Free Mumia Abu-Jamal

Protesters Demand: Free Mumia Abu-Jamal!

By STEVE ARGUE
Philadelphia PA. On August 17th 3,000 people gathered here in the streets demanding freedom for framed death row political activist and journalist Mumia Abu-Jamal. Speakers included Ossie Davis, Rev. Jesse Jackson, poet Sonia Sanchez, Ramona Africa, comedian Dick Gregory, and Mayor Bernard Birsinger of Bobigny France.

American Indian Movement leader and political prisoner Leonard Peltier has stated that saving the life of Mumia Abu-Jamal is a priority in the struggle.

As a freelance journalist Mumia had exposed the murderous police brutality and political repression carried out by the Philadelphia police against the MOVE organization.

The frame-up trial of Mumia twenty years ago included the testimony of three eyewitnesses (Veronica Jones, William Singletary, and Robert Chobert) who later said they were threatened, coerced or made promises by the police to get them to give false testimony against Mumia.

False evidence against Mumia also included a supposed confession to the police by Mumia the night Mumia was arrested. The original police report by Officer Gary Wakshul who was with Mumia the entire time through his arrest and medical treatment stated, "during this time the Negro male made no comment." Yet Gary Wakshul testified at Mumia's trial that he heard Mumia confess that night. Gary Wakshul didn't remember this confession until almost three months after Mumia's arrest when prosecutor McGill met with police asking for a confession. Officer Wakshul absurdly stated that he didn't think the confession was important at the time he wrote his original report.

This past May Mumia's attorneys dropped a legal bombshell by submitting into court a sworn affidavit that contains the confession of Arnold Beverly to the murder that Mumia is accused of committing.

As a US political prisoner Mumia's case has received international attention and support from people such as Nelson Mandela and the European Parliament.

Today Mumia continues to speak up from death row on many issues. He defends America's poor and working class people from an increasingly repressive and exploitative economic and political system. He is an internationalist standing up for poor and working class people around the world by opposing US wars abroad. Mumia also speaks out against all forms discrimination based on things such as the color of a person's skin or their sexual orientations.

Mumia's voice for all of the oppressed played a major roll in attracting the racially diverse crowd demanding his freedom.

At the rally police hovered over head in two helicopters while U.S. federal marshals and the Philadelphia police kept watch on the ground. Despite their heavy presence the police were on their best behavior and no incidents or arrests occurred.

The day long demonstration included a rally outside the courtroom Mumia was to appear in. Yet Mumia was denied access to his own hearing.

Over objections from the prosecution Mumia's attorneys read a statement from Mumia saying, "Today I am banned from a hearing in my name, in my defense, with no reason."

Mumia's exile from his own hearing was reminiscent of 20 years ago, when Mumia was barred from attending his own trial. At that time Mumia was convicted in his absence. Judge Albert Sabo claimed that Mumia was barred for being disruptive. Yet court records have revealed that Sabo barred Mumia from his own trial at the request of Mumia's incompetent and now disbarred defense attorney, Anthony Jackson. The court appointed attorney made his request on the grounds that Mumia was about to fire him and would if Mumia wasn't barred from the trial. Sabo's granting of Jackson's request was a clear violation of Mumia's right to legal representation of his choice and of his right to be present at his own trial.

This time Mumia was barred from his own hearing by Philadelphia's so-called "corrections officials." They actually claimed that there was no room in their jails to transfer Mumia here to appear in court. This decision to not allow Mumia to be present at his own hearing went beyond the scope of their authority, yet Common Pleas Court Judge Pamela Pryor Dembe not only went along with this intervention into her court, she went further in stating that she would have to consult with local law enforcement on whether to hold a hearing on new evidence in the future. The pretext she cited was the potential for demonstrations and disruptions to regular court business.

In response one of Mumia's attorneys, Eliot Grossman, stated that what happens outside of court should not affect Mumia's legal rights.

The new evidence the court is refusing to hear includes the confession of Arnold Beverly who states in his sworn affidavit, "I shot Faulkner at close range." Faulkner was the cop Mumia is framed for killing. Beverly also states very clearly, "Faulkner was shot in the back and in the face before Jamal came on the scene. Jamal had nothing to do with the shooting."

Arnold Beverly's confession is corroborated by eyewitness statements. Beverly says he was wearing a green army jacket the night he shot Faulkner. William Singletary was there the night of the shooting. He says he saw a man shoot Faulkner and it was not Mumia. He also states that the actual killer was wearing a green army jacket.

Four eyewitnesses, including two cops, put a man wearing a green army jacket on the scene.
Five eyewitnesses described a man fleeing the scene the way Beverly describes he did. Mumia of course was not running anywhere, he was lying on the ground with a bullet in his chest.

According to Arnold Beverly Mumia arrived on the scene after Beverly had already shot Faulkner. Beverly says that Mumia was then shot by an arriving officer. The prosecution claims that Mumia was shot by Faulkner in self defense as Faulkner laid on the ground dieing. Yet Beverly's story does fit with forensic evidence and the report of a cop at the scene that night. The cop stated that Mumia was shot by an arriving officer. The downward trajectory of the bullet into Mumia's chest also makes it physically impossible for Faulkner to have shot Mumia from the ground. In fact five hours after the shooting a police medical examiners report states that Mumia "was shot subsequently by arriving police reinforcements."

On every level Arnold Beverly's sworn confession to a capital offence is in fact backed up by evidence while the prosecutions version of events is not. This, however, has not been cause enough for them to reconsider pushing for the execution of an innocent man. Instead they are arguing that the new evidence was not brought forward in a timely manner.

In response to the new evidence and request for a hearing Judge Dembe not only stated she would have to consult with the police, she also sided with the prosecution by refusing to schedule a hearing stating, "We have to decide whether or not we can go forward with this case, and there is a serious question as to whether this request is timely."

Instead of scheduling a hearing Judge Dembe gave Mumia's legal team until September 7th to file more papers explaining why the court should bother with hearing new evidence proving the innocence of a man the court has sentenced to die. The prosecution will then get until September 21st to respond. Judge Dembe will then consult with the police who have campaigned for Mumia's execution and then she will decide on whether or not to hold a hearing.

In response, one of Mumia's attorneys, Eliot Grossman, stated ,"We objected and told the court that what we wanted was a date certain. All we want is the opportunity for an innocent man to prove his innocence."

In addition Grossman made the argument that there should be no 60 day time limit on bringing forward a confession that could stop the execution and free Mumia.

Ramona Africa spoke on this point at the demonstration stating, "Judge Dembe has said she wants, in three weeks, some briefs to determine whether or not it's too late to prove his innocence, whether or not this information comes too late. We're saying it's never too late! What is she talking about, too late?… We aint interested in legalities. We're interested in what's right. Slavery was legal, but that wasn't right! Apartheid was legal but that wasn't right! The murder of Shaka Sankofa down in Texas, despite his innocence, was legal but that wasn't right! We don't care about legality. We care about justice and what is right."

j Grossman put forward ioportant legal argumentsjon why |he 60 day limit*should not apply to Bevurly's confession which as firs~ made in 1999. rHe pointed out that Mumia's former, andjfired, |egal teym of Lenard Weinglass knd Dan Williams(misinfozmed Mumia that vhey were invest{gating Arnold Bmverly'spconfession when(in facththey never had any intention ofbpresenting it fr evidence. Williams mikes this point clear in his new book "Executing Justice" where he states that he doesn't believe the Beverly confession and that he doesn't believe the police would ever frame up an innocent man. These attorneys allowed the 60 day time line to expire without Mumia's permission or knowledge.

Mumia fired Weinglass and Williams after Williams betrayed attorney client confidentiality in May by publishing the money making book, "Executing Justice," purported to be an insiders account of Mumia's case. The publication of the book at a critical time in Mumia's appeal process shows that Williams was not looking out for Mumia's legal interests. Weinglass also knew the book was coming out, but did not inform Mumia. This, like their treatment of the Arnold Beverly confession, was a betrayal of the interests of their client and shows that they were not adequately representing him.

In July Mumia's new legal team filed a petition to suspend legal proceedings in federal court in order to pursue these new legal challenges in the state court.

Mumia had not gotten any favorable rulings in federal court either. There, Judge Yohn has already ruled that Beverly's confession is inadmissible citing the Anti-Terrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act signed into law by Bill Clinton in 1996. The act, among other things, sets a time limit of one year for death row inmates to present new evidence. Yohn echoed the prosecution by falsely stating the "petitioner chose not to present his claim to the state court or even to this court until May 2001."

Yohn's chilling decision also cited the infamous 1993 Herrera decision that proof of innocence is no bar for execution.

In addition, according to Clinton's 1996 Anti-Terrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act, a decision for execution in Yohn's court will be Mumia's final legal appeal.

Faced with this situation Mumia's legal team saw the need to attempt a hearing with the new evidence in state court. Yet the arguments and statements of both Judge Dembe and Judge Yohn along with those of Judge Sabo before them are in effect that an American court of law is no place for evidence proving Mumia's innocence.

Judge Sabo presided over Mumia's original frame-up trial, but he didn't just do that. He came out of retirement to rule against Mumia at subsequent appeal hearings on whether Mumia got a fair trial. At these hearings Sabo ruled that Sabo had not violated Mumia's legal rights by denying him legal representation of his choice and denying him the right to attend his own trial.

Judge Sabo also ruled for the prosecution against the admissibility of the testimony of a key eyewitness in the original trial, Veronica Jones, who stated that she was coerced through threats from the police into giving false testimony against Mumia in the original trial. Jones was a prostitute who says that the police threatened her with prison on warrants and of taking her children away if she didn't say what the police wanted. She was immediately arrested off of the witness stand on a warrant while she testified at the hearing. This testimony was important evidence of the fact that a frame-up had taken place. Yet Sabo did not allow a new trial based on this information or any of the other evidence brought forward.

Another key ingredient missing in the prosecution's case against Mumia is a motive. Beverly's confession, however, does contain a clear motive. Beverly states, "I was hired, along with another guy, and paid to shoot and kill Faulkner. I had heard that Faulkner was a problem for the mob and corrupt policemen because he interfered with the graft and payoffs made to allow illegal activity including prostitution, gambling, drugs without prosecution in the center city area."

The entire chain of police command that "investigated" Mumia have in fact since been removed from the Philadelphia police force for corruption. At the time Faulkner was killed in December 1981, the FBI was involved in at least three investigations of the police in the center city area for corruption including extortion and bribery connected to the mob, prostitution, after-hours clubs, and gambling in the center city area. Targeted in the FBI investigation were Inspector Alphonzo Giordono, the senior cop at the scene of Faulkner's shooting, James Carlinini, head of homicide, and John DeBenedetto, head of the division where Faulkner worked.

Witnesses and informants in the FBI investigation were murdered. This included a witness who testified against DeBenedetto in 1983.

Police concern that Faulkner may have been an FBI informant could easily have led to his murder. Donald Hersing who was a source for the FBI at the time testifies in an affidavit for the defense that the Philadelphia cops were very concerned about possible FBI informants at the time. In a similar situation the LAPD Rampart cop who blew the whistle on police corruption and murder in LA was recently released from prison. He immediately went into hiding out of fear for his life from fellow officers.

Attorney Eliot Grossman stated at a press conference, "Mumia Abu-Jamal was in the wrong place at the wrong time when a hit was in progress on a police officer causing problems interfering with police corruption." But for the Philadelphia police he was at the right place at the right time. He had exposed the murderous police violence used against the MOVE organization. Corrupt police officers used the opportunity to kill two birds with one stone.

Mumia has sat for the past 20 years on death row, removed from his family. Yet he now stands out as an uncompromising voice for the oppressed and exploited. Many have called him the voice of the voiceless. We need Mumia, we need him alive and we need him free. Yet all of the evidence shows that Mumia won't get justice in America's capitalist courts unless we turn up the heat.

More mass multi-racial protests like the one held August 17th are needed. The corporate media are blacking out news on Mumia's case. The people need to become the media and spread the news ourselves.

In April 1999 the Longshore Union (ILWU) shut down all west coast ports in support of Mumia Abu-Jamal. The Oakland teachers union held teach-ins on Mumia as well. More similar actions would play a powerful role in putting pressure on corporate America and the American government to back off on Mumia and let him go.