Bobby Cutts Jr. Murder Trial: Will it Be a Fair Trial?

For those of you not familiar with this case, it is a murder trial against a former Canton, Ohio, police officer. Bobby Cutts Jr. is accused of the murder of his girlfriend, Jessie Davis, and their unborn daughter, Chloe. Mr. Cutts and Ms. Davis already had a child together, a son named Blake. Blake was two at the time of his mother's death. Bobby Cutts Jr's trial began Monday, February 4, in Stark County Common Pleas Court. As the sibling of two former law enforcement officers and having personally known several other officers over the years, I have various views on this topic.

First of all, my oldest brother with over 20 years of service as a law enforcement officer was accused of misconduct and forced to retire from his position in 2002. I have personally seen how bias is taken into account when a member of law enforcement is accused. My brother's situation was nothing close in comparison to the murder indictments handed down to Bobby Cutts Jr. However, in most instances, he was already judged before anyone had any idea of what really happened. There was no jury and no trial, just the accusations and forced retirement release making the local paper was enough for folks to form their opinions. As his sister, I personally resented that. He was a very dedicated, hard-working officer.

He had many awards and achievements under his belt. People would tell how much they liked that cop because he was fair and gave a guy the benefit of the doubt or how he had helped them in some way or another over the years, yet it was those same people who jumped on the bashing bandwagon once the news hit the press. It's as if most individuals are swayed one way or the other depending on the story behind it. If there's good news, you're a great guy. If it's bad news, you're the scum of the earth.

Bobby Cutts Jr. pleaded not guilty to the charges against him. If convicted, he could face the death penalty. This is a controversial trial for several reasons and being an unbiased juror would certainly not be for me. First of all, the fact that Mr. Cutts was a former police officer with a questionable background raises questions as to his character and moral responsibility. Secondly, water cooler talk speculation is that the composition of the jury cannot be fair when presented with deciding the fate of a black man accused of murdering a pregnant white woman.

Information obtained at newsnet5.com lists a jury of six men and six women with three female and three male alternates. No information regarding the race of jurors was noted. I figured if my group of individuals I discuss this matter with think this, then don't you suppose a lot of other people are too? The release of information regarding his character, like this one seen on abcnews.go.com, provides information from a former girlfriend on bully type behavior from Cutts when they were a couple some years ago.

Let's not forget all the press this murder has received overall. Bobby Cutts Jr. has continued to provide varying information regarding his alleged involvement in the disappearance of Jessie Davis. I have an article posted on AC regarding the discovery of Ms. Davis' body and a breaking news story on his involvement in it at: associatedcontent.com.

Bobby Cutts Jr. took the witness stand today in the trial. Yet again, another version of what happened. He confessed to accidentally killing Jessie and not knowing what to do. For full up to the minute coverage of the trial, please see: wkyc.com.

Just knowing that as a juror on this trial, all of this information would have to be absorbed and fairly evaluated and thought through thoroughly because the fate of a man is ultimately in the jurors hands in regards to the death penalty on murder charges. I know that personally, having seen my brother judged, I would have to carefully consider all aspects of this case and try to be fair because it is the fate of a human being at task.

However, just because a person is a law enforcement officer, and society would love for all of them to be perfect, they are after all only people. People with flaws, people with serious problems, people who make mistakes and people who kill others. And the evidence presented is what the guilty or not guilty verdict must be based on.

As a person in an ever changing, more terrifying every day world, I believe that stories of this nature are becoming more and more prominent in the news. And when a public official is accused of murder and there is evidence to back that up, I say "guilty", as we expect more from our officers. We cannot allow this kind of behavior to continue. Not from civilians, and certainly not from those designated to protect and to serve.

Again, I see how bias plays a role in determining the outcome of this sort of case. I would not want to be a part of it for any reason. I don't know if I could be fair either way. On the other side of the coin, just because Cutts may be a nice guy, I wouldn't want him to walk free of this serious charge just because he was a former police officer.

Sources:
"Jury Seated In Bobby Cutts Murder Trial", newsnet5.com
"Former Girlfriend Says Bobby Cutts Jr. Has a Darker Side", abcnews.go.com
Renee Shaffer, "Body of Missing Pregnant Jessie Davis Located", Associated Content
Chris Tye, "Bobby Cutts Jr. testifies in his own defense; Click for complete testimony", wkyc.com