
Brothers
As of this writing, I have just completed three days
as a juror on a disturbing case involving the sexual abuse
of a 6-year-old girl, allegedly by her stepfather. The trial
ended in a hung jury, 11 guilty, one not guilty. To be sure,
it was not an easy case to listen to, or decide. After
reporting to the Judge (the first time) that we were 10 to 2,
we were instructed to go back and re-examine our
individual positions and see if we could come up with the
necessary unanimous vote, either guilty or not guilty. We
went back to the jury room, but hours later ultimately
reached an 11-1 impasse.
What troubled me, and most of the other jurors,
was that the holdout repeatedly said that he was 60-70%
sure the defendant was guilty, but could not bring himself
to convict. As Catholics, we are schooled at an early age
about the nature of being conscious, and the necessity of
having a "well formed conscience". What I learned from
this otherwise disappointing experience was two lessons.
One is that besides having a well-formed conscience, we
also need to have "the courage of our own convictions" to
make a real difference.
The other is the real difference that one vote can make.
God Bless,
Phil LeBlanc
Grand Knight

Assembly 2318
Fellow Sir Knights
It is finally here! Time to vote!
Please remember to vote and if you can
assist someone get to the polls, please do
so. November brings us two major projects,
which require your help. On Thursday
November 13th is our annual Blood Drive.
This project requires a lot of help not only
during the blood collection period, but
during the clean up period. So please let
Jim Gallagher know when you can give him
a hand. The second project is the Food
Drive for the needy families of our valley.
Please let John McClure know how you can
assist him in this project. Please remember
to continue to support of our projects, since
without your support, we can not achieve
our goals. May God Bless,
Faithful Navigator
Jim Hartigan