Jena 6 - UPDATE - Bell now facing 15 rather than 22 1/2 years

[Anita Garcia]

Jena judge: can't try juvenile as adult for conspiracy

9/5/2007, 8:49 a.m. CDT
The Associated Press

<http://www.nola.com/newsflash/louisiana/index.ssf?/base/news-34/1188997196165500.xml&storylist=louisiana>

JENA, La. (AP) — A judge has thrown out one of the two charges against the first black student tried for beating up a white student at Jena High School, saying juveniles cannot be charged with conspiracy in adult court.

But Judge J.P. Mauffray Jr. rejected arguments that, for the same reason, he should throw out the aggravated second-degree battery charge on which Mychal Bell also was convicted.

. . . .

He said LaSalle Parish District Attorney Reed Walters used "bait-and-switch" tactics to try Bell as an adult. Bell was indicted on a charge of attempted murder, but Walters changed to the battery charge before trial, as he did Tuesday with the charges against two more students, Carwin Jones and Theo Shaw.

. . . .

Bell's attorneys also argued that the convictions should be thrown out because there was no evidence of conspiracy or of the dangerous weapon required for an aggravated battery charge. Walters has said that weapon was shoes. Louis Scott, another of Bell's attorneys, said there was no evidence that Barker's injuries were caused by tennis shoes rather than a punch or hitting a wall.

Two rally events in Jena and your home town.
Support justice for Jena 6:
September 12th and September 20th - 9:00 AM
If you can't make it to Jena, Louisiana please write letter or send a message to your neighbors in your home town.

[goclark]

1. Justice for some, not All in Amerika

[Anita Garcia]

3. bait and switch by DA

It is awful that this common DA tactic was not addressed by Bell's original attorney.
But we now know that with our Republican Administration appointed 5th Circuit you can have an effective attorney even if that attorney sleeps through your entire case.

[Felinity]

2. I am about to put on my dangerous weapons

and go for a walk. Hopefully, I can avoid the police.

Geesh.

[Anita Garcia]

4. lol

:)
Just make sure that you put a hat on to cover up your "chee wee or dread locks" hairstyle if you plan on taking a stroll through St. Tammany Parish in Louisiana.
FYI - one of the individuals arrested in connection with the case that Sheriff Jack Strain was allegedly referring to above was white.

[Anita Garcia]

5. on CNN right now!

I'm so happy that CNN is reporting on this.
Both CNN and MSNBC had reports last night.
Now CNN is showing video of the rally yesterday!

[goclark]

8. Good!

[Anita Garcia]

9. And Star Jones!

I kid you not!
Star Jones interviewed two of the mothers of the Jena 6 today!
I watched.
Ms. Jones and the mothers all did wonderful.

[goclark]

10. Go Star! I've got to watch her show~

[Anita Garcia]

6. More information on other charges for Jena 6

<http://southernstudies.org/facingsouth/2007/09/charges-reduced-for-some-jena-6.asp>
From Facing South, Blogging for a Progressive South:

"Robert Bailey Jr. and Bryant Purvis still face attempted murder charges, and another youth faces undisclosed juvenile charges.

****Bailey also faces firearm theft charges for wrestling away a gun from a white youth who brandished it during an argument outside a local convenience store and refusing to return it. The white youth was not charged."****

**** Amazing!

[uppityperson]

7. Thanks for the updates, this is amazing.

[Gregorian]

11. Amy Goodman did an interview with them in jail on Democracy Now today.

They've been mistreated, to understate it. Maced in their cells, etc.

http://www.democracynow.org/

[Catherine Vincent]

12. I listened.

One of them was basically saying that they want a second chance like the noose hanging white guys got.

[Anita Garcia]

13. And you know what else Jena is famous for,?

<http://www.nospank.net/n-g14.htm>

Their Juvenile Detention Center was finally closed.

"The Jena facility is a former juvenile detention center that was closed in 2000 after a federal investigation found systematic abuse occurring there. It was reopened to house prisoners evacuated from southeastern Louisiana after hurricanes Katrina and Rita." <http://www.iht.com/articles/2005/10/02/news/inmate.php>

And after Katrina, in Jena:

"Prisoners in Jena complained in the affidavits that guards had been dragging them from their cells by the hair and beating them, stripping them naked and hitting them with belts, shaving their heads, threatening them with dogs, shocking them with stun guns and assaulting them after they attempted to report the abuse." <http://www.iht.com/articles/2005/10/02/news/inmate.php>

[annm4peace]

14. Join the march in Jena 9/20th

On September 20th, we expect more than two thousand ColorOfChange members to come to Jena, LA to protest the sentencing of Mychal Bell, the first of the Jena 6 to be convicted. We're organizing a national Day of Action for that day, so you can help take the rally, and the issue, beyond Jena and into communities all across the country. The first step is to get a "Free the Jena 6" t-shirt to wear on the 20th.

To get your shirt by the 20th, you need to place your order by Thursday, September 6th at midnight (after the 6th, the t-shirt provider will send your order but can't guarantee that it will arrive by the 20th).

http://www.colorofchange.org/jena/shirts/

Over 130,000 ColorOfChange.org members have taken action on behalf of the Jena 6 so far. Tens of thousands of you wearing these shirts on the 20th will be an action in itself, but there will be more that you can do.

Closer to the 20th, we'll be providing flyers that you can download and hand out to people who ask about your shirt; you can also post them in local businesses, cafes, and other places. Building word-of-mouth awareness is critical; it's the reason so many of you have already taken action and why more people join this fight every day.

On the Day of Action, we'll also ask you to flood Louisiana state officials and agencies--particularly those who care about the state's reputation and who have influence on the Governor--with phone calls. And we will publicize not only the action happening in Jena, but the local actions you take, broadening the coverage, and making it clear that there's national support for these young men.

Again, thank you again for working to support the Jena 6. Together, we will make a difference.

Thanks and Peace,

-- James, Van, Gabriel, Clarissa, Mervyn, and the rest of the ColorOfChange.org team
September 5th, 2007


P.S. With help from Goodstorm, we're able to offer the shirts at the low cost of $10 (plus shipping), and all proceeds will go directly towards the legal defense of the Jena 6. If you'd like to make an additional donation towards their legal defense, click here:

https://secure.colorofchange.org/jena_fund/