Still Awaiting Justice In Jena
Eight months after 40,000 people converged on Jena, Louisiana, justice still awaits the six young men whose cases inspired one of the biggest civil rights marches in recent history.
This Friday, special judge Thomas Yeager will consider a motion made on behalf of the Jena 6 to remove Judge J.P. Mauffray from their cases. Mauffray had previously denied motions by 5 of the defendants to recuse him from their cases. But last week, the Louisiana Third Circuit Court of Appeals appointed Yeager to preside over this unusual hearing in Mauffray's own courtroom.
Supporters of the Jena 6 say that the motion to recuse Mauffray is part of an effort to give them a fair trial. "Judge Mauffray is the man at the center of Jena's broken justice system and now he is forced to justify his bias in a court of law with the entire nation watching," said James Rucker, Executive Director of Color of Change, the 400,000 member group that served as the key organizing body of last September's protests.
Flashpoint For Racial Justice
Last summer, the Jena 6 cases became a flashpoint in the national discussion over racial justice, and more disturbingly, a catalyst for further hate incidents.
On August 31, 2006, two nooses were found on an oak tree at Jena High School, an event that polarized the student body along racial lines. The school principal recommended that the three white noose-hangers be expelled. But the LaSalle Parish School Board--advised by attorney J. Reed Walters, who as District Attorney would later prosecute the Jena 6--voted 7-1 instead to suspend the students. The only African American board member offered the dissenting vote.
After months of racial tensions, including incidents in which white Jena High student Justin Barker and others made racial insults at African American students, Barker was beaten by the boys who would become known as the "Jena 6". (CORRECTION 5/27 : Of the Jena 6 defendants, only Mychal Bell has admitted to being involved in the beating of Justin Barker.) Barker went home hours after the fight and participated in an evening public ceremony.
But DA Walters charged the 6 African Americans with attempted second-degree murder and conspiracy to commit attempted second-degree murder. The disparity in the sentencing spurred calls for a massive September march in Jena.
In the two months following the demonstrations, at least 50 noose incidents were reported nationally, including one found on the door of a Black professor's office at the Teacher's College of Columbia University. New York Governor David Patterson recently signed a law making displaying a noose a felony crime.
Judicial Bias
In the first Jena 6 case to come to trial, an all-white jury convicted one of the Jena 6 defendants, Mychal Bell, in adult court. After Bell spent 10 months behind bars, an appeals court threw out the conviction saying Bell could not be tried as an adult and remanded the case to juvenile court. Bell was freed on $45,000 bail.
But just two weeks later, Judge Mauffray agreed with DA Walters' motion to send Bell back to jail, on the grounds that Bell's involvement in the beating of Justin Barker had violated his probation for prior convictions. Mauffray then sentenced Bell to 18 months in a juvenile facility.
Supporters of the Jena 6 say this was only one of the ways Mauffray demonstrated bias against the young Black men.
In his motion to recuse Mauffray, David Utter of the Juvenile Justice Project of Louisiana and attorney for Jena defendant Jesse Ray Beard, outlined a pattern of judicial bias.
Before Utter took Beard's case, he writes in his motion, Mauffray told him that white beating victim Justin Barker was lucky that he did not "bleed to death". Mauffray also called the Jena 6 "real troublemakers", and discussed alleged incidents involving the defendants. Utter and others later investigated the rumored incidents and found them to be false.
In March, Mauffray told Beard's lawyers, "Does anyone know when [Jesse Ray Beard] started his career? His first participation in a crime of violence? It was December 25, 2005." Utter writes that, in response to a discussion about potential alternatives to incarceration, Mauffray scoffed and said, "Jesse Ray needs severe consequences, short term."
A similar motion to recuse District Attorney Reed Walters, on the grounds of racial bias and conflict of interest, is pending.
Originally posted at Vibe.com
Jeff Chang blogs regularly at Vibe.com, Cantstopwontstop.com, and the Huffington Post. He is the author of Can't Stop Won't Stop: A History of The Hip-Hop Generation and editor of Total Chaos: The Art & Aesthetics of Hip-Hop.
Follow Jeff Chang on Twitter: www.twitter.com/zentronix
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Defending person(s) who clearly committed a crime does nothing but perpetuate the image of a angry African American man in the collective consciousness of the country, NOT reduce it.
Sharpton and Jackson understand this point, intimately. I suspect they don't care. They'll collect their media points and donations; do their slash-and- burn act and move on to the next media-and-donations issue.
And we( black, white, brown and yellow) let them do this.
6 black kids beat a white kid into unconsciousness because he's white and they hated him.
In U.S. this is known as racial hatred crime.
They could've go one-on-one like kids do. But they chose to sucker punch him and stomp on him for awhile while he was done. This was a cowardly act, regardless of race.
They were NOT charged under racial hatred that statute (got off easy there!!).
They were charged under aggravated battery ( blogger check your facts).
The 6 were expelled. One of them gets a sentence under a plea bargain connected to his previous criminal record.
Sounds fair to me, regardless of a shrill comments.
If 6 boys "beat up" my boy someone would be going to jail. How is that a fair fight? If 6 white boys had "beat up" a black boy would you be on the side of the 6 white boys? I think not.
I think they should just forgive each other and go on with life.
:-)
No need to punish them - they have been punished enough already.
:-)
Let you hate go folks.
:-)
It will just ruin your lives.
:-)
Take care all.
You've convinced me. Besides, I live almost a thousand miles away from Jena. It's unlikely me or my family will be the future victims of these 6.
That's right. Think about future victims. I doubt there is a bright shining future for these 6 young men. I really doubt they'll go on to cure cancer, help kids or make a positive difference in their communities. I see victims in their future and alot of jail time. Maybe Jesse can hold a reunion rally for them at that point.
What a biased and incorrect "summary" of events. Try again.
This is basically a story the media kept alive in order to fill 24/7 programming. Did you notice EVERY story regarding the Jena 6 and the beating had to mention the noose incident despite there being no relation between the two? Most people believe Justin Barker was involved in the noose incident by now. By the way, I have followed this case in the news and have never seen any mention of Barker and his friends yelling racial epithets at blacks as Jeff Chang claims. I'd like to see a link to a source regarding that information.
The only decent story I've seen on this subject was Todd Lewan's AP article entitled BLACK, WHITE, SHADES OF GRAY IN JENA that ran in Sept., 2007.
One of the six moved to the city I live in. Within a few months, he'd already beaten up another student. Hmmmm....
From reports I've watched, this was just another media generated frenzy to sell ad time. Sharpton exploited it for his own good, at the cost of further damaging this country's black/white relations. Mellencamp exploited it to further his career as well. The most severe charges were overturned in appeals just as the justice system allows. It seemed like so many were trying to introduce an unrelated incident (the nooses) as exculpatory evidence to exonerate the Jena 6. The "all white jury" was dramatic enough for the headlines as well Mellencamp's song for the wrong reason. I don't think anyone knew (or cared) at the time that none of the black people summoned for jury duty cared to show up. Surprise! The media gets it wrong again.
I wish they had introduced the beating Bell recieved by white students. I wish they had introduced the incident where the white man pulled a shotgun on the unarmed black teens and the prosecutor charged the teens with theft, after they took the gun from him. In your racist way of seeing things, all this doesn't matter. Nothing was exploited. You simply want black people to take your crap and shutup. To that i say, go to hell. It must be nice to have the judge, prosecutor, cops on your side to help you pull you underhand crap. If you don't want to see Al Sharpton or Jesse Jackson stop your crap.
If this crap continues, Al and Jesse will be the least of your concerns
Good use of the word "Crap." Please try to work it into more posts as it is very enlightening.
Let's see 6 on one yea that's fair.
Maybe there was a very good reason to pull a shot gun on that group of "teens".
After all, after that six ambushed one TEEN.
No mater what the color 6 on one is no fair fight.
No mater what was said or done there was no justification for what the 6 did.
What I would love to see from Al and Jesse is for them to stand up for what is right for all people of color. We all want equality red, yellow, brown, black and white but what Al and Jesse want is something completely different. Because if the situation had been reversed I bet old Al and Jesse would be jumping up and down about 6 to 1. You could bet your ass they would not be portraying the 1 as the villain and the six as victims then.
It was a cowardly act carried out by cowards there is no defending that.
Al and Jesse have never been much of my concern. Most of the time their presence signifies something is about to be misconstrued and blown out of proportion - so I change the channel.
"Indeed, there were appalling actions by both whites and blacks here. But the "Jenna 6" did indeed beat a kid to near-death - so, I don't see this as a credible civil rights issue. If anything, for equality, the "Jenna 6" should be prosecuted for hate-crimes, just like white kids would be if the situation is reversed."
I'm wondering just when Justin Barker gets HIS justice. Considering he was the victim, and all...oh, excuse me. I forgot. Nobody marched or demonstrated on his behalf. He didn't fit the desired narrative.
I do understand that his parents have filed civil suits against the school district and the families of the six assailants. I wonder if that will be described as racist as well.
By the by...the white kids who put nooses in the tree should have been expelled, and I would like to have seen them prosecuted for making terroristic threats if applicable. Shameful that it didn't happen.
"Indeed, there were appalling actions by both whites and blacks here. But the "Jenna 6" did indeed beat a kid to near-death - so, I don't see this as a credible civil rights issue. If anything, for equality, the "Jenna 6" should be prosecuted for hate-crimes, just like white kids would be if the situation is reversed."
-Really?
I was wondering, If you are beaten "near death", how do you attend a "social function" 2 hours later?
I know a nurse that is an employee of the hospital in which Mr. Barker was treated, she informed many people of the "show" Mr. Barker displayed for them. Be not mistaken, all teens involved where at fault, and the "Jenna 6" were charged, but the white kids involved were not! CIVIL RIGHTS APPLY TO ALL AMERICANS!
You are absolutely right, no matter the color of the individuals skin, all disobedience of the the law should be punished!
And what laws, exactly, did the white kids break?
None that I'm aware of. Please enlighten me.
A Justice Department investigation determine that was no link between the hanging of nooses at Jena High School and the Jena Six attack on Justin Barker.
The investigation also determine that the two white students who hung the nooses did not them as a racial threat. Hanging stuff from the tree was a Jena High School tradition. The two white students say they hung the nooses to poke fun at friends who were members of the school rodeo team. Authorities believe the students are telling the truth.
It is not against the law in New York to display a noose. It is against the law to display a noose in a threatening manner.
Links, please.
Nooses are not funny and punishment should apply to those who play or make statements with them. HOWEVER it sure is telling that your paragraph about the six, neglects to mention that they six from one race attacked ONE from another race from behind and the SIX beat the ONE , left him unnconscious, bleeding badly with a concussion and one eye swollen shut. He was transported to the hospital and was released after three hours. Did you miss this part when you were doing your investigation? Did you just forget to put this in? You sure tried to skim over and imply that he was not hurt by saying he participated in an evening ceremony. Half truths are as bad as no truth. What a poor piece of reporting except you have an agenda to advance. You want fairness for you side but show no fairness towards the other side. When your honest one half the time, your a liar the other half the time. Which half to you give us? When do we trust you? Every other article? What a croc!
You need to gather up Al Sharpton and Jessee Jackson and move on to another racial shakedown.
This case is nothing more than six thugs beating up a victim because of his race.
The Jenna 6 are only important to guilty white liberals like you.
I don't find Mychal Bell to be the most compelling poster child for injustice. If he hadn't had two previous convictions for battery, perhaps he'd be a more sympathetic figure. But he's still in juvie, you fail to note, because he pleaded guilty, and is serving time on this AND the previous conviction as part of that plea deal.
Mauffray = Racist cracker? Almost certainly, but Mychal=innocent? No way.
And yet another defendent is found to be an angel with a dirty face. A couple of months ago, Bryant Purvis was arrested on misdemeanor assault in Texas, at his new high school.
There is a lot, a LOT, wrong with the jurisprudence in this case. I agree Mauffray should go and maybe even the venue of the trial changed to another community. But turning kids whose first inclination seems to be towards violence into a racial cause celebre may have been a bit intemperate.
JP
I'm sorry, but after looking at this a few months ago I was:
1) At first outraged that the noose incident had happened.
2) Then looked into the details
3) And found the "Jenna 6" wanting
Indeed, there were appalling actions by both whites and blacks here. But the "Jenna 6" did indeed beat a kid to near-death - so, I don't see this as a credible civil rights issue. If anything, for equality, the "Jenna 6" should be prosecuted for hate-crimes, just like white kids would be if the situation is reversed.
Sorry, this group doesn't stir my racial inequality nerve.
Near death is a figment of the media. I think that young man was at a school dance that night..bru
You are wrong.
Six people attacking one person is attempted murder. They could have easily killed him. Because the kid was tough has nothing to do with it.
The facts are six people ambushed one person. When you take race out of it does it still sound like they were over charged?
The victim did not hang the noose. The victim was chosen because of a beef one of the other teens had with him. They planed how they would do it and they did it, it was not a spur of the moment thing it was a thought out ambush.
The victim was beaten unconscious then kicked/stomped repeatedly by six assailants. Now if that isn't attempted murder I couldn't say what is. The punishment fits the crime no mater what happened it was uncalled for and cowardly.
He wasn't near death just to be factual... the issue was not that they were arrested the issue is that they were being tried for attempted murder... I do not believe that the boys intended to kill him. To further enrage folk nothing was done to the white perps who beat a black boy only days before.
You tell them.
I don't want live in a world in which 6 blacks boys can't try to kick a white kids's head in. I'm sure they had nothing but the best intentions for their victim. If the situation was reversed I'm sure Al and Jesse would be campaigning for the white kids release.
That's basically it, OhMyGoodness. They were overcharged for the crime they are alleged to have comitted. Sure some people took the opportunity to say that they thought the kids who hung the nooses should have been punished more harshly, but few if any supporters of the Jena 6 tied the hanging of the nooses directly to the beating of Justin Barker. That's mostly a strawman argument that the anti-black side threw in to confuse the issue.
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