[OOC: This is a video compilation made by someone of Naruto's reaction to the police officers' trials before the verdict and after.]
* Snippet of interview before the verdict.
[Naruto is sitting in a chair, dressed in a silver gray suit and a green, diagonally striped tie. Sitting across from him in a good-looking blond man reporter in white.]
REPORTER: The City seems divided by these trials; do you believe the outcomes in both cases will cause more unrest?
NARUTO NAMIKAZE: There will be some who are disappointed, but I know those committed to their duty as a citizen of our city will accept the delivered verdict, whatever it may be.
R: What outcome are you hoping for?
NN: I did implement the change of law myself. [The barest hint of humor can be detected by a discerning eye and ear.] What I hoped for it was prevention of dark-hair killing without it being a necessity of survival for our officers. In these cases, I hope for fairness in the verdict, and true justice.
R: Which would be what, innocent or guilty?
NN: That will be decided by someone other than me.
R: Okay then, why create this law at all? It potentially makes the jobs of the police more difficult.
NN: Dark-hairs are citizens, and for all of their shortcomings they deserve basic protection. In majority, they go to work, have families, and have a much lower survival rate than the two other castes combined. There has been a documented decrease in dark-hair deaths via blond officers since the change in the law, and that is a positive thing. Hokage doesn't encourage dark-hair genocide, he encourages separation of castes.
R: Shouldn't you be more concerned with your own caste? Masenshi put you in critical condition not too long ago, and threatens every blond with their violence.
NN: I am concerned with my own caste, which is exactly why I believe dark-hairs deserve just treatment. The way they are dealing with their sense of injustice is, as most agree, the wrong way to go about getting their way, but it's a genetic defect and won't change. As blonds, we need to take the high road and make their lives better because we have that power. If we show them good will, there may not be support or need – in their minds – for terrorist groups of the likes of Masenshi.
R: What if you're wrong and the dark-hairs use your good will to their advantage against you? Isn't that what happened in the case of your ambush in the third district?
NN: [Wearing a carefully constructed blank face, trying to let that barb slide over his shoulder.] My policy isn't the same as that. I'm not giving the third district better protection at cost to the first. The first district is as protected as it was when the high security alert was first issued.
* Scene change; Snippet of an interview after the verdict.
[Naruto sits in a chair in a brown pinstripe suit with a pale orange and peach tie, in this clip. The same reporter as the first clip sits opposite him, wearing tan.]
R: The jury has spoken in both cases: both men are innocent. Is this result the "fairness" and "true justice" you described in our last interview.
NN: [Mouth set in a grim line, though otherwise his expression is neutral.] Yes.
R: Is that all you have to say? You've been unnaturally quiet about this issue. Usually the chief of police has a lot to say about everything, especially a law he introduced himself. Instead, you haven't even given a public speech in reply. [Definitely mocking in tone, but in that barely-there blond way.]
NN: I had faith in the jury and accept the verdict.
R: What if they had been found guilty?
NN: To have been found guilty, the jury would have had compelling evidence leading to such a conclusion.
R: So you believe the woman and child were a threat to two armed officers' lives? There were no weapons found on the orphanage premises, nor were either of the officers physically harmed.
NN: Are you accusing the jury of being biased?
R: Chief Namikaze, you have fought hard to ensure our court system is not corrupt, even when it comes to prosecuting blonds. Why are you stopping here? Has Hokage spoken definitively on the subject?
NN: The trials weren't machismo on my part, to prove a point. The trials were the result of two dark-hairs found dead, with two officers blamed for their deaths without provocation. The court's job was to find the truth in the situation and either punish those who needed to be punished, or clear their names. [Harder expression, hinting at irritation.]
R: And cleared their names were. They are on record for killing two people, but in unavoidable circumstances.
NN: Yes, and that is legal.
R: This will surely appease the dark-hairs. I assume they feel empowered already. [Without pause, moves on before Naruto can get a word in.] That is all the time we have, I'm afraid.
* Scene change; Snippet of Naruto Namikaze's speech to The City.
[Naruto is standing at a podium in a taupe (on the grayer side) suit and black tie.] The trials are over, both men found innocent. These were historic cases that set the standard for every single person on the police force in this city. No longer will the deaths of dark-hairs go uninvestigated.
As the chief of police, my job is to oversee many things, but my most important priority is the protection of every citizen in this world. To every blond, brunet, and dark-hair, I hope the two men who were put on trial for their actions had an impact on you. Remember, whether you like the verdict or not, only those within the court room saw all there was to see about the matter, so their judgment should be trusted.
More steps do need to be taken in order to create as level a playing field as we can for each caste, but I feel we have taken a leap forward with these trials. There are legal avenues each and every person in this city can go down in order to make their voice heard; I hope Masenshi is beginning to understand this.
[End video.]
[OOC: This is a well-known fact: the jury was all blond, as the officers were tried in the first district. In the second district the juries there are usually all brunet, but may have some blond people mixed in from time to time. Dark-hairs can never perform jury duty.
Also, yeah, I'm aware these cases would take way longer than it is here but we can just say the court system in TC is amazingly fast. :D
Comment ICly on this, as usual.]
* Snippet of interview before the verdict.
[Naruto is sitting in a chair, dressed in a silver gray suit and a green, diagonally striped tie. Sitting across from him in a good-looking blond man reporter in white.]
REPORTER: The City seems divided by these trials; do you believe the outcomes in both cases will cause more unrest?
NARUTO NAMIKAZE: There will be some who are disappointed, but I know those committed to their duty as a citizen of our city will accept the delivered verdict, whatever it may be.
R: What outcome are you hoping for?
NN: I did implement the change of law myself. [The barest hint of humor can be detected by a discerning eye and ear.] What I hoped for it was prevention of dark-hair killing without it being a necessity of survival for our officers. In these cases, I hope for fairness in the verdict, and true justice.
R: Which would be what, innocent or guilty?
NN: That will be decided by someone other than me.
R: Okay then, why create this law at all? It potentially makes the jobs of the police more difficult.
NN: Dark-hairs are citizens, and for all of their shortcomings they deserve basic protection. In majority, they go to work, have families, and have a much lower survival rate than the two other castes combined. There has been a documented decrease in dark-hair deaths via blond officers since the change in the law, and that is a positive thing. Hokage doesn't encourage dark-hair genocide, he encourages separation of castes.
R: Shouldn't you be more concerned with your own caste? Masenshi put you in critical condition not too long ago, and threatens every blond with their violence.
NN: I am concerned with my own caste, which is exactly why I believe dark-hairs deserve just treatment. The way they are dealing with their sense of injustice is, as most agree, the wrong way to go about getting their way, but it's a genetic defect and won't change. As blonds, we need to take the high road and make their lives better because we have that power. If we show them good will, there may not be support or need – in their minds – for terrorist groups of the likes of Masenshi.
R: What if you're wrong and the dark-hairs use your good will to their advantage against you? Isn't that what happened in the case of your ambush in the third district?
NN: [Wearing a carefully constructed blank face, trying to let that barb slide over his shoulder.] My policy isn't the same as that. I'm not giving the third district better protection at cost to the first. The first district is as protected as it was when the high security alert was first issued.
* Scene change; Snippet of an interview after the verdict.
[Naruto sits in a chair in a brown pinstripe suit with a pale orange and peach tie, in this clip. The same reporter as the first clip sits opposite him, wearing tan.]
R: The jury has spoken in both cases: both men are innocent. Is this result the "fairness" and "true justice" you described in our last interview.
NN: [Mouth set in a grim line, though otherwise his expression is neutral.] Yes.
R: Is that all you have to say? You've been unnaturally quiet about this issue. Usually the chief of police has a lot to say about everything, especially a law he introduced himself. Instead, you haven't even given a public speech in reply. [Definitely mocking in tone, but in that barely-there blond way.]
NN: I had faith in the jury and accept the verdict.
R: What if they had been found guilty?
NN: To have been found guilty, the jury would have had compelling evidence leading to such a conclusion.
R: So you believe the woman and child were a threat to two armed officers' lives? There were no weapons found on the orphanage premises, nor were either of the officers physically harmed.
NN: Are you accusing the jury of being biased?
R: Chief Namikaze, you have fought hard to ensure our court system is not corrupt, even when it comes to prosecuting blonds. Why are you stopping here? Has Hokage spoken definitively on the subject?
NN: The trials weren't machismo on my part, to prove a point. The trials were the result of two dark-hairs found dead, with two officers blamed for their deaths without provocation. The court's job was to find the truth in the situation and either punish those who needed to be punished, or clear their names. [Harder expression, hinting at irritation.]
R: And cleared their names were. They are on record for killing two people, but in unavoidable circumstances.
NN: Yes, and that is legal.
R: This will surely appease the dark-hairs. I assume they feel empowered already. [Without pause, moves on before Naruto can get a word in.] That is all the time we have, I'm afraid.
* Scene change; Snippet of Naruto Namikaze's speech to The City.
[Naruto is standing at a podium in a taupe (on the grayer side) suit and black tie.] The trials are over, both men found innocent. These were historic cases that set the standard for every single person on the police force in this city. No longer will the deaths of dark-hairs go uninvestigated.
As the chief of police, my job is to oversee many things, but my most important priority is the protection of every citizen in this world. To every blond, brunet, and dark-hair, I hope the two men who were put on trial for their actions had an impact on you. Remember, whether you like the verdict or not, only those within the court room saw all there was to see about the matter, so their judgment should be trusted.
More steps do need to be taken in order to create as level a playing field as we can for each caste, but I feel we have taken a leap forward with these trials. There are legal avenues each and every person in this city can go down in order to make their voice heard; I hope Masenshi is beginning to understand this.
[End video.]
[OOC: This is a well-known fact: the jury was all blond, as the officers were tried in the first district. In the second district the juries there are usually all brunet, but may have some blond people mixed in from time to time. Dark-hairs can never perform jury duty.
Also, yeah, I'm aware these cases would take way longer than it is here but we can just say the court system in TC is amazingly fast. :D
Comment ICly on this, as usual.]
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