In late May of 2007 it was the author’s privilege to visit an Israeli court in Beersheva. Being used to the orderly way courts function in the United States, this was an eye-opener. There is little to compare to anything relating to the US criminal justice system at all. First, there is no such thing as a trial by jury in Israel. Second, the defendant is automatically guilty when charged and must prove in court that he himself is innocent. The court rarely accepts the defendant’s evidence and often regards it to be irrelevant since he is obviously guilty or no one would have lodged a complaint against him. The complainant’s evidence is accepted as fact, even though it may be doctored, just plain false or even demonstrate that the charges themselves are false. Third, the defendant or his lawyer often do not know what the charge is until it is read by the judge in the courtroom. There is no way to prepare a defense in such cases unless the lawyer can obtain permission from the judge to reschedule the trial for another date, which may or may not be granted. Fourth, the defendant must post a check, payable to the court in the amount that the court deems necessary to cover the court costs, including the fees of the complainant’s lawyer. Fifth, no one takes an oath to tell the truth. And sixth the judge may have been the prosecutor in a pervious case of the defendant and have a personal prejudice against him.

Upon entering the courtroom it appears that one has entered a television studio for some comedy spoof on the legal system or a circus performance, except that there are no cameras visible. The courtroom is filled with a myriad of people—defendants, lawyers, spectators, sympathizers, and who knows who else. Conversations abound throughout the room and nothing is on a microphone, often making it difficult or impossible to hear the judge, lawyer or defendant. The judge (who may have been the prosecutor in a previous trial regarding the defendant) calls out the name of a defendant, who must then stand. He or she may be anywhere in the courtroom or may not be present at all. The charges are then read. The defendant’s lawyer also stands and speaks to the judge. And the judge asks how the defendant pleads, guilty or innocent. The judge, lawyer and prosecutor (who may have been the judge in a previous trial regarding the defendant) then dialogue concerning the case. If neither the lawyer nor defendant had any prior knowledge of the charges then the defense lawyer may request that the trial be rescheduled. This may or may not be granted, depending on how the judge feels that day, whether or not he has had his coffee, has to go to the bathroom or merely has a personal prejudice. If there was prior knowledge of the charges, then the case will usually be decided on the spot by the judge, but not always. In most cases the defendant is declared guilty, because he is obviously guilty or no one would have accused him of anything. There doesn’t have to be any other reason and the defendant doesn’t even have to be present when and where the supposed crime was committed.

In the case against Eddie Beckford the day that the author was present, the complainant, who was Hassidei Gur, was not present. There was no one other than the court-appointed prosecutor to plead the case. The judge was a Bedouin, who favors the believers and hates underhanded actions of the haredim. He simply stated that he was tired of all the false accusations and dismissed the charges. (Such gestures of grace and justice are extremely rare.) He also referred a related case to the Israeli Supreme Court. This time Eddie is the complainant and the haredim will have to defend themselves in a court where they have already lost similar battles against believers. If that case is heard, and if Eddie wins the case, it will be a great victory for all the believers in Israel and could give them immunity against future false and frivolous charges. It will also force the police in Arad to protect the believers and arrest the haredim when they commit hate crimes against those who believe in Yeshua as their Messiah.

June 30, 2007