“Who is responsible for conducting a fair trial? Many DA’s are not above bending the rules to win, and many judges don’t stop them.”
I agree that the system is not equitable. That is why I’m applauding the North Carolina bar going after Nifong. Prosecutors who are found to be doing whatever it takes to win a case and bending the rules should be punished and if they do so in a death penalty case, the punishment should be higher. To me, that is taking part in a murder.
Our system is not perfect and never will be (as you noted) however we need to continually work to make it that way. We need to hold our prosecutors and judges to the fire whenever possible. This is where the press (imho) has fallen down on the job. It is their duty to expose scumbags that wear robes or prosecute criminals.
I think we’re more or less on the same page. I don’t think we should give up on the legal system, and we should hold people to the fire when possible. However, most cases don’t make the news like the Duke rape case - people never know about them, and never care about them. The press goes with whatever sells, so if they can make a juicy story out of it, they’ll cover it.