Guilt
Guilty by law or guilty by sin
Guilt is a world we all live in
Whether our skin be white, black or brown
All those up can be brought down
For envy, these days, is a legitimate position
Which needs only limited exposition
Of all the evidence in any deposition
Leniency is not to be granted to the strong
For they can withstand the punishment! As long
As the sentence meted out is sufficient
The justice system is deemed efficient!
Revenge is a vicious word, but seldom said
By the jury before the verdict is read
And even when, from the court, the accused is led
But that feeling shows within the pages
Of the rags wherein verbal violence rages
Their editors know what arouses the throng
The gullible that will sing any hangman’s song
They who might be the accused next time
When a prosecutor needs to invent some crime
Or seeks praise for a delivery that is “simply sublime”!
Strangely, guilt is defined as an absolute
As stated by the man in the barrister’s suit
There is no room for probability or doubt
Guilt is what every trial is about
The naïve may think that truth will be revealed
The innocent may assume their fate is unsealed
But laws are easily made and repealed
Yes, no-one is safe from accusation
When the media are paid to enhance sensation
Even celebrity is a dangerous game
When society is looking for someone to blame
The honest should be tired to the hilt
Of a legal structure that seems to be built
Merely to find a way to prove guilt