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Flatline2962 t1_j3nx514 wrote

Reply to comment by ProjectMoonsong in Virginia judge decreases punitive damages owed by Unite the Right organizers from $24 million to $350,000 by WhoIsJolyonWest

>he law does not allow the jury to be advised of the punitive damages cap.

Which is horseshit. You're asked as a juror to apply law without being told the law.

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hijinked t1_j3nxr8j wrote

They don't want the jury to simply raise the compensatory damages to make up for the punitive damages cap.

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Flatline2962 t1_j3o24wd wrote

That's the argument, but the reality of the law is that they don't want to damage or inconvenience truly wealthy people doing horrendous things.

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SatanicNotMessianic t1_j3nyc26 wrote

Which is exactly what the jury should be allowed to do. It should be illegal to allow a jury to proceed under a misunderstanding of the law.

If I were a juror, I would advise my fellow jurors of anything and everything I could discover relative to the case, but it should be unlawful for a court to lie by omission like this.

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denandrefyren t1_j3p2cru wrote

They do the same thing with jury nullification too. The system doesn't want the people to throw a wrench in things.

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ProjectMoonsong t1_j3nypvw wrote

Actually I think that's probably the only "good" thing about this punitive damage cap. By declaring that there exists a cap, you create a constraint for the jury, so they may end up deciding on a smaller punitive damage because of the cap.

Instead, allowing jurors to decide on a larger punitive damage than the cap can have a symbolic meaning. The court is bound by law, they can't avoid it, but the jury isn't, so whatever amount they decide is the amount that they believe reflects the severity of the crime.

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Flatline2962 t1_j3o1w2x wrote

>Instead, allowing jurors to decide on a larger punitive damage than the cap can have a symbolic meaning.

We've reached a point in society that "symbolic" victories are meaningless. Especially if you're the type of asshole that gets hit with 23 million in punitive damages.

Do you really think the white supremacists who had "symbolic" damages of 23 million give a damn? Especially now?

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