At nearly the final hour, it seems that the Colonial Heights commonwealth's attorney thinks he needs to bring in a "pro from Dover" to handle what remains of the Rusty Mack case. And given how the case has gone so far, maybe it is the right thing to do.
I don't relish William Bray's job in this case. It is high-profile to say the least, with nearly the entire community taking one side or the other. On its face, the case seems open and shut: the four came to his apartment twice and the second time, a fight ended his life. But those who defend the actions say it is not that simple.
No doubt this is a difficult case to try. Much of the evidence is hearsay and the case is charged with personal feelings. It doesn't surprise me in the least that Bray would comment how the case has raised tremendous depths of feeling and antagonism.
Some people who do not know all the facts of the case want what they perceive as justice for Rusty. They reduce the incident to its bare minimum: four on one. While they may not have meant to kill him - and I am reasonably sure that's the case - one man is dead and four are not.
In our innermost feelings the case screams for justice. We, the public, see what we think is injustice and demand that the wrong be righted. Unfortunately, the case must work its way through the justice system, which often is neither just nor fair.
It's hard not to think how much this case resembles the Trayvon Martin case in some respects. Even before the first person set foot in the Sanford, Fla., courtroom, masses of people had the case already figured out and George Zimmerman already jailed. But the public had only heard pieces of the evidence. Again, it seemed so obvious that an unarmed youth getting shot dead would have to be some kind of murder or killing. But in the end, Zimmerman walked.
And so it is with this case. A vast amount of information has been bandied about in virtually every conceivable form of communication. In person, by cell phone, and worst of all on the Internet via FaceBook - that notorious font of accuracy - and all of it with the natural bias of whoever was commenting. To be true, it is practically impossible to get the real story in Rusty's case, just as it was nearly impossible to get the real story in the Trayvon Martin case.
But in Florida, the state brought in a special prosecutor from the get go. They didn't wait around for a year trying to figure out what to do, only to have the matter get out of hand. Murder charges aside, it's hard for me to believe that no one is to blame for Rusty's death. There is, one would think, at least an assault charge that could be made.
But then again, not sitting in court and not hearing the presentation of the evidence makes all the difference. For those who sat around their Sanford homes and elsewhere throughout the nation, the result of Zimmerman's trial is probably equally baffling.
Maybe there just is no answer?
Still, it's a monumental move for the commonwealth's attorney to step aside, especially this late in the game. Maybe Bray should have called in some assistance from nearby Chesterfield County. The county has several high-profile litigators who might have been helpful in assessing charges and prosecuting those who were charged. And then again, maybe he did talk to other litigators.
Presenting evidence in court is not always easy. Making a case is not always easy. By and large, the cases heard in court are typically decided before the judge's gavel strikes for the first time. More often than not, the defendant is guilty and just looking for some sort of damage control, such as a plea bargain or pleading to a lesser offense. But some cases rise above the norm. Rusty's case in particular is difficult because of the nature of the events, but even more so because of its effect on the community. From the first day, it has been the talk of the town, and now, as every defendant seems to be slipping through the net, changing prosecutors seems like a last ditch hope for the commonwealth to earn a conviction and justify the cost of the trial.
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