Sowell: "Nifong is riding a tiger and can't get off"

Nifong's strategy is even more cynical than we thought. At least if Sowell's speculation is right. And it reads true.

It is an old ploy to keep some charges hanging over the heads of accused individuals, even if you don't have enough of a case to convict them, just so that they can be persuaded to plea bargain down to something with minor penalties, in order to get the hassle over with.

That would also get the heat off Nifong, who could then claim that in fact he had some basis to prosecute in this case, when in fact he had nothing from day one.

If bad gets to worse, Nifong can take the case to a jury, hoping to find at least one juror so biased by racial resentments as to refuse to declare the Duke students not guilty. A hung jury can save Nifong from being hung for a groundless prosecution.

We can only hope that the Duke University students hang tough, even though this whole process is costing their families money, beginning with bail set several times as high for them as for someone accused of murder in the same jurisdiction.

What he said.

posted by Ace at 04:09 PM

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