Halakhah for Sanhedrin 33:14

From the laws of the commandment is that which they, may their memory be blessed, said (Sanhedrin 17a) that if they all [advocated] for guilt, that he is exempt; [that] if the ones that make him innocent and the ones that make him guilty are equal, that we add [more judges] upon them, and until how many do we add (Sanhedrin 41a); what will be if one said, "I do not know." And that which they said, that one who advocates innocence may not go back and advocate guilt, is only said about the time of give and take; but he may go back and be counted with those that make him guilty at the end of the trial. And [that] if one opened and said, "I have guilt to advocate," and became paralyzed or died, he is like one who does not know; but we see one who [would] make him innocent that dies, as if he is in his place at the end of the trial. And [that] we silence a student who comes to advocate guilt; but if he wanted to advocated innocence, we elevate him to the Sanhedrin - and if there is substance to his words, we listen to him and he never goes down from there ever; and [even] if there is no substance to his words, he does not go down from there the whole day, by way of edification. And [that] we [even] listen to the accused himself that says, "I have innocence to advocate about myself" - and that is when there is substance to his words. And the rest of its details - are [all] elucidated in the seventh chapter of Sanhedrin.

And the Sages reduced one of the forty in the understanding of the negative commandment of 'do not increase.' So wrote Rambam, may his memory be blessed, (Mishneh Torah, The Sanhedrin and the Penalties within their Jurisdiction 17:1), and it is a wonder [to say such a thing], according to [that which is written in] the Gemara. And this prohibition is a warning to hit anyone of Israel. And if we are warned about not striking the sinner, is it not all the more so with all other people? And the sages, may their memory be blessed, prevented us from even hinting to strike. They said (Sanhedrin 58b), "Anyone who raises his hand against his fellow to hit him is called an evildoer, as it states (Exodus 2:13), 'and he said to the evildoer, "Why do you strike your fellow?"'"