Allen English:  Sorry but it is YOU that in error here.  I made no mention of criminal/civil or felony/misdemeanor.   I said this country (i.e. America). You inferred that (a criminal matter) which in this case is a mistake.  Most of our common law (whether it falls into any of the above categories or not) is predicated on the writings of an Englishmen who wrote on 'COMMON LAW' by the name of Blackstone, who stated that no innocent man should ever have to prove he is, in fact, innocent but that rather it should be up to others to prove he is guilty of something  (sic, anything).  Even juries NEVER prove (make a finding of) innocence.  That concept was codified into our criminal and civil law but it still remains a part of our common law and most likely always will.  And BTW, to show you how important common law is, we had a common law right to bear arms long before the 2nd was ever written and that common law right is still in effect today which actually strengthens our 2nd Amed Right.