To me, the biggest difference between these two episodes
is the outcome and what it tells us about the societies. The Salem Witch Trials ended
up in people being convicted and executed. The Chicago 7 trial ended up with all the
defendants being acquitted.
What this tells us is that the
earlier episode occurred in a society that did not really care much about the legal
rights of the accused. Once people were accused, they were more or less
convicted.
By contrast, the Chicago 7 were acquitted even
though they were very disagreeable people. They abused the judge and the whole legal
process but yet they were aquitted, not convicted based on evidence. This shows a
society that values the rule of law.
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