w inmate ged inciden Cooper’s m’s decision cou Flori t was making ouda Today reports thca Hills famil1985 conviction inld lead to the overtu t. e y th rn A an e u in th k d g il ori ling of a ru their 11-y Enough Of of has the Your Lovtie”es say the o Californiapnotential, some polieatir-old house guest. ral Chino an d agre s. Th cal watcher s say, to de case Both the C ivide alifornia an and more th d nited S past appeals an a dozen lower U tates suprem courts hav . e rejected Ce courts “I take no p ooper’s osition regar nocence at about the h this time,” Newsodming Mr. Cooper’s g terest. N igh-profile case that said in his execu uilt or intiv York Times has drawn Sen. Kamew internatioen order ’ co 2. When you see a photo or ad with the Observer lum alaGet nistby app for free downloading Harthe N ris an ic have all ca1. h o las Kristof, al ind reality T Interactive logo scan over the whole photo with your for Google U itlled from orV The App .S starApple re-testingPlay forensic tech . using curren Kim Kardashian SUL n o tablet or smartphone. lo g y. t, more sen The AStore gorilla suitPHUR, La. (AP) – P CLU and o sitive groups hav th er m attress befboroke into a Louisiaonlice h a deeper in e also urged Califuoman rights and soci ho News ouretl officers arrested haim vestigation rnia state o al justice et into Cooper fficials to la s Gov. Newso sp q u o k o es te m Mel E Serving Kern County unch ’s con m’s tion issu stes in ThSuulphur officers saan by formerorder Friday expandviction. for Over 40 Years w rsday re Je test four ed re m s G ie p co o Moran wal revious dir v. rry Bro stume. They ec lowed analpyieces of crime scenJe w n h ad in son looking received ca king th D ember lls abou into homes to an orange sts to perform DNe evidence. Brownec ’s . E to A stes says M prosecutors wel; and the han re-testing on a tanorder al- bo o p ra ro n ac ran into a hed but w dle and sh dies in the say Cooper T-shirt; h as discover eath Ry In th new u charges incl ed hidingo. investigatseiod in the murders. of a hatchet Joshua Ryen, theen’s home with a total u d of hair frois in g re tr si y, v st n w m o ic m in , f o ti et an 1 g u th m h 4 n al s will lo an 3 e victims’ h s’ d on his th poss sion button Co ands, bloyost and wearinofficer, roat. He w8-year-old son, suffsterab wounds. ing in the San B k at strand tack. In Louisiaes oper’s atto d samplesoan g as tigators pla er s ed n th n rn a, th ar a e ey a e d in sl o in p al n as N er p ly le o h ublic can b son convicatemas gations Co County are survivor of Angeles Co nted at the sceneorman Hile mainta d a green le After Coopers’s o e D do p n th se er .A o m e t n ’s .’s o surprised ab tenced to atst. Exceptio atto o ce. Man three y vestigation unty Superior Couof the crime. A reins inves- al gally stayed in a h jail break, investig out ns are allow racial biaffi y of themrneys are making ab h o li d . ay ators found so say they tired Los ouse next rt judge wil se ed s s like Hallow for religiou do fo , e il- complaints and discriminatio frequently compla out their l oversee th Coo er, 61 een and M It’s unclea in about are handled n in the w e in- family’s station uwnd evidence in theoRr to the victims. hTh , has main ar years. Hispla r if g an M m g ay . o ag en y ta ey Ju p ra en o th ro t. ined his in n has a ladwi Gras st last mon n that tied ’s home and eir cases or secutor Mic For some, G by Gov. N wyers hope the resu th n u C yer w o n , in o h ce d a o ae er o n p th S v. Newsom l over the ing in the case Bernardino help prove ewsom, which cou lts of the re-testice ’s order toerbto the murders. e on socipalressure for makingSelyem, who is Wan is b ei o n h n f g cr ld it g ro th th m e, o u m ad ta rd ei d e ed resigned Wednesday, March 20, 2019 e an k r client’s in ered en D A te California m Volume 45 Number Observer GroupetNewspapers . His insult him. 28 ith dismay. of Southern st- chelle Obama,iaU nocence eanseveral mon p rters ofurders Joshua Ryenwan s targeteddforacist and commen The lone N ,S d finally exths, will thoey the Ryens su ts B . d rm R la In 1985, a rv fa ep ck er iv m . o F sh il M r ir y, ooting victi st axine Water and onerate frie are disappo San Diego on four cou m. s and an uLnady Miinted with Hughes all across nthds and supTh C o o u m n n ts as “U ty o R n f ju n the amed .P murder. At fortunately, ry 26 and an e the time ofconvicted Cooper for justice in over time gitovernor’s decision. state say Los Angeles office,arker, a former depu cord - incluescaped prison inm b ty his arrest, h this case m el se h ie em ea Th v es n d s is o at C th o d D f g e. in o e v tims’ d uy is innoce the FBI’s oper. atters ss an istrict e was His le in Pennsylv g several burgla “Th es d less,” Sic ri and thnegthy criminal re- “Prior DNAAttorney Jason Anle an – did an Bernardire on the eevidence was planntet,” he told the New d not help hes te er Cooper, foiarm ra st so in p n e g icl of a minor sa d, he was stand.” th aimed ou erly named is case. in 1958 framed, thYork Times. ld exoneratat Mr. Cooper sougidh in a statement. What has k per’s guilw e cops lied e him have t, agreed to t.” months onldear Pittsburgh, PenRichard Goodman, ep t a th fe all confirm e case goin deral appel and nsylvania. was born Y et ed g la p During his , he was adopted an te er M an su W ec co r. CoodC as e argum ution and re hen he was urt LAKE FOR ents based six monies and allegiv iew the ca’ssedecision in 2004 toooper alive - is and he spenchildhood, his par d renamed Kevin ations of ev Gov. Newvso o re EST n as en is recoverin w stay his exC t co o it o a ts n h n o ab g fl p p m o er ic le h id o juvenile det o ysically abu ti . gat d part of ad q en m re n u D ’s g ce es sc g after bei,nCalif. (AP) – Offici N d te ti ie ta ec A o n st m n ti is ite s p fi io ab st er c en y se n o o in o ev in o rs d ti n le u to als g g id o g struck by u t sc h ro , k p raisin n centers. In sed nail C co th ence. im ence living ad in(AP) a mental low another BAKERSFIELD, Sou–thThe Calif. Higha police c g California Governmes early in the al ooper. Theremethods and storiee in several attack, and to ern California ro C u L al n ag if te d Californiah. ealth facility in Pen1982, Cooper esca o es u rm rn o o in n e h in r f a ia. stop ave high government wea of thway swattic, ves Beach aProutine orn teevery Patrol says anth officer traffic ose suppoand relationships three attaon e pro ns wer p“Iedfeel every toposee nsylvania b expectationwhagencies olice Offi e Oraconducting stimogarage frolike gressiv e used in thti-with media, rtreceive m knocking cker ersthe nge Coumerchandise. ny, Josh e ofsostolen on thefound s who wer cer Thomas efowhere Duri s.Americans re movthose $13,000 Disney ua Ryenpublic to ensure that“D missing African n e ty p N are,” Leader Nancy Pelosi uldHouse o A R li e m ing togirlsco ti eg W te have bMajority ca eo M is st h sa l n te in gued that nCg his murder trial, it Left says a Nissan e’ Sentra id heattention r heover e. H g shouthe een Hworld lve th initia e laterest saw soand whenwas The CHP Frild im ispanicthat prompt concern best possible r testifi lly thou e Ryentocagarner said. “Let’s be an example we can’t Feb. 19. s pet thepulled Furthertocothe med . ca ed ia Ryen, their ooper killed husbanprosecutors succ t te d th se ar C ly at h te an m ia ta th d finally en ng said du k day in to Kern County after driver failed to stopdwhen ey each case. in front of outcomes for essfuthese place arenfound.” amed Dian plicating the prose lly argirls McGthe ring thcoverage neighbor C 10-year-old daugh d and wife Douuntil - ban sure justiceapproaching uire says w thatabout a Ropand cutiNot e campaiof DNA the bus. g anFurther, media missing ons’ claims,A 2010 study ter Jessica an e is servedre- a school er caMissing hristopher theelnonprofit Black But th o d h n ev e P en g g an eg id m in n en h e g g im . y e fo “N to ce al g rw ,” learned the wdriver’s but testStates otsuspenda w mthe hits ot only is it The officer Hughes. Po can hthat d 11-yea er fo ard wit out to chec as elp laonly rmer boyon children discovered - United ing in th al. Sfocused attention er than was w en20 r-oldalsoinhas lice foundanForgotten, he turned proven Animal Cobigglicense k, h ody clothoin friespotlighting isoncamissing forcpera hother nd who whasblocent ement so se wouldBlack ouse merthe eviden in thand E n ed and then discovered hundreds of pins and destroAfrican g cat. e blo of reported stories focused children v tr en o to finding lv l co o th an e odied missing a yed it. Americans. ffi m cr o v ce u an iolent crim ce over to e im g rs at im h es ru is n N , al o sh b ew h co o ed the bleed ospitDisneyland. ld, he is trea so ’s decis st tochandise from Officials the police, traumstolen Since 2007, the al, wh the state.allegedly Afrorganization ican Americ has sought to develop a. ding carem but they on issupage ” By Stacy M. Brown e thatA2 Continued immediately identify the motorist. ere it was diagnosed in ans, Hispan fully on aiopn in the Cdidn’t C o o al p if D er o r. rn ca w K ia se ic w risti Khas otenti ly p Authoritiesshsay the CHP s and other voters across atching. H NNPA Newswire Correspondent raucontacted se, a veterinDisneyland e expects th olarizing e is keepin minorities e politicalalsp ar e Have you seen Iniaya Wilson? ia liv- Contin g his focuth 1 n security and made arrangements to return the property. 1 , tell -po back into th s on fairnes ectrum are ued on p e wild afteurnd (5-kilogram) castthe ne Just 14, Iniaya has been missing from her Columbus, age A2 s and justic M to be it cG re g u ai e ir n e Ohio home since January 25. that if he se visited the bob s strength. es it again, cat on Frid She’s African American, has brown hair and brown he’ll issue a ay eyes; standing 5 feet 6 inches tall and weighing 120 pounds. ticket for ja. H yw Have you seen Skylar Mannie? From Lancaster, Calif., Skylar is also Black and just 13 years old. She was last seen on Feb. 14. She has black hair, brown eyes, stands 5 feet 5 inches and weighs 130 pounds. The two are among the estimated 64,000 Black girls and women across the United States that have gone missBAKERSFIELD – The Center for Sexuality & Gening. Iniaya and Skylar are also among an unfortunately der Diversity (The Center) is pleased to release its first growing number of young people listed in the “critically annual Impact Statement of services provided to the missing” section of the expansive database of the National community. Center for Missing & Exploited Children. “The Center provides services to support Kern That includes girls and women of all backgrounds, an County LGBTQ+ residents in living happy, productive, important distinction because of the lack of media coverfulfilling lives in a safe and supportive community,” said age of African Americans who’ve gone missing. Executive Director Jan Hefner. “Our efforts are focused That has spurred activists and some in Congress to on individual support services such as counseling and acaction. tivities to help build self-esteem, and community transIn efforts to address the problem of missing Black chilformation activities including cultural competency traindren nationwide, Reps. Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-N.J.), ings. By conservative estimates, 43,000 Kern residents Robin Kelly (D-Ill.), and Yvette D. Clarke (D-NY) initiatidentify as LGBTQ+; many have struggled for self-aced the Congressional Caucus on Black Women and Girls ceptance as well as acceptance and understanding from in 2016. Through the caucus, they hope to create public family, friends, and community. The Center provides that policies that “eliminate significant barriers and disparities acceptance and educates the wider community in how to experienced by black women.” Have you seen Skylar Mannie (pictured at left) from Lancaster, Calif., Skylar is just 13 years old? She was provide affirming services.” According to BlackNews.com, members of the cau- last seen on Feb. 14. She has black hair, brown eyes, stands 5 feet 5 inches and weighs 130 pounds. Iniaya The highlights in the Impact Statement include 552 cus believe that more federal assistance and collaboration is Wilson (right) is just 14 and has been missing from her Columbus, Ohio home since January 25. She has private counseling sessions provided and 819 persons reneeded to further eliminate the problem. brown hair and brown eyes; standing 5 feet 6 inches tall and weighing 120 pounds. ceiving Cultural Competency Trainings during the year. Trainings were provided to a variety of organizations and businesses, including the Bakersfield Police Department, Kern County Network for Children, Bakersfield Homeless Center, Kern Behavioral Health & Recovery Services, and more. In mid-November, The Center also launched direct services in ten Kern communities outside of Bakersfield, including Ridgecrest, Kern River Valley, and Scottsboro Boys. Taft. By Stacy M. Brown They also set up a fundraising drive to help support “If a picture is worth a thousand words, so is a quanNNPA Newswire Correspondent the young men. tifier of community impact,” adds Board President LouWhen Juanita Jackson Mitchell died in 1992 at the She also led the key NAACP Baltimore branch is Medina. “The Center’s Community Impact Sheet for age of 79, she was praised as one of Maryland’s heroines during the same crucial period. 2018 features many such quantifiers that hopefully will and as the matriarch of a family whose name became synMitchell founded the Baltimore City-Wide Young paint a picture of the BIG impact The Center made in onymous with civil rights causes. People’s Forum in 1931 and the NAACP Youth Movethe lives of many people in the local LGBTQ+ commu“It was fitting that she received recognition because ment in 1935. nity and its allies last year, as well as among our nonprofshe was always one of those unsung champions of the In 1942, she directed a march on Maryland’s Capitol it partners who are now more culturally competent on cause and one who needs to be celebrated during both with 2,000 citizens, as well as the first city-wide “Register LGBTQ+ issues and needs. This data excites us because Black History and Women’s History month,” said Shane and Vote” campaign. The campaign resulted in 11,000 thanks to staff growth and increased board and volunCarter, a self-described “black history buff.” new voter registrations on the books. teer engagement, we are hopeful that The Center’s comMitchell, the daughter of legendary NAACP leadIn 1958, Mitchell directed the NAACP’s “Register munity impact will just continue to go from strength to er Lillie Carroll Jackson, spent most of her life fighting to Vote” campaign, which resulted in over 20,000 new strength.” against racism and segregation. registrations. Comments received across programs affirm that The “I am an old freedom fighter. I came up in that traShe was appointed to Presidential Commissions by Center’s services are improving client lives: dition,” Mitchell once said in describing her upbringing. Presidents Franklin D. Roosevelt, John F. Kennedy, and • “It lets me be open about myself in a way I can’t be at Mitchell’s parents, who were living in Baltimore at Lyndon B. Johnson. home.” the time, were traveling in Hot Springs, Arkansas when Mitchell was also a member of various organizations • “I feel more confident in standing up for myself.” Mitchell was born. that supported the well-being of African Americans, such University of Maryland School of Law graduate Juanita • “I felt safe and heard and felt like my well-being was She’d later become one of the first black women to Jackson Mitchell in cap and gown with her sons Clarence M. as Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, the National Association really cared for.” graduate from the University of Maryland Law School Mitchell III, Keiffer Mitchell, and Michael Bowen Mitchell. of Negro Business, and the Black American Professional • “It has helped me grow immensely over the last year.” and the first black woman to practice law in the state of College Park, Maryland./Photo By Paul Henderson, circa Women’s Club. • “This is honestly the best cultural competency train1950. Maryland Historical Society, HEN.00.B1-043. Maryland. In 1986, she was inducted into the Maryland Woming we have had in a long time. We think we are open, Her late husband, Clarence M. Mitchell Jr., was while she was growing up. While her father changed movie en’s Hall of Fame. but there are still so many unrecognized biases.” a nationally recognized Capitol Hill lobbyist for the reels, Mitchell would recite poetry to the moviegoers, ac“Folks like Juanita Jackson Mitchell are the folks The Center’s programs and services receive major NAACP and her children, Michael B. Mitchell and Clar- cording to BlackThen.com. we often miss during Black History Month and during funding from California Reducing Disparities Project, ence M. Mitchell III, went on to become state senators. In 1937, Mitchell became the NAACP’s first national Women’s History Month because everyone wants to conThe California Endowment, Kaiser Permanente Kern Mitchell and her family frequently moved across the youth director and visited the Scottsboro Boys in prison. centrate on celebrities and superstars,” Carter said. “But County and other funders, as well as corporate and South as her father showed feature films in church base- Under her leadership, the NAACP youth groups launched people should take a minute to look at the history of our personal donations. For more information on receiving ments, often the only facilities available to Black people a letter-writing campaign to protest the conviction of the real heroes,” he said. services or supporting The Center’s work, call 661-4045209.
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Bakersfield
Missing Black Girls
Bobcat Re Stolen Disney After Beincover g Hit Merchandise Found Police C ar in Frwy Traffic Stop
and the Individuals and Organizations Trying to Help Find Them
Sexuality & Gender Diversity Center Impact Statement
Women’s History Month:
Juanita Jackson Mitchell
Historically Black Colleges By Stacy M. Brown NNPA Newswire Correspondent For 75 years, the United Negro College Fund has been lighting the way to better futures for young people and leaving little doubt to the importance of its catchy but all-too serious slogan: “A mind is a terrible thing to waste.” And, for more than 14 years, no one has championed the cause of a good education for African Americans and other underserved students better than Dr. Mic h a e l Lomax, the president and CEO of UNCF, which counts as the country’s largest provider of scholarships and other educational support for students of African descent. “Many [African Amer-
ican students] are choosing historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs),” Lomax said this week after hosting a luncheon where he helped to deliver a State of HBCUs address. “HBCUs have more enrollment today than in the era of segregation. We had a decline in enrollment of about 10 percent because of the Parents Plus loan fiasco in 2012, but enrollments are growing,” Lomax said. A large number of African American millennials are applying to HBCUs but many are finding that they can’t afford to attend without the benefit of more scholarships and grants, he said. “That’s why we’ve called on Congress to double the Pell Grant, not just for HBCUs, but for all private institutions which are endangered species in this country,” Lomax said. Since its founding, UNCF has raised more than $4.8 billion and has helped at least 450,000 students earn degrees at UNCF-member HBCUs. With 37 member colleges and universities, the UNCF also advocates for the importance of minority education and college readiness. Lomax pointed out that UNCF institutions and HBCUs remain highly effective, awarding nearly 20 percent of African American baccalaureate degrees. UNCF awards more than $100 million in scholarships annually and administers more than 400 programs, including scholarship, internship and fellowship, mentoring, summer enrichment, and curriculum and faculty development programs. Currently, UNCF supports more than For more than 14 years, no one has championed the cause of a good education for 60,000 students at African Americans and other underserved students better than Dr. Michael Lomax, more than 1,100 colleges and universities the president and CEO of the United Negro College Fund.
across the country. “There are more small white colleges that are being threatened with closure and shutting down and a member at Harvard University has predicted that half of all private colleges will be closed over the next decade,” Lomax said. “These are all part of the higher education landscape in this country. We’re going to fight for ours and we’re going to join these other institutions who are modestly resourced and we are going to fight,” he said. It’s that same spirit that led UNCF and many others to respond when the historically black and all-girls Bennett College was given just 60 days to raise $5 million in an attempt to keep its accreditation. “There are 95 standards [the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools) hold its institutions to and they include education programs and faculty requirements. Bennet had 94,” Lomax said. “They missed one and the one they missed was the standard on finances and even when they did what they were directed to and out-did it, [the association] still withdrew accreditation,” he said. Lomax continued: “I consider that to be biased and inequitable and I’ve called on Congress to intervene. We’re in court. We’re not going to allow Bennett to be destroyed because the actions taken are actions to destroy Bennett and it’s inappropriate, biased and unfair and we will fight it and we stand with Bennett.” Fighting for Bennett is of little surprise as UNCF continues to press its vision of a nation where all have equal access to a college education that prepares them for rich intelligent lives, competitive and fulfilling careers, engaged citizenship and service to the nation. One of UNCF’s primary objectives is to increase the total number of African American college graduates by focusing on activities that ensure more students are college-ready, enroll in college and persist to graduation. Continued on page A2
CA Credit Card Skimming Arrest
SACRAMENTO – Authorities say members of a large credit card skimming operation used tiny cameras to record victims using ATMs across the US West. KCRA-TV in Sacramento, California, reported Saturday that three men were arrested last week after investigators uncovered skimming devices, recording equipment and credit cards at an apartment. Sheriff’s officials say they found skimming devices inside ATMs in Sacramento and Folsom in California as well as Reno, Nevada. Investigators say there are likely other victims in Washington state and Arizona dating back to last December. Sgt. Shaun Hampton says the suspects used skimming devices and pinhole cameras to capture credit card data and personal identification numbers. He says the devices are hard to detect unless you know what you’re looking for.
Pharmacy Scheme Brothers Sentenced
LOS ANGELES – Federal prosecutors say two California brothers who operated a bogus pharmacy in order to obtain and sell opioids and other prescription drugs to black-market customers have been each sentenced to 10 years in prison. The U.S. Attorney’s office in Los Angeles says Thursday that 48-year-old Berry Kabov and 35-year-old Dabo Kabov illegally pocketed more than $3 million while running Global Compounding Pharmacy. The two were convicted in 2017 of multiple charges including distribution, conspiracy and money laundering. Officials say evidence presented at trial included recorded calls where Berry Kabov described oxycodone as ``gold’’ – selling for as much as ``50 bucks a pill.’’ He also bragged about being able to ship 4,000 oxycodone pills per week.