Sub-heading: Is Promising Evidence Enough? On Monday, Finch, a dignified lawyer of Maycomb, Alabama, caught Ewell red-handed for his left hand. Through a thorough and witty cross examination, listeners of the court case can conclude that the plaintiff, Ewell, was responsible for beating his daughter; Mayella, who was seemingly pressured to accuse the Negro of raping her. Finch affiliates the evidence of Mayella’s bruises on the right side of her face to the fact of Robinson’s missing left arm, and ultimately corners Ewell into what seems to be a catch-22. Mr. Finch has been a great contributor to the welfare of Maycomb through his dedications as a lawyer. Although he is a target of scorn for his willingness to defend the Negro, he is still widely respected by the rich and the poor. Mr. Ewell has his reasons for being a person of such low-level. Jem Finch, Mr. Finch’s son, recalls, “No public health officer could free [the Ewells] from congenital defects, various worms, and the diseases indigenous to filthy surrounding. [They] lived behind the town garbage dump in what was once a Negro cabin.” All this could explain his mean attitude, unappreciated satire given during the court trial, and possibly a reason for why Mr. Ewell could have been the one who beat his own daughter. The case opened with the questioning of the Town Sheriff, Heck Tate. With his evidence of the account of Mayella’s bruises, Atticus Finch knows he has a chance of proving Robinson’s innocence. Using logic, and knowing that Mayella’s bruises were on the right side of her face, the crowd instantly realized the contradiction in Mr. Ewell’s evidence; Tom Robinson was not likely to have hit Mayella Ewell’s right side of her face with his right arm. The result of the court case is not certain, but if justice prevails racial tensions, then Atticus Finch will have a decent chance of proving Tom Robinson innocent. We do not have the judge’s decision yet, but pick up the next issue for updates and more news for this case.
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