When a judge tells a jury they do not have the right to refuse to convict because they believe the law is unjust, he is lying.
Justice
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When a judge tells a jury they do not have the right to refuse to convict because they believe the law is unjust, he is lying.
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It’s a little more nuanced than that. A jury can’t really decide based on whether they think the law is unjust– at least that can’t be the stated reason. What they can do, as finders of fact, is come to a decision about facts which makes it impossible to find someone guilty. (“Well, no, I don’t believe the cops. I think they planted those drugs” or “I don’t think it was the punch that killed him, it was his heart condition which would have killed him anyway” or “I don’t believe the maps. He was 1014 feet away from a school, not 997”) Since juries generally don’t have to publicize their reasons for acquitting (I was on a jury that acquitted once, and not even the judge wanted to know why), they have a lot of room to move. The law, is, however, the law. If a jury wants to decide that the facts don’t fit it, well, that’s their prerogative.