Bernhard Hugo Goetz’s case is
the ideal test, too, for the new
spirit of vigilantism at large in
American society. Young people
Goetz shot all had criminal
records; three of the four carried
concealed screwdrivers; and
they made progressively more
insistent demands upon the
man. First, it was a request for a
match. Second, it was to know
the time of day. Third, they
wanted five dollars. Next, they
would make the ultimate de
mand upon the subway com
muter, correct? The man only
acted in self-defense? The
youths had the intent to assault
him and rob him?
But how was the so-called
SuGway Vigilante to know that
these young people had a
criminal past, carried concealed
weapons, and meant to cause
him harm? Would any of us really
be willing to entrust the safety of
friends, much less family
members, to the judgment of
strangers? When mankind’s
tendency to misread human
nature and to over-react to
situations is notorious, can we
sincerely encourage Goetz's
response to an arguably murky
situation? Indeed, in approving
the stranger's violent action, do
we make adequate allowance for
the disposition of children? All
that is required, after all, to dash
easy suspicion is a hyperactive
youth who talks incessantly and
who seeks a multitude of favors.
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Still, the armed commuter’s
conduct is not blemish-free. The
Assistant District Attorney in
sisted that he "methodically”
shot each of his victims — the
two he shot in the chest and the
two he shot in the back. “By his
own admission,” she said, the
self-employed electronics
specialist "intended to kill each
of them." She also found "in
dications of premeditation” and
added, "I didn’t see anything to
indicate Goetz was in fear for his
life at the time." There is
something gravely wrong when
society takes vacarious delight in
one mean’s outburst, acclaims
him a hero, and spends its hard-
earned cash on his legal defense
fund.
Of course, Goetz’s act can
have a positive effect despite all
the controversy. On account of
the groundswell of public sup
port for what he has done,t he
act can give the potential
aggressor pause, and fear of a
repetition of the shooting could
serve to reduce the rate of crime
elsewhere. Just the same, what
kind of precedent does it set for
the noncriminal, the person apt
to be mistaken for an assailant? If
the Subway Vigilante's act works
to fortify some with a sense of
power or control over the
criminal, what does it do to
relieve the concern of most
about the repercussions of their
own ambiguous, but innocent
and spontaneous, acts?
Yes, it is well to remember that
defense attorneys videotape and
play back for clients scenes
showing their poor performance
in low-pressure and high-
pressure situations alike. Cor
porate executives who anticipate
having to answer embarrassing
questions from the news media
or Congressional investigating
committees are coached,
themselves, on how to present a
favorable public image.
Otherwise, some people just
naturally appear guilty, merely
being themselves. It is impossi
ble for them to appear com
pletely trustworthy and no threat
to others unless they feign an
unfelt joviality or project the
image of a simpleton.
But involuntary personality
adjustments are not,an inexpen
sive cost of relieving the un
reasonable fears of the
suspicious. On the contrary, they
are a forfeiture of basic personal
freedom. Before we declare
(Continued, pg. 16)