The high councilman never speak in defense or offense. The idea of a "Kangaroo Court" is just absurd. It's not even a court.

We are allowed to ask questions of the person, the bishop, the stake president. Then we are asked to say what we think the decision should be. Some of the questions happen in front of the person, some privately, some with just the bishop there.

The whole bit in the D&C where half the council stands in defense and the other on offense --- that's if there is contention at all on the council, which I can't imagine happening in today's church. Yes, we are assigned by lottery (read the D&C) but I've never seen any high councilman cross a line worthy of being rebuked.

There is no court, not in any sense you would be familiar with in any legal tradition I've ever heard of. It's a council. We are trying to divine the Lord's will on the matter, and we do so by following the process that the Lord gave us for receiving revelation. I guess the closest thing you might have is what may happen in tribes with chiefs. The chief gathers his most trusted associates and asks them what he should do. Then he makes his decision and asks if they can support that. That's pretty much it. Except the chief is not the stake president. The chief is Christ. Remember, God works in councils and has invited prophets in times past to sit on his grand council to decide what to do in different times in Israel's history. God asks for input before he makes a decision.

It's also worthy noting that our concern is not with guilt. Our concern is, "What is the appropriate church discipline for this person, today, here?" We consider all sorts of factors, but we don't really care if the person is guilty or not, just whether they are repentant and whether the Lord is ready to accept their repentance and whether we're hurting the church by keeping him in or whatnot. Our goal is the eternal salvation of everyone involved, including the person who is the subject of the council. We will choose what we think will bring him closest to Christ.

I've never been on a council where the facts have been in question. I am told that there is a procedure to gather information should we need it. A high councilor can be assigned to ask specific questions to specific individuals, and can report the answers to the council. That's the extent of investigation. Again, we're not really concerned with guilt, just eternal salvation and repentance.