Archive for the ‘Black Lives Matter’ Category

‘Black lives don’t matter," lawyer says after jury awards …

Deputy Christopher Newman killed Gregory Hill Jr., 30, in 2014 after a mother picking up her child at a school across the street called in a noise complaint.

Newman and another deputy responded to Hill's home, Hill partially opened the garage door, closed it and Newman fired four times, hitting Hill three times, including once in the head, according to court and police records.

No charges were filed against Newman, who said he shot Hill because he brandished a handgun. Hill's mother, Viola Bryant, filed a lawsuit against Newman and Sheriff Ken Mascara, alleging wrongful death, negligence, excessive force and violations of Hill's 14th and 15th Amendment rights.

Bryant also accused a SWAT team that responded to the scene of firing so much tear gas and causing so much damage to Hill's one-story home that no one can live in it now.

After 10 hours of deliberation last week, a jury found that Newman was not liable in Hill's death and that Mascara was 1% liable. Hill was 99% responsible for his own death, the jury ruled, according to court documents.

In deciding damages in the case, the jury awarded Bryant $1 for funeral expenses, and $1 for each child's "loss of parental companionship, instruction, and guidance and ... mental pain and suffering," verdict forms show. Hill's children are 7, 10 and 13.

Division of liability

Because the jury found that Mascara was only 1% responsible, the verdict was reduced to 4 cents, and then, because the jury found that Hill was drunk at the time, the final payout was nothing.

Mascara applauded the verdict, saying, "Newman was placed in a very difficult situation and like so many fellow law enforcement officers must do every day, he made the best decision he could for the safety of his partner, himself and the public given the circumstances he faced."

Attorney John Phillips, who represents Hill's family, called the ruling "perplexing" and questioned why the jury would award $1 for $11,000 in funeral expenses and another dollar for each child's suffering when it could have simply awarded no damages.

The jury consisted of one black man, two white men and five white women, he said.

Court rules forbid him from questioning jurors, so he can't get the answer to a question that's been dogging him: Were they trying to send him and the family a message?

"That a black child's pain is only worth a dollar is exactly the problem with the plight of the African-American right now. This says, black lives don't matter," he said.

Phillips plans to file a motion for a new trial in US District Court, and if that's denied, he will take it to the US 11th Circuit Court of Appeals.

How it began

On January 14, 2014, around 3 p.m., a mother picking up her child at Frances K. Sweet Elementary School heard loud music blaring from Hill's home.

Testimony showed Hill was playing Drake's "All Me," a song rife with F-bombs and N-words. The mother took offense and called police.

Newman and Deputy Edward Lopez responded and knocked on Hill's garage door and front door.

"After Newman knocked on the doors, the garage door opened revealing Hill within the comfort of his own garage and home," the lawsuit alleged. "Upon information and belief, Deputy Lopez indicated loudly that Hill had a gun and then the garage door closed. Despite the door being closed, Newman fired his handgun approximately four times and killed Hill."

The bullet from the first shot got stuck in the door, Phillips said. The second and third hit Hill in the abdomen, and the fourth struck Hill's head, he said. Lopez did not open fire.

Not realizing Hill was dead, the deputies called for a SWAT team and snipers, according to the lawsuit. They kicked in doors and cut holes in the garage door, the suit claimed.

"Deputies shot tear gas canisters into the Hill home through many windows while severely damaging the windows and interior of the home and leaving toxic tear gas residue in the home," the lawsuit said.

Once inside, officers found Hill dead with an unloaded handgun in his back pocket, not his hand, court records show. Toxicology would later show Hill was intoxicated, to the point he could not legally drive.

Issues pushing attorney to appeal

Thirty witnesses were called during the trial, Phillips said, some of whom contested Newman's narrative that he saw a gun and that he demanded Hill drop the weapon before opening fire.

Among those was Hill's oldest child, 13-year-old Destiny, who was 9 at the time. She sat on a bench at the school across the street as the encounter unfolded. She testified that her dad's hands were empty, according to court records.

Responding to the lawsuit claim that Hill never raised his firearm or threatened deputies, Newman retorted simply, "Denied."

Phillips said he has numerous problems with the court proceedings, which will help form the basis of his appeal.

One is what he called the "evasiveness" of a police expert, who, despite answering defense questions, claimed to be hard of hearing when Phillips questioned him, the lawyer said. Phillips also alleged deputies changed their story about how Hill was holding the gun and whether he aimed it at Lopez, the other deputy.

He also said there was no blood spatter on the gun, which seems to back the family's claim that the weapon remained in Hill's pocket the whole time.

There were issues regarding timing as well, the attorney said. It was determined that Newman fired all four shots in less than 1.2 seconds, and an expert said the final shot to Hill's head would have immediately disabled his motor capabilities. This raises the question in Phillips' mind: How did Hill get the gun in his back pocket after he was shot?

Another factor prompting the attorney to seek a new trial is that the defense mentioned Hill was on probation for drug possession, which Phillips feels was meant to vilify Hill, as Newman had no way of knowing this when he responded. Hill's probation was also set to "automatically terminate" 11 days before his shooting, he said.

"This one'll haunt me for a long time if we can't get it reversed," he said.

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'Black lives don't matter," lawyer says after jury awards ...

About Us | Black Lives Matter DC

April Goggans is an organizer, disrupter, single mother of one, proud southeast DC resident and a Core Organizer with Black Lives Matter DC. Her organizing work focuses on community power building, affordable housing and tenants rights, direct action organizing, intra-community violence, policing and police brutality. She recently launched #KeepDC4Me, a leaderFULL coalition that disrupts, confronts and dismantles systems of state sanctioned violence and oppression that displace and criminalize Black people while triggering intra-community violence in southeast DC through political education, building community power, and direct action. April has been organizing for more than 20 years and almost 10 of those years have been in southeast Washington, DC.

She is driven by the reality that respectability wont save us, and that our community already has all that it needs to address the critical issues we face.

April previously interned for the National Association of Blacks for Reparations in America and the NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund. She also served on the board of directors of the National Association for Ethnic Studies. Additionally, April served as a charter school administrator and vocational specialist with vulnerable and dropout populations, and as a residential counselor for the care of pregnant and parenting, teens and their children.

As Tenants Association president at Marbury Plaza Apartments in southeast DC, April led a two-year rent strike resulting in a historic settlement with the owners, Attorney General of DC, and the Director of the Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs securing $5 million in property repairs and a 50-75 percent rent abatements for tenants.

April is also a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., and a Union chapter Vice- President At-Large, Steward and Legislative Coordinator. She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Black Studies, a Bachelor of Arts degree in Sociology, and a masters degree in Clinical Sociology from the University of Northern Colorado. She is a Stryker Scholar and the recipient of two Departmental Scholar awards. She works and plays in Washington D.C. with her 19-year-old daughter.

More at aprilgoggans.com.

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About Us | Black Lives Matter DC

Black Lives Matter – Savannah

CLICK HERE FOR FULL SCHEDULE & COURSE DESCRIPTION

LOCATION: Antioch Baptist Church, 1105 50th St NE, Washington DC

7pm to 9pm (Light refreshments will be served.)

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REGISTRATION FOR ONE COURSE $35.99

REGISTRATION FOR ENTIRE 12 COURSES $325.99

What do you do when you feel like marching or attending is not enough? You seek radical justice. During this workshop, you will learn how everyone of us have a divine calling to be involved in bringing radical justice to the world.

Radical Justice: When Marching Is Not Enough: A 5 Day Workshop hosted by BLM-SAV.Includes Dinner/Workbook/Audio CD.

Greetings from BLM-SAV.

We are sending this letter out to our friends, members, and supporters as we are seeking financial support for the work during this time of 6 weeks of protests.

As you may know, these protests were organized in response to the death of Heather Heyer and the response of Donald Trump. We decided that inaction was too costly and therefore we decided to move forward with our planning to confront racial injustice both nationally and locally.

During our first week of protest, we have been able to speak out on the Chatham County Jail conditions and have been contacted by numerous Savannah residents affected. We have also secured free legal counsel for cases of extreme abuse and loss.

This work has not been without its challenges. Members have been denied housing, had to stay in shelters to do their work, and received threats. But we are undeterred in our work.

Our financial needs are these: 1. to be able to secure short-term housing for members and supporters who come from out of town 2. To pay our admin and support staff. 3. Travel costs for our legal support team coming from South Carolina.

Thank you for your willingness to help during this time.

Jomo Kenyatta Organizer

Cole Ballenger Organizer

Tomica Johnson Administrator

DONATE $10.00

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NOW IS A TIME TO ACT, AND KEEPING ACTINGBecause of the dangerous racism that is being spewed from the White House, i.e. Donald Trump, Social Justice groups in Savannah will unite for a time of 6 week long protest against racism in Savannah. It is our goal, that our incessant advocacy during this time, that we can be a model for other cities.

Our goal? To inspire a national wide continual protest against racism on EVERY LEVEL until Donald Trump is impeached.

DONATE TO THIS CAUSEStarting in September, we will undertake this huge endeavor and we need all the support we can get. Your support will allow us to:

1. Provide Housing and Lodging to other BLM Leaders who come to support us.2. Help provide food for protesters who stay out for long periods of time.3. To help attain legal counsel should any issues arise with our protest.4. To provide bail money for those leaders who are unjustly arrested for their protest.

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Black Lives Matter - Savannah

President Obama defends Black Lives Matter movement – CBS News

WASHINGTON -- Defending the Black Lives Matter movement, President Barack Obama said Thursday the protests are giving voice to a problem happening only in African-American communities, adding, "We, as a society, particularly given our history, have to take this seriously."

Mr. Obama said the movement, which sprung up after the deaths of unarmed black men in Florida, Missouri and elsewhere, quickly came to be viewed as being opposed to police and suggesting that other people's lives don't matter. Opponents have countered that "all lives matter."

The nationwide "Black Lives Matter" movement that formed after 18-year-old Michael Brown was shot and killed by a white police officer in Ferguson, Missouri has sought sweeping reforms of policing. Related protests erupted in Texas recently after a 28-year-old Chicago-area black woman, Sandra Bland, was found dead in a county jail about 50 miles northwest of Houston three days after her arrest on a traffic violation. Texas authorities said she committed suicide but her family is skeptical of that.

At the conclusion of a White House forum on criminal justice, the president said he wanted to make a final point about the nexus of race and the criminal justice system before launching into his defense of the movement.

"I think everybody understands all lives matter," Mr. Obama said. "I think the reason that the organizers used the phrase 'Black Lives Matter' was not because they were suggesting nobody else's lives matter. Rather, what they were suggesting was there is a specific problem that's happening in the African-American community that's not happening in other communities.

"And that is a legitimate issue that we've got to address."

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People take part in a rally on April 29, 2015 at Union Square in New York, held in solidarity with demonstrators in Baltimore, Maryland demanding justice for an African-American man who died of severe spinal injuries sustained in police custody.

EDUARDO MUNOZ ALVAREZ/AFP/Getty Images

Mr. Obama paired his defense of the Black Lives Matter movement with praise for police and other law enforcement officials. Some police groups have been unhappy with the president's response to the deaths of unarmed black people. The president lately seems to be making the extra effort to publicly praise police officers for willingly taking on a dangerous assignment.

He did so while participating in a forum on drug abuse Wednesday in Charleston, West Virginia, and next week he's scheduled to address the International Association of Chiefs of Police.

At the White House, Mr. Obama said there are specific concerns about whether blacks in certain areas are treated unfairly or are more frequently subjected to excessive force by police.

But the president said people should also "understand the overwhelming majority of law enforcement's doing the right thing and wants to do the right thing" and "recognize that police officers have a really tough job and we're sending them into really tough neighborhoods that sometimes are really dangerous and they've got to make split-second decisions."

He said people shouldn't be "too sanctimonious" about situations that can sometimes be ambiguous.

"But having said all that, we as a society, particularly given our history, have to take this seriously," Mr. Obama said. "And one of the ways of avoiding the politics of this and losing the moment is everybody just stepping back for a second and understanding that the African-American community is not just making this up."

"It's not just something being politicized. It's real and there's a history behind it and we have to take it seriously," he said.

In a separate development, the Black Lives Matter organization on Thursday rejected a town hall-style forum it had been offered by the Democratic National Committee, in lieu of a sanctioned debate it had requested. The group said a town hall wouldn't "sufficiently respond to the concerns raised by our members." The DNC said it has approved only six debates, and all have been scheduled.

2015 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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President Obama defends Black Lives Matter movement - CBS News

Lawsuit against Black Lives Matter, DeRay Mckesson … – CNN

Lawyers for one of the wounded law enforcement officers filed the complaint Friday in US District Court for the Middle District of Louisiana against various arms of the Black Lives Matter movement and leaders including DeRay Mckesson and Johnetta Elzie.

The complaint alleges Black Lives Matter and its leaders are responsible for the shooting because they "incited the violence against police in retaliation for the death (sic) of black men shot by police," and "did nothing to dissuade the ongoing violence and injury to police."

"In fact, they justified the violence as necessary to the movement and war," the complaint says.

The person who filed the lawsuit is named in the complaint only as Officer John Doe Smith. It says he is 42 with two children and is permanently disabled as a result of the numerous injuries he suffered in the ambush.

Smith, the complaint says, was shot through his abdomen, left shoulder and left side of his head. The shot to his abdomen "tore up his intestines," requiring 16 surgeries and causing recurring infections. Medical staff must attend to the exit wound daily, it says.

The shot to Smith's head almost tore off his left ear, which needed to be sewn back on, the complaint says. His skull was shattered and he lost brain matter on the left side, in an area controlling communication. His left eye stays mostly closed with the eyeball turned outward, it says.

"John Doe Police Officer was strong and vibrant and he has been struggling everyday, fighting to live, and fighting to get better," the complaint says. It seeks at least $75,000 in compensatory damages.

It is not clear why the officer filed the complaint under a pseudonym.

Donna Grodner, the attorney for the officer who filed the suit, told CNN she wasn't authorized to speak about the case.

The Baton Rouge victims

Armed with a rifle, he fatally shot Officers Matthew Gerald, 41, and Montrell Jackson, 32, outside the store as soon as he saw them.

Sheriff's Deputy Brad Garafola, who apparently was responding to reports of a man with a rifle, heard the shots and took cover, but then ran to help one of the downed officers. That's when Long opened fire, killing Garafola.

Long then shot Officer Chad Montgomery, who had pulled up in front of the building. The bullet grazed his head.

In a nearby parking lot, Sheriff's Deputy Nicholas Tullier, then 41, was in his cruiser to run the tag on Long's car when the gunman emerged from the woods and opened fire, shooting as he walked toward the vehicle.

Tullier was shot once in the head and twice in the abdomen and was in a coma for months.

Long took shots at another arriving deputy, Bruce Simmons, 51, shattering the bone from his elbow to his shoulder. Simmons now has a titanium rod in his arm.

SWAT officers then arrived on scene and shot Long in the leg, causing him to fall to the ground. As Long reached for his weapon, five SWAT officers fired, killing him.

Lawsuit: Black Lives Matter 'declared war' on police

The complaint describes in detail numerous protests that erupted across the country over several years, spurred by the shooting deaths of black men at the hands of police, and lists instances of violence, looting and vandalism at protests in Ferguson, Missouri; Baltimore; McKinney, Texas; Dallas and Baton Rouge.

The suit notes Mckesson's involvement in Black Lives Matter, and it points to his participation in the protests and his appearances in the media when he was introduced as a leader of the movement or a protest organizer.

When violence erupted at some of the protests, the complaint says, Mckesson and other Black Lives Matter leaders "failed to disavow the violence and urged its followers that violence was part of revolution," the complaint says.

"By embracing and supporting violence in protest that could have been conducted peacefully, BLM declared a virtual war on police," it says.

When reached for comment, Mckesson told CNN, "This is the second lawsuit an officer has filed against me from Baton Rouge. ... I'm confident it has no merit."

Elzie had no comment, and other defendants from Black Lives Matter could not be immediately reached for comment.

Baton Rouge ambush 'mimicked' Dallas attack

Mckesson and Elzie were present for protests in Baton Rouge in July 2016 held in response to the officer-involved shooting deaths of Alton Sterling in Baton Rouge and Philando Castile near Minneapolis earlier that month.

The suit says they came to protest and "to incite others to violence against police and other law enforcement officers."

Mckesson was arrested during the protests on July 9, though he told CNN days later the arrest was unlawful because he was complying with police requests to move back at the time.

The lawsuit also says Long's actions when he killed the Baton Rouge officers "followed and mimicked those of another BLM activist who killed several officers in Dallas just days earlier."

Investigators identified the Dallas gunman as Micah Xavier Johnson, 25, a military veteran who had served in Afghanistan.

Long, who acted alone in the shooting, traveled to Baton Rouge after stopping in Dallas shortly after the shooting to get revenge for the recent killings, the complaint says, suggesting that Black Lives Matter encouraged the behavior.

CNN's Shawn Nottingham and Melissa Gray contributed to this report.

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Lawsuit against Black Lives Matter, DeRay Mckesson ... - CNN