The English Civil War and the Glorious Revolution

Have you ever been watching a crime show or movie where someone is being held by the police, and their lawyer get's them out using a writ of habeas corpus? This is a legal action which requires that if a citizen is being held by the police, they have to be brought in front of a judge and charged with a crime or released. Where does this right come from?

In the United States, you have the right to be judged by a jury of your peers if you are accused of committing a crime. These twelve people have the ultimate responsibility for determining whether someone is guilty, not the judge. Trial by jury is not a requirement in many other countries. Why does our legal system use it?

Many of the laws that we have in the United States are based on the laws of England, and go back many hundreds of years. In fact, some of them are almost one thousand years old! Consider why people would demand these rights, and why the people who were in power would grant them.