“Tried According to the Voice of the People, and Condemned Unto Death”
Paanchi is tried for a capital offense, not because he disagreed with the outcome of the election or because he sought to become the chief judge, but rather that he “raised up in rebellion and sought to destroy the liberty of the people.” His crime is one of sedition and treason. He is to be judged according to the laws established by Mosiah II. The exact nature of the “voice of the people” that found him guilty and condemned him to death is not given in the text, but based on other uses of the phrase it is either a democratic process, such as a jury of peers, or possibly a theo-democratic council of judges, as is perhaps implied by the record of the trial of Nehor (see Alma 1:10-15).
References
