The danger in taking a cut-and-dried attitude to criminal law is that there can lead to a rush to judgment that leaves no room for consideration of possible mitigating circumstances. South Carolina residents facing charges of any kind have the right to expect that if they find themselves accused of a crime that they will be granted the right to due process.

It is that right, and our codified presumption of innocence that tends to separate the legal system in the United States from nearly every other country. This is important to remember in light of recent news of an South Carolina man facing charges of murder in the death of a South Carolina police officer. The man's father says his son has a history of mental problems.

According to authorities, the 26-year-old man was arrested at his home in Batesburg Saturday. They accuse him of shooting the police officer that day as she was responding to a call about alleged suspicious activity. She died later at the hospital. Earlier, officials say the suspect killed his girlfriend in her Georgia apartment. The circumstances of that shooting and the status of possible charges in the case weren't available at the time this entry was being written.

At his first court appearance yesterday, the suspect reportedly appeared unsteady; shaking and stumbling. Media outlets reported that he lashed out verbally at reporters. He was not represented by an attorney.

His father outlined the mental issues his son has endured in his life. He said that his son had shot himself in the head last year and had been in a mental treatment center until he was released last fall.

At the end of the proceeding, the judge ordered the man held on a murder charge and set bond at $10,000 in connection with a weapons charge. His next court appearance is slated for March 9.

Source: AP, The Telegraph, "Bond denied for suspect in SC officer's death," Jan. 30, 2012