Thursday, June 15, marks the 808th anniversary of the signing of the Magna Carta, a great step forward for the rule of law.
This longstanding legal protection includes the right to a fair and public hearing and the right not to be subjected to degrading treatment or arbitrary arrest, detention or deprivation of property.
So it’s a sad irony that this week also marks a discreditable step backward from the Magna Carta’s groundbreaking recognition of our right to equal standing before the law.
Can we say that the indictment of presidential candidate and former President Donald Trump is arbitrary? Is it based on a search and seizure not in accord with the Constitution’s Fourth Amendment?
“The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.”