Jury in To Kill a Mockingbird Essay

As a member of the jury in Tom Robinson’s case, I dissent with the jury's verdict and believe that the jury has been misled by irrelevant information. For context, it is crucial to know that Mayella, the victim, was hit on the right side of her face. Based on this, it can be implied that someone would have to hit Mayella with their left hand to hurt her. However, the defendant reveals that he has no use of his left hand as his hand was caught in a cotton gin. Furthermore, Mr. Finch manifests that Mr. Ewell is left-handed by showing what hand he writes with. From the following evidence, we can confirm that it is not possible for someone with no use of their left hand to hit the right side of someone’s face. Additionally, it can be suggested that as the population of left-handed people is far less than right-handed people, it is probable that Mr. Ewell, who has often been found to be drunk, hit Mayella instead of Tom Robinson, proving him innocent.

To further strengthen my claim, I would like to bring up Mayella Ewell’s testimony. Throughout her testimony, she contradicts herself several times; for example, Mayella first testifies, “’fore I knew it he was on me. Just run up behind me, he did. He got me round the neck, cussin‘ me an’ sayin‘ dirt—I fought’n’hollered, but he had me round the neck.” Based on her statement, she seems to know how Tom Robinson allegedly raped her with great detail, however, when shown that Tom Robinson doesn’t have use of his left hand, she says, “I don’t know how he done it, but he done it—I said it all happened so fast I.” The following statements from Mayella are completely contradictory to each other, as one is very detailed and the other shows hesitation. Such a dramatic shift in Mayella’s testimony suggests that she has fabricated her claim the entire time and that Tom Robinson is innocent. It is also very likely that she is being forced by her father, Mr. Ewell to lie about the situation, as Mayella is known to be very isolated and have bad living conditions. To conclude, I strongly urge the jury to reconsider their decision and rationally look over the evidence presented above. It is necessary that we only look at what is relevant to the case and not let race or past prejudices take control of our decisions as they will affect lives for eternity.