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pilgrim689 | 11 years ago

It's innocent until proven guilty isn't it?

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jamesaguilar|11 years ago

The court has to pretend that. We in the public can follow any decision rule we please, including maximum likelihood.

pyre|11 years ago

Well, I did make my comments conditional on the allegations being true.

My only point was that the Silk Road case isn't just about the big bad government rushing after innocent people that just want to do their drugs in peace while keeping to themselves, but are caught up in the War on Drugs.

That said, if the law enforcement were forced to presume that you were innocent until convicted, they would not be able to investigate you because they would no longer be presuming that you were innocent.

The statement that I commented on makes the assumption that the admin(s) of Silk Road were doing nothing but providing a marketplace for consensual (though illegal) transactions. If the admin(s) of Silk Road were engaged in a murder-for-hire plot, then I would assume you are ok with the FBI investigating such things (though maybe I shouldn't make such assumptions). Murder-for-hire goes well beyond people just minding their own business.

ianferrel|11 years ago

Yes. But what does that have to do with investigation? Can't really fail to investigate until proven guilty.

danielweber|11 years ago

Right. The trial is not where "we find out what happens." It's where the state, having already decided you suck and need to spend some time in jail, needs to prove it to a jury of your peers beyond a reasonable doubt in a formal setting where only legally obtained evidence can be used.