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Words matter

By Shawn Matlock

Words matter. They do.  Whether they are the simple ones we like to hear like, ?You?re hot? or ?I love you?  or they are the ones we don?t want to hear, ?It?s not you, it?s me?  or ?I don?t love you anymore.?  Or the words that can be the greatest to hear, ?Tigers win the pennant!?  (Ok, maybe that?s just me.)  The point is that what we say, and how we say it matter.  Usually.   There are few places where words can have as lasting an impact as in a courtroom.  Whether it be a defendant pleading ?guilty? or a jury returning a verdict, what is said in a courtroom, pretty much by definition, affects people tremendously and does so for life. Unless of course your a ?monster.?  It turns out a prosecutor can refer to a criminal defendant during the course of a trial, and in front of the jury, as a monster and that will result in two more words being uttered by the appellate court; ?harmless error...continue to full post

Full post as published by The Matlock Blog on October 07, 2009 (boomark / email).