Many of Our Laws Deserve to Be Nullified

Re “Is a Law Unjust? One State May Allow Juries to Decide,” Oct. 30:

Your article regarding the “jury nullification” amendment in South Dakota points to the increasing frustration felt by citizens, including this reader, with the criminal justice system and the enforcement methods of the police and courts.

Here in Huntington Beach, the police are well known for their aggressive enforcement of such innocuous “crimes” as street sweeping violations, motor vehicle violations (keeps the riff-raff out of town) and unnecessary speed traps, all of which serve little purpose other than to act as fund-raisers for the city and keep the police hierarchy happy. An acquaintance of mine from Australia recently commented about how California is too “rules oriented and restricted,” meaning we enforce so many laws, often petty, that we limit our personal freedom.

I have had several encounters with police over the simple act of walking my dogs. I once had a park ranger in Costa Mesa berate me for not having my dogs on a leash -- at 7 a.m. in a wilderness park. I got so frustrated that I stopped visiting the park.

I’ve had similar, frustrating encounters at the Santa Ana river jetty in Newport Beach. Likewise, I’ve had numerous incidents over the years with police over speed traps and street sweeping violations, which afterward left me feeling like I had just been mugged.

The last time I checked, the government was of the people, by the people and for the people. So let us decide what laws we want and whether or not they are just.

Martin Mulvihill

Huntington Beach