Lyrics

A name goes up before the facts arrive
A door swings shut; the headlines multiply
A careful question turns to a verdict
And every silence gets called evidence

If truth can wait, the sentence cannot
A life gets split by a claim alone

False witness, take the stand
Who counts the cost when a life is condemned?
Keep the scales from the crowd’s command
Let proof speak first; let judgment understand
[mini guitar solo]

A job is gone, the old friends disappear
The cell door closes while the record clears
The harmed deserve a hearing and belief
The accused deserve a process, not a thief
Of name, of time, of liberty

No cause is served by burying the truth
No justice lives where doubt is outlawed

False witness, take the stand
Who counts the cost when a life is condemned?
Keep the scales from the crowd’s command
Let proof speak first; let judgment understand

Thou shalt not bear false witness
Still the words are carved in stone
Do not trade a sacred warning
For a verdict of your own
Hear the wounded; test the claim
Hold each person to the same

Not a rumor
Not a roar
Proof before the closing door
Not revenge
Not a name
Equal measure, equal claim

False witness, take the stand
No life should fall to a crowd’s command
Keep the scales in steady hands
Let proof speak first; let justice understand

Hear every voice
Test every claim
Justice without truth
Is justice in name