Unrelated Update (2/3): I may blog more about the Long Beach hate crime beating trial next week. A group of black teenagers brutally beat three white women on Halloween Night — merely because they were white. I read that one of the women has to have surgery to realign an eye socket. Good grief.
This LA Weekly story is rather interesting.
Feel free to discuss the case on this thread. More later…
(Photo: Reed Saxon – AP)
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I like smart people dedicated to doing good things, like investigating and blogging the railroading of innocent men accused of gang rape.
KC Johnson has run circles around so-called journalists writing about the Duke “rape” case. If I weren’t already a blogger and wanted to start a blog, I’d create a site focused on one issue the way KC has. It’s one of the best ways to build expertise and credibility, and you become the go-to person on that topic. KC has made quite a space for himself out here in the crowded blogosphere, and I’d advise all of you would-be bloggers to think long and hard about creating a single-issue niche blog, rather than one covering multiple and general topics.
The blogosphere has grown exponentially since I started in late 2003, and it’s more difficult to stand out from the crowd. Dedicating your time and energy to one hot issue or topic will help you establish expertise in that area, and bloggers will link to you because you’re valuable.
I finally got the chance to read KC’s op-ed in the New York Post, where he mocks the New York Times for its self-righteous editorial on the value of DNA. NYT, as many Duke “rape†case followers already know, is one of the liberal newspapers that parroted Durham County district attorney Mike Nifong’s and the Durham Police Department’s version of events.
Although NYT had nothing to say about the lack of DNA in the Duke case, it lectures the rest of us about the value of DNA in other cases. In “The True State of C.S.I. Justice” (free reg. req.), NYT intones (emphasis added):
It’s clearly time for these grim showcase states to join the half-dozen pioneering states that have created what are termed innocence commissions…These respected authorities try to identify the causes of the wrongful convictions and propose changes to improve the state of justice. Calls to create commissions in New York and Texas are bogged down in statehouse politics, even as a half-dozen other states are poised to create their own monitors…No one knows the depth of injustice hinted at by DNA exonerations. But it is clear that they demand organized oversight and serious reforms of the criminal justice system.
“Powerful recommendations,” KC writes, “Yet time and again over the past 10 months, Times reporters and columnists have acted just like the Texas prosecutors the paper’s editorialists condemn.”
He notes that NYT, like other liberal newspapers, provided slanted coverage of the Duke case from the beginning, disregarded the stripper-accuser’s multiple versions of events, and essentially ignored the lack a DNA connection between the three indicted men and the stripper-accuser.
KC writes (emphasis added):
This is also the same New York Times whose editors watched silently last month, as Dr. Brian Meehan admitted that he and Nifong had entered into an agreement to intentionally withhold exculpatory evidence. His lab’s tests, Meehan testified in open court, discovered that samples taken from the accuser contained the DNA of between two and four unidentified males – and nothing from any lacrosse player. This finding was never reported to the defense…Meehan’s revelations prompted widespread demands for Nifong’s removal from the case; some editorial boards, appropriately, urged that the charges be dropped altogether. Times editors, on the other hand, ignored Meehan’s testimony. [NYT] Columnists Araton and Roberts likewise were silent.
Not to pump up bloggers too much, but where would this Duke case be at this point if not for the work of dedicated bloggers like KC? I am convinced the blogosphere played a big part in smashing Nifong’s house of cards. Certain mainstream media journalists wanted the white men to be guilty; they wanted to rally around the poor oppressed black woman who had to take off her clothes and perform sexual favors to feed her kids. They were tired of the usual crime stories, and the Duke “rape” case titillated them.
Some newspapers that slanted coverage toward the prosecution made amends by calling for Nifong’s head; the Washington Post and Los Angeles Times come to mind.
Better late than never, as they say. 
Case status: The N.C. Attorney General’s Office has taken over the Duke case. The February 5 hearing, where the stripper-accuser was scheduled to take the stand, has been postponed. Nifong is preparing to defend himself against ethics charges.
More Duke blogging: The Johnsville News (bookmark this site and check it daily for links to the latest Duke case news), LieStoppers (esp. Edwards Hires Hoax Apologist to Run Campaign Blog, where I’m mentioned – Could I turn this tidbit into a blog swarm?), Crystal Mess, John in Carolina…
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Apparently Cousin Jacki (real name: Clyde Lee Yancey) the sometimes spokesperson for the family of the alleged ‘victim’, is due in court on Monday, Feb. 5 in Wake County, charged with assault–inflicting serious injuries.
Jacki has a previous history of using several alias, three social security numbers, passing bad checks, owing back taxes, driving with a revoked license, etc. (And I can’t even get a library book checked out if my card goes out of date…)
Wait a minute, Seahawk. Are you trying to say the stripper-accuser’s cousin is a man?
Wait a minute, Seahawk. Are you trying to say the stripper-accuser’s cousin is a man?
Without being too judgmental about it, Cousin Jacki is a drag queen; a dancer; and has appeared in such venues as the ‘Flex Club White Trash Contests’ (pictures available on request).
He/she has appeared on national television without having to give a last name nor any further personal information; and has given “scoops” about the case (there was a $2 million bribe attempt, the AV had just given birth, the AV was afraid to go out and was asking for food, etc.) all of which turned out to be wrong.
I can’t even send a letter to a newspaper without giving my full name (no initials) and address. But the MSM seem willing to trust anyone so long as they have something sufficiently entertaining to say, and flash their ‘revelations’ over national news.
Go to the Liestoppers discussion board, there are pictures there of Jakki that Lashawn would not want posted here. Let us just say this is one sick individual, he/she. Caution they are very weird:
http://z9.invisionfree.com/LieStoppers_Board/index.php?s=efa918e4b3c9a55953087cabb73268e6&showtopic=1943
Kemp
Seahawk,
Interesting information. How did you find that out?
#5
Interesting information. How did you find that out?
Birds of a feather??
(Actually I just read the blogs; I’m marginally less lazy than reporters for the MSM and TV networks. That’s all it takes.)
Seahawk,
Is Clyde Cash Michaels’ main source? If so, he’s an embarrassment to journalism. We have had some heated email exchanges over him being the webmaster for the site that supports Crystal.
Chalk another one up for the bloggers and don’t fail to notice that many in the MSM are guilty of the failings they accuse bloggers of–poor sourcing, repeating rumors, lack of expertise, and on and on.
#7
Jacki’s undoubteldy been one of his sources, but I’m sure he also has others.
The MSM accepted everything it was spoon-fed in this case. It accepted whatever Nifong said, uncritically. It never tried to find the AV, who was dancing around a pole the same night a vigil was being held for her outside the Buchanan house. It has never said a critical word of her or her family; they have received kid-glove treatment (’exotic dancer, navy veteran, mother of two’) no matter how many contradictions the family has been caught in.
By contrast, the MSM never seem to have had a kind word to say about lacrosse, the lax team, their families, or the defendants. If there isn’t a bad word in the dictionary they haven’t used to describe them (’hooligans’, ‘arrogant’, ’swaggering’ ’spoiled’, etc.) it isn’t for want of trying. By now even their pets must believe them to be rampant hooligans.
Yet we haven’t caught the lax families in any lies, nor yet had any reason to doubt the credibility of the defense.
Malcom X was right when he said,“The media’s the most powerful entity on earth. They have the power to make the innocent guilty and to make the guilty innocent, and that’s power. Because they control the minds of the masses.â€
Seahawk,
Cash Michaels said I was a sell-out because I’m a Black man who doesn’t believe Crystal’s story. All of our email exchanges were so condescending. First he said the Duke boys didn’t deserve their day in court and now he says Crystal deserves her day in court. It’s funny how the 2/5/07 hearing has been postponed.
Here’s a quote from OurHeartsWorld.com the Cask Michaels site that supports Crystal’s story:
Jan. 25, 2007 – READY FOR TRUTH TO BE REVEALED
I am relieved to hear that the NC NAACP and other concerned citizens of Durham County are monitoring this case.
These boys’ defense lawyers remind me of whining and pouting five-year-olds who throw temper tantrums when they don’t get their way. it is very apparent that they are trying to stall or cause this case to dissolve.
Sorry boys, it will not happen!
Don’t these lawyers know that they are making their clients look more guilty by trying to obstruct justice. If they are truly innocent, why aren’t they marching to the courthouse anxiously ready to reveal the truth? Why are they trying so hard to dissolve this case?
It could mean only one thing – the prosecutor has something very damning against them.
Their pouting has already caused two prosecutors to be assigned to the case (two heads are usually better than one). If these lawyers keep whining they will cause this case to be dragged out and cause these boys to look even more guilty.
The public is ready for the truth to be revealed!
Gus
I guess Nifong’s obvious obstruction of justice doesn’t make Crystal look like she’s lying? The accused have tried to talk to Nifong only to have him totally ignore their requests.
I just hope once this case is finally dropped, there is no riot or civil unrest. There are many individuals who would try to capitalize on this platform and cause a serious distrubance.
This seems all very strange to me… and not for the usual reasons.
I’m old enough to remember when the Miranda Law was enacted, and distinctly remember dozens of cases of obviously guilty and violent criminals actually caught in the act whose cases were dismissed outright and rapidly because the arresting officer forgot to read the Miranda card in the early days of that law.
It seems to me that Nifong’s failures on this case are much worse than missing a Miranda reading these days (since everyone knows what their Miranda rights are unless they’ve been living in a cave the past 40 or so years!), given that while not informing a suspect of his rights is considered “bad”, TAKING AWAY a suspect’s Constitutional rights is monsterous.
Or perhaps they’re waiting for some sort of ruling in the Nifong investigation to dismiss this entire miscarriage of justice?
Still, it makes me mad!
#11
Or perhaps they’re waiting for some sort of ruling in the Nifong investigation to dismiss this entire miscarriage of justice?
The FBI raced immediately to the Guilford campus (also in NC), before the police had even talked to the alleged ‘victims’, to investigate if there had been a hate crime.
The FBI has still not been seen in Durham, where members of an FBI-recognized hate group (the New Black Panther Party) threatened defendants inside a courtroom with death; where drunken off-duty white investigators in the case beat a black cook while using racial epithets (”Rodney King South”?); where a Somali cabbie was framed and tried; where due process and speedy trial seem to have become forgotten concepts.
This is the 21st century version of ‘equal protection under the laws’, I guess…
That’s amazing, Seahawk. One might hope that the high-profile coverage of this case will help to correct the situation there and elsewhere. I’m sure Durham is not the only hotbed of prosecutorial corruption! FBI involvement in negligence just makes it worse.
Seahawk wrote:
“The FBI has still not been seen in Durham”
I know what you mean but technically that’s not true. Apparently the FBI collected the boxes of evidence from Nifong and delivered them to the AG’s office. I’m still wondering if that is SOP, or if they were involved for some other reason.
Amanda Marcotte has just been named blogmistress for John Edwards’ campaign blogsite :
http://blog.johnedwards.com/story/2007/1/30/175015/518
She is a radical feminist with very disparaging views about the Duke lacrosse team :
http://pandagon.net/2007/01/21/stuck-at-the-airport-again/ :
The reader comments following this and her other posts generally display not only misinformed opinion about the case, but IMHO deliberately and stubbornly misinformed opinion–that is, nothing will change their minds.
KC Johnson at Durham-in-wonderland has more about this :
http://durhamwonderland.blogspot.com/
The ball is now in John Edwards’ court. He is from NC, but so far has declined to make any comment about the lacrosse case. With the blowup over his new blogmisstress and her intemperance, I hope we can be hearing from him soon, about the case, and about the state of NC justice in general. . .
#14
Apparently the FBI collected the boxes of evidence from Nifong and delivered them to the AG’s office.
I think that was the “SBI” –”(NC)State Bureau of Investigation”. (The media, as usual, may have gotten that mixed up…)
RE #15
Seahawk;
I just meandered over to John Edward’s site mistress’ blog post and she has deleted the original post, apparently but left the comments up. I could only stomach the first eight or so and had to leave.
Here is a typical comment by a tolerant leftie.
“i’d like to see the entire lacrosse team with a few phat shovelfuls of dirt across their whitey, privileged faces, but that ain’t what’s gonna happen.”
A bit off the subject,
Yesterday a court in Long Beach California sentenced several black teenagers to HOUSE ARREST AND PROBATION after being found guilty of hate crimes. They beat the living hell out of 3 white women, for no reason other than they were white. Several Black Leaders in Los Angeles stated that these black teenagers should be in school not court. In addition, they were “concerned” that the civil rights of these black teenagers might be violated. There were threats of civil unrest if the teenagers were put in jail.
There won’t be riots in the streets. There is no MSM coverage about this story. You won’t see some “White” speaker calling for justice. And one wonders why there is a disconnect between races? Whenever I see a story about some white trash racist beating against a black it makes me sick to my stomach. I’m happy that person or persons are charged with a hate crime and put in jail for years. It seems if it’s the other way around…well…
“We hate White people !!!”—- they screamed over and over again, as they slashed the White gal’s face.
There was zero coverage . I mean nothing. And that’s just the Newspapers.
I don’t mean to toot my own horn, but I was one of the few Bloggers who did cover it, twice.
(Nobody reads me, but that’s ok!)
Can you imagine slashing someone’s face repeatedly….to the strains of “We hate white people?”
The elections were three days away. Maybe coverage would have put a crimp in the Democrats strategy.
I don’t think the Media would have covered …period—with or without elections.
Is the mainstream media covering the Black Caucus, and how that White Senator (or whoever) was rejected because he’s not Black….even though his constituents are.
How can you have a tax-payer supported Black Caucus that discriminates using skin-color ???
And, that’s not being reported in the media, either.
Black racism.
“We hate White people !!!â€â€”- they screamed over and over again, as they slashed the White gal’s face.
There was zero coverage . I mean nothing. And that’s just the Newspapers.
Not true.
I read about it in the Washington Post and the Examiner.
I saw it on one of the national weekday news shows.
“We hate White people !!!â€â€”- they screamed over and over again, as they slashed the White gal’s face.”
The silence of the MSM is deafening.
More and more, I am convinced that black people often have the luxury of assuming that “white people don’t bleed” and that white people are never victimized or subject to racism. The media props up this falsehood to the detriment of all of us. This lack of balanced coverage fosters the seething hatred that was seen in the Halloween brutality.
White people do bleed and white people are often brutally victimized. The one young girl that was beaten unconscious in the Halloween beating is having her third surgical facial reconstruction.
The reaction of the families of the criminal thugs was appalling/disgusting and I saw no sense that any of them gave a sh*& about the horrific damage that the brutality of their children had inflicted upon three young girls. What a lack of class!
I cannot even fathom the public outcry if thirty white thugs had done the same thing. Just look at the outcry over the “n” word being uttered in a comedy club if one needs evidence.
The thirty black kids involved are NO different than the scum in the KKK.
Go to the N&O website today — in the morning hard copy, front page, above the fold, the headline is:
“EASLEY: NIFONG BROKE HIS WORD”
– subheadline:
“The governor called the Durham DA his worst appointment. He said Nifing promised not to run for a full term.”
I wish I knew how to do links in a post, like Seahawk and all you others. Oh well, at least I scooped him for a first time!!
TaterCon
Talk about double standards and inequality. I think the racist parents should be put in jail right along with their racist children.
The parents refused to reach out to the district attorney, Hayes says, painting their children as innocents and enlisting “camera jockeys like Eddie Jones,” and other black leaders who argued without apology that the kids had done nothing wrong.
…Ali wrote that the black parents’ “public lack of remorse and contrition towards the victims helped turn public sympathy against the defendants” and scuttled a deal offered by the D.A. — probation with no jail time.
…Hicks, of Community Advocates, who is also a former director of the Los Angeles City Human Relations Commission, says that while some black parents may have been out of touch when they insisted “their kids do nothing but homework, run track and go to church,” other parents had “the same street-culture attitudes that their kids showed.”
…Moreover, several of the kids have records of assault and threatening behavior. All of this goes to Judge Lee for sentencing consideration.”
Paleeeezze. “Some black parents may have been out of touch…†My big ole butt. I would bet that the parents have records, too. They should all be thrown under the jail!
I’m with you, Jan. The thirty black kids involved are NO different than the scum in the KKK.
I had to pass on that “Cousin Jacki” as dragqueen to the Drudge Report.
Excerpts from Gazettes.com in Long Beach, California:
The lengthy trial — an adjudication heard before a judge for juvenile cases — centered on that identification. One witness was harassed to the point of requiring a police escort to court and her car reportedly was demolished by gang members attempting to intimidate her. No arrests have been made in those cases.
A group call the Los Angeles Civil Rights League organized a prayer vigil in front of the courthouse Friday, and denounced the verdicts.
“Everyone here is a victim today,†Benny Jones, president of the Civil Rights League, said before the verdict was known. “These are children, and they are victims. The families are victims.â€
Those inside the courtroom described a tense, but controlled scene. Two of the youngsters broke down when Judge Lee read his decision, but there were no outbursts.
It was a different story outside the courthouse.
“There is no justice for us,†one woman cried to reporters. “I’m not related to them, but they’re just children. I’m related to them by this (pointing to her skin)), and there is no justice for us.â€
Jones, after telling reporters that he and his group were shocked by the verdict, tried to start a chant of “No justice, no peace.†But after six or seven repetitions, he stopped.
Long Beach Attorney Doug Otto, speaking for the victims, took both the media and the defense attorneys to task in his post-verdict statement, saying, “their characters were assassinated when the media reported that they provoked this incident.†He said all three women continue to undergo medical and psychological treatment.
Source: http://www.gazettes.com/beatingverdict01292007.html
i would love to hear the revs. al and jesse along w/councilman charles barron (D-NY) defend these black youth who have been wrongly accused and abused by white interlopers.
I wish I knew how to do links in a post, like Seahawk and all you others.
Envy,envy…(although in this case it’s properly directed…)Just copy the URL at the top of the page you’re on, and then paste it into your post here. LaShawn will do the rest.
http://www.newsobserver.com/1185/story/539319.html
The significance of Easley’s publicly abandoning Nifong is that now all the rest of the pols in NC will feel it’s OK to do the same thing. We can probably expect now to see a flood of people distancing themselves from the DA.
However, despite the efforts to pin all the blame on Nifong, he didn’t act alone; he had plenty of help from the media, and from cooperative judges (former Durham DA, now judge, Stephens; and judges Titus and Bushfan). An honest judge would have tossed this case at the first hearing, in May, when it was shown that the warrants were obtained by false and misleading statements furnished by the police.
Seahawk, I’d also like to see something done about the Duke University staff who threw those boys to the wolves on an assumption of guilt without a shred of evidence.
Someone needs to read them the Riot Act.
mamapajamas;
I could not agree more. Nifong should not be the only “fall” guy, despicable as his actions have proven. The actions of the group of 88 were repugnant and poisonous and represent a fundamental betrayal of a teacher’s obligation to disseminate truth and to educate.
The Feebs are not publicly involved in the Nifong mess because they seldom get into a case while court proceedings are still going on. Look for Federal involvement afterwards. Nifong has left himself extremely vulnerable as has Gottlieb.
Regarding the Long Beach case, the three white women were not “slashed.” They were beaten with a skateboard, tree branches, and 20 to 30 black youths kicking and punching them while they were on the ground. One of the victims had 12 bones fractured in her face. They hollered, “We hate white people” and called them “White bitches” while pelting the three women with pumpkins, lemons, etc. just before descending on them in the gang beating.
The ages of the kids participating in the beating were 12 (yes TWELVE) through 17. Older “boys” were seen running from the scene and have not been caught. This was most assuredly a gang situation (Baby Insane Crips), and the hottest question is if these kids didn’t “do it” (as their parents keep claiming), then they were there and can say who did. They will not say, naturally, if they want to live. Only one of the group testified in court, most certainly because they were not going to be questioned about just who did the crime if they said they did not.
Nine of the ten on trial were convicted of two assault crimes, while 8 of those 9 were convicted of the hate crime charge. Four youths were sentenced Friday, with probation and community service. Two more youths go on trial next for the same charges.
The best coverage of the case is by the Press Telegram, a local paper. As noted here, very little coverage other than locally has occurred. I emailed LaShawn repeatedly when the crime occurred, asking her to cover it, here, but there was no response.
The parents and black spokespeople have only increased the anger from whites in this case. The youths themselves appeared in court with belligerent demeanors, glaring at white people, mouthing words like “bitch” and giggling when one of the victims on the stand broke down in recounting the horror of her experience.
Now, of course, the big guys come out to defend the civil rights of the poor black kids. What they propose will only cause juveniles to undergo trials as adults in this country (and line the pockets of the attorneys). Here is a thorough article on that:
http://www.presstelegram.com/news/ci_5104204
In the right menu of this sight are listed all of the articles on this crime, throughout the trial.
It is obvious that these kids got off easily, but Judge Lee was brave in convicting them at all. If there is appeal, these kids could be required to stay in juvenile detention until the appeals are heard. Judge Lee refused to release them during the trial (there is no “bail” in juvenile cases in California). There are five more to be sentenced. They will likely get even easier sentences.
This article also covers the sentence of the first four youths comprehensively. The judge did order restitution to the victims, although the exact amount has not yet been determined. The probation period is undefined and can last until the youths turn 21. It is restrictive.
http://www.presstelegram.com/news/ci_5149724
Now, perhaps I was a bit too quick to say that these kids got off easily. The LA County Probation report had detailed histories on all of the youths (and the records of some of the youth were apparently not good) and made much stronger recommendations for sentencing. It is unusual for the recommendations to not be followed by a juvie judge.
Still, it is my guess that these youth will not be able to meet the requirements of their probation. If anyone follows them during the probation, they are likely to be incarcerated in the near future. This may, in fact, be a reason why Judge Lee decided not to incarcerate them up front. They can prove themselves if they are genuinely interested in becoming productive members of society instead of gangsters.
“becoming productive members of society instead of gangsters”
If they were interested in becoming produtive members of society, they wouldn’t have:
1. Been on probation in the first place.
2. Been involved in the crime.
I heard briefly about this case when it happened but nothing again until now. There was another case in the mid-west, about two black guys that kidnapped, sexually assulated and murdered or attempted to murder 4 white people. One woman lived throught the ordeal. That case got very minimal coverage on the news also.
There is a hugh double standard in the coverage of events like this. If you switch “black” with “white” in the stories there would be wall to wall coverage. It’s this double standard that fuels the backlash. I’m praying for the day that both white and black people can see agree that a criminal is a criminal no matter what color thier skin happens to be.
It is being suggested that the latest wrinkle in the case will be an attempt by the prosecutors to drop the sexual assault charges, but to charge the defendants instead with the robbery of approximately $250 from the accuser, since that amount seems to have gone missing from her purse.
She at one time made allegations her co-dancer had stolen the money from her. Perhaps the guys may have felt that paying $800 for a five-minute performance was itself robbery, and they wanted their money back. Or, it may have become lost somewhere.
But charging the players with robbery permits the state to circumvent all the troubles with photo IDs, all the necessity for testimony about faked DNA evidence and rigged line-ups; and possibly even to try the accused just before a judge without a jury (since the amount ’stolen’ is so small).
IOW, the primary purpose of having Coman and Winstead winnow the files is not to discover if there was a rape, but to find any possible excuse to drag the defendants before a court, where they can be convicted–to satisfy a portion of the outraged public and get the state off the hook for its actions; and to divert attention from the irregularities (read : illegalities) of the prosecutors.
The team of Coman and Winstead cannot IMHO be considered fair or impartial (Coman was willing to try Gell and send him, in effect, to his judicial murder); Winstead prosecuted the innocent Malloy; and convicting three innocent more defendants in order to get the state off the hook once again and avoid any look at its inner corrupt workings, is not something I would put beyond them.
Seahawk: Sadly, the scenario you offer is, indeed, a possibility. All too often prosecutors are so preoccupied with the minutia of “winning” convictions that truth and justice are overlooked. Every case should stand on its own merit, in its entirety, but this standard is seldom applied in practice. The “Every defendant is guilty of SOMETHING” mindset is so pervasive that the criminal justice system has become completely unreasonable from the standpoint of the wrongfully accused. Presumption of innocense is not what it’s cracked up to be.
Seahawk: At least if the AG’s office opts to prosecute the three for Robbery, Petty Larceny, etc. there will be no doubt but that the NC criminal justice system is wholely corrupt from top to bottom. No reasonable prosecutor would charge the LAX players in connection with the theft of the accuser’s money. First, there’s no prima fasie case against any of the current defendants. What happened to CGM’s money is a complete mystery at this point. Second, if CGM and/or Kim Roberts were to suddenly “recall” that they saw one or more specific LAX players take the money, proper application of prosecutorial discretion would strongly advise against taking the case to trial. CGM was so intoxicated that she cannot be counted upon to reliably:
1) Remember how much money she should have had to begin with,
2) Recount specific incidents or persons surrounding the alleged money’s disappearance, or
3) Be trusted to not have simply lost the money through her own negligence.
Moreover, CGM was in the unsupervised “care” of a convicted embezzler (Kim Roberts) from the time she left the Buchanon house until she was taken into police custody later that night. The logical inference to be drawn from the circumstances is that Kim Roberts most likely stole CGM’s money, if any were indeed stolen in the first place. Kim had the opportunity, motive (court-ordered $25,000.00 restitution to be paid to her former employer), and demonstrated predisposition to thievery. If Coman and Winstead prosecute this case, the only cogent reason for doing so will be to manufacture political cover for those who aided and abetted the hoax.
I wonder if those folks who are pushing for a criminal conviction of the Duke boys even if it means a totally corrupt subversion of justice have thought through the ramifications of their desire to “stick it to the man.”
A justice system which forgets that its primary purpose is to secure the rights of the individual first and foremost is a justice system run amok.
Under such a rubric, no one will be safe. Folks had better beware of what they ask for because they might get it.
How can Seligman be charged with stealing the strippers’ money when;
1)He left shortly after the “performance”
2)He had to stop at the ATM for money to buy a burger?
The AG will have to drop all charges and concentrate on saving their own butts from civil liability.
On another note I am outraged by the Long Beach case. The behavior of the accused and their families are beyond maddennig. It seems the usual goons in the black community have, through their screaming and threatening have cowed the justice system. Why are so many whites paralyzed by fear of the racial demagogues in the black community. Is there nobody in power that will stand up to them in the name of justice?
Reading the various stories on this case it is stunning to me the almost apologetic tone that the press has taken when reporting this. The racial epithets were either downplayed or left out altogether. The victims (the REAL victims) seem almost side issues. Many articles focused on the “poor black children” whose promise was stolen from them in one fleeting moment. “I just want to go back to school” one young man said. NAUSEATING. The footage of the parents laughing and clowning outside the courthouse made me acrimonious.
Anybody that lives in a large city has experienced the “packs” of black teenagers roaming the streets. Teenagers that feel they are untouchable because of their age and their race…and to a large extent they are right. The white “social worker”-type sees these kids as victims and THEY are the ones that need help and compassion, not those they rob and beat.
Until whites grow a backbone and learn to stand up to the race baiters, it will get MUCH worse before it gets better.
I don’t follow the Duke case anymore unless I read it on your site. Too many different stories the accuser has made up. What will be the next story she makes up?
LaShawn, have a blessed and wonderful day. You are a terrific blogger! Keep up the Good work!
John;
You are right.
The thugs in Long Beach are not victims, they are victimizers. The parents’ gleefulness and utter disregard for the monstrous actions of their hate-filled children brings home the notion that peace will only come when mothers love their children more than they hate others.(paraphrased from a Golda Meier quote).
Any parent who could sit unmoved while their child giggled at the sobbing agony of child who was terrorized, beaten unconscious, with bones in their face shattered is beyond disgusting.
The fact that so many in the community have so little regard for the suffering and terror that their children and community members inflict says a great deal about their utter degradation.
It appears that we may need to go back to the “old” way of holding parents responsible for the actions of their minor children.
Some judicial common sense would be required since there are also instances when the parents are also terrorized victims of out-of-control children, but there are entirely too many cases of parental negligence these days.
Such an attack by whites on blacks would have been become an Abu Ghraib to the nth power, a consuming preoccupation of America for months or years on end, resulting in long prison terms (or the juvenile equivalent) for the defendants.
Under the emerging multiracial order it is explicitly clear that whites are the legitimate targets of black and brown violence. With every increase in the nonwhite percentage of the U.S. population, whites are more at risk.
From http://www.amnation.com/vfr/archives/007239.html
In the Long Beach beating, 4 of the defendants were sentenced last Friday – while the victim was in surgery. They were given probation and house arrest. Today another 4 were given the same sentence, over the strong objections of the prosecution. The probation report recommended juvenile detention. Even the defense attorneys were surprised at how light the sentences were. Only the families of the attackers – who now claim that the victims injured themselves in an attempt to frame the attackers – feel that the sentences were just.
Excellent points – but there is so much that one could position/align him/herself to. My points on my blog are nothing special. There are times when I focused on a specific topic and it did lead to greater viewership. I’d say at this point in history, my blog will focus on national security and the upcoming elections in ‘08. How original? Who cares. This blogging thing is fun.
Thanks for allowing me to post a response.
“Cousin Jacki” appeared in court today (Feb. 5), and got a continuance. Prior to her(his) portion of the hearing, a sheriff cleared the coutroom of all except other waiting defendants, witnesses, and their attorneys. This is in direct contravention of North Carolina laws requiring all court sessions to be open to the general public (except in special circumstances, none of which applied here). Had the press been present, they might have justly objected; but none were.
Had a family member of one of the lacrosse defendants been in court for any reason (and especially one who had become the ’spokesperson’ for a defendant), I’m sure the press would have been there in droves. Probably Newsweek would have had a blurb about it. (”Hooliganism runs in the family!”)
But reporting all the facts about this case (including the unusually favorable treatment given the AV in her previous felony arrests; and to Kim for her theft of $25,000 and probation violations; and now to Cousin Jacki) has never been the media’s strong point…
AV, Kim, and Cousin Jacki….What a trio to behold! Obviously, the three of them have been treated “cruelly” by the justice system simply by virtue of their race. And, if you have difficulty fathoming the truth of this, just ask the perpetually aggrieved who think that the vast majority of their compadres are in jail for doing nothing more than smoking a joint for recreational purposes. By the way, didn’t a number of the “innocent” kids involved in the Long Beach brutality have priors for assault and other assorted “escapades”? Something just isn’t right with this story…or that one…
link
Two grand jurors were interviewed anonymously on Good Morning America today. One says info known now would have changed his (her?) vote back then.
Other is not sure…
Not an earth shattering story, but I figured I’d try out this linking thingy Seahawk is trying to teach me….
The second expressed particular concern for the accuser, and was particularly worried that her name had been besmirched since the case began.-
http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/story?id=2852337&page=3
Her name besmirched since the case began? Are you kidding me? If one feels bad that a substance abusing felon who stripped for a living and had sex with multiple partners in any given week is now being maligned with falsely accusing innocent young men of raping her – well, all I can say is that we are living in parallel universes.
TaterCon… I saw the same article and I’m ashamed to say that my first thought was “wonder what race the second GJ was”….
Bad I know, but then I’ve lived through the OJ trial.
Reb
Reb, as Ann Landers used to say out there in the midwest, it’s 40 lashes with the wet noodle for you!!!
Reb;
Law schools are teaching the following to their students:
“African American jurors often have the moral justification to acquit guilty black defendants when the crime is victimless or non-violent [OR nonviolent: I suppose this includes robbing a person blind, but who cares about the real victim?].
-Adapted from “Racially Based Jury Nullification: Black Power in the Criminal Justice System,” by Paul Butler, in the December issue of The Yale Law Journal. Butler is an associate professor at the George Washington University Law School.
Judge Orlando Hudson of Durham is saying that 2 Grand Jurors who spoke out on Good Morning America may have to face punishment from the court for violating court secrecy :
http://www.wral.com/news/local/story/1196412/
Senior Resident Superior Court Judge Orlando F. Hudson Jr. said he could not believe it when he heard the two grand jurors on an ABC Television program talking about the Duke lacrosse case Tuesday morning.
“It was pretty clear to me that the jurors are in violation of North Carolina law,” Hudson told WRAL on Wednesday.
Of course, Judge Hudson has apparently not complained about Nifong lying to the court, death threats inside the courtroom to the defendants, a DA making inflamatory statements to the press, a DA withholding exculpatory evidence, an endless delay of the legal process, improper photo ID procedures, and everything else that has made Durham justice into a parody of the real thing.
But two Grand Jurors who were very careful not to reveal what went on in the jury room and only spoke about their own feelings–now that was intolerable for the good judge, and requires an immediate response…
kinda like the outrage over Scooter Libby for his non-crime…
Durham sucks!!!
Tate;
I’m feeling your pain, specially cuz I live in Austin. the insanity is often hard to tolerate.
Durham did not always suck! There was a time when Durham was a hotbed of black private enterprise. That is a proud history for Durham, North Carolina, and the country.
Trey
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