Wednesday, September 19, 2007

WEAR BLACK ON SEPTEMBER 20th.....








To signify unity against UN-EQUAL JUSTICE in America!



Even if you've been under a rock for the past few months you've heard about the plight of "The Jena 6", a group of African-American teens Robert Bailey (17), Theo Shaw (17), Carwin Jones (18), Bryant Purvis (17), Mychal Bell (16) and an unidentified minor, who were expelled from school, arrested and charged with second-degree attempted murder. Bail was set so high -- between $70,000 and $138,000 -- that the boys were left in prison for months as families went deep into debt to release them.
Last week, Mychal Bell, one of six black Jena Louisiana High School students charged in the beating of a white student that stemmed from racial tension throughout the school, and one of five originally charged as adults with attempted second-degree murder, had his adult charges dropped and his case overturned by a state appeals court. He will now face reduced charges in juvenile court and will be sentenced on 9/20/2007. According to the Associated Press, the state third circuit court of appeal says Bell should not have been tried as an adult on the battery charge.The case has received national and international attention, and one by one the charges against the teens have been reduced.
On September 20th, tomorrow, The NAACP, Rev. Al Sharpton, Tavis Smiley, Michael Baisden and several other African-American leaders, concerned citizens and celebrities will take part in a Rally & March for Peace and Justice to demand justice for Bell. The teen could receive up to 22 years in prison for what was nothing larger than a fist fight between students.
In a letter to Gov. Kathleen Blanco and the state board of ethics, Rev. Sharpton requested an investigation of the district attorney's actions in the case. Here is the full text of Sharpton’s letter:
The National Action Network has documented what amounts to, in our opinion, several instances of prosecutorial abuse and misuse of prosecutorial powers. The claims are as follows:
District Attorney Reed Walters in the case of the State of Louisiana vs. Mychal Bell in Jena, Louisiana, failed to prosecute the individuals who assaulted Robert Bailey Jr. This failure to prosecute represents, in our estimation, a dereliction of duty.
It is also our opinion that the District Attorney failed in his duties to pursue justice by refusing to depose, investigate and interview credible and relevant witnesses, apparently due to the race of these witnesses.
District Attorney Walters is seeking to retry Mychal Bell for juvenile conspiracy after losing the battle to convict Mychal of adult conspiracy. This represents a violation of the spirit of "Double Jeopardy", if not a violation of the letter of the law.
We decry the failure of District Attorney Walters to prosecute individual(s) who possessed and used a firearm, specifically a shot gun, to threaten the life and well being of certain individual(s) being prosecuted in the Jena, Louisiana. However, the District Attorney did prosecute the African-Americans who exercised their right to self defense by removing the weapon from the possession of the armed male, with original possession.
The Prosecutor from the beginning of this case, has seemingly employed less than ethical and just legal tactics in over zealous attempts to have Mychal Bell unjustly convicted. We at the National Action Network are calling on you Governor Blanco and the Louisiana State Board of Ethics to safeguard Mychal Bell's Constitutional Rights and to act as the arbiter of Justice, as well as to investigate District Attorney Reed Walters’ prosecutorial activities as they relate to the State of Louisiana vs. Mychal Bell. We are ultimately seeking to prevent this prosecutor from further engaging in these questionable legal maneuvers and activities.
The need for us as a nation of justice people to descend upon Jena, Louisiana, on September 20th could not be more evident than now, in light of these egregious prosecutorial actions. We will be there to stand with Mychal and his family for his sake and the sake of all of our civil and constitutional rights.
Please pass this info along and remember The Jena 6 on 9/20/2007 and until the injustice ends! For more information on this case visit: http://www.colorofchange.org/jena/

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