Dan Donovan Quotes
If we start exposing what gets said in a grand jury, you won't get anybody to testify.
Donovan, Dan. Quoted in "Donovan Defends Grand Jury Secrecy After Garner Decision." Staten Island Advance, 10 Dec. 2014.
This was an unusual public chastisement of federal prosecutors by a Senior Federal Judge in a criminal trial. Federal prosecutors meet very high standards to be appointed, but the position of prosecutor has often been a stepping stone to advancement in politics, and sometime the desire to win at almost any cost impinges on the fairness and justice of a case. Of interest in this quote also is the fact that the Judge urged his colleagues to do more publicly to deter these practices.
Manava Dharma Shastra. The Hindu caste system is one of the most brutal and rigid forms of discrimination in human history. It is interesting to note that even the lowest cast people—the “untouchables”—were thought worthy of being witnesses. In early America, in many places Native Americans and Blacks were not considered fit to be witnesses even though they were free and not slaves. This “liberality” did not apply to women however where even the highest caste was not considered fit for the function. This text is a part of the Hindu Holy Texts. Hindus believe that Manu was a prophet whose text is revealed or inspired.
While many people hold that view today, in the 17th century this was truly a radical notion. There were NO democracies at the time and this philosopher argued that the citizens had a need to know that might supersede the need for the state to maintain secrets from enemies. Spinoza was one of the most feared intellectuals in human history-feared that is by the established power structures. He is the only known person who was excommunicated by the Catholics, the Jews and the Muslims-all were forbidden to read his works. He was the enemy of authority and advocated personal reason as the guide for men.
Because of the discretion and lack of transparency of prosecutors, she argues that the prosecutors are the weak link in the criminal justice system. Others believe that the weak link is the judges who are the most protected. See {631729}.
Daniel Michael Donovan Jr. is an American attorney, former prosecutor, and politician. A member of the Republican Party, he served as the U.S. Representative for New York's 11th congressional district from 2015 to 2019. Donovan was first elected to Congress in a special election. The district includes all of Staten Island, as well as portions of southwest Brooklyn. He was defeated for reelection in 2018 by Democrat Max Rose. Donovan was District Attorney of Richmond County from 2004 to 2015.
