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Kamew im w n inte es’Play colum rn al at Interactive logo scan over the whole photo with your it from Google or The Apple App a io n is H n al t ar N in ri ic have all ca lled for res -tand reality TV starholas Kristof, U.S.tablet or smartphone. forensic Store es K ting using im technology. SUL current, m Kardashian The ACLU gorilla suitPHUR, La. (AP) – P o re sensitive and other h groups hav mattress befbroke into a Louisiaol ore offi a deeper in e also urged Califuoman rights and soci cers arrested na October is Breast Serving LosNAngeles County ves gation rnia state o al ews outlet into Cooper fficials to lajustice s Gov. Newtiso sp quote Sulp h okes Cancer Awareness Month for Over Years man unch ’s convictio m’s order F Mel 34 hu tion issued E st o es ffi n ce . ri rs d b saw Jeremie in Thursday test four pie y former Gov. 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Hispla di G th if g e an w M m d R g ay . o ag en y ta ey Ju p ra en o th ro t. in n st n ’s w ei se ed h la th h r y cu For some, G as a lawy o e and in st ers hope th at tied Coo ca by Gov. N e results ohfis innocence over th ov. Newsom per to themm the under pressuretor Michael Selyem,month, a San Bernarses or ewsom, w the case Newspapers the re-testin for making w d help48 ’s e oinf g in Group u Volume 34 Number Observer of Southern California Thursday, October 17, 2019 in h o h rd o o o rd ic n er prov is h is er s. so W b co to ci ei u h e al m ng met wit b aden D g ordered cr ld ke sev ite, their client’ the murder him. h ismay. ro er A test- chelle Obamedia. His insults taurgde and racist and co resigned s innocenta The lone N ce and final months, will porters of the sRJoshua Ryen anddfa mments et a, ed U ,S fo su B . rm R la In 1985, a rv ep. Maxine ck shooting ally exoner er First Lad ivor yens and H mily, friend they are dis San Diego at W v on four cou s u e ic at g ap an ti h er m es pointed wit d s and an un y Mi“Unfortun h the goverall across the statesup- Los AThomas R. Parker., named 26 and an nts of murder. ACt ounty jury convicte at el sa n a n o y, fo y fo g r’ eles office, rmer deputy cord - incluescaped prison inmthe time of his arre d Cooper n r justice in this caseover time it seems s decision. b el h ie ea Th v es ooper. d of the FB is guy is in o District st, he was e victims’ d in Pennsylv ding several burglaate. His lengthy crim I’s Attorney Jamatters less and leth nocent,” C esire “The evidence “Prior DN ries and the ania – did ss,” San Ber he told the in so al n re A w n as A d o n te er p n o n Cooper, form rape of a m st la so N t help his ca ar th in n ew n d te e g icl sa d st th ai Y , id an o at m h rk d.” e was fram in ed ould ex Mr. Cooper inor se. erly named in 1958 ed, the copTimes. What has k onerate him sought, agarestatement. per’s guilw sAngeles t.” months onldear Pittsburgh, PenRichard GoBy ep lied h ed Los County Rideshare is av t a o Stacy M. Brown to th d e fe m al e d an an er l ca d confirmed al appellate , was born se going - sponsoring free nsylvania. Yet persuas During his , he was adopted an M shuttles for the Taste of Soul 2019 to an W ec co Eating ice cream was a clear reference to Botham Jean, r. NNPA Newswire Correspondent d u h u C iv ti en C rt o o e ’s o o n m o h ar d p an e o ec ch g er n d w u d is ie il m as al re io re s andXavier ive - is entsbiology six nam KAtatiana n in 20encourage view Jean AKE ForOchoose and he spen dhood, his par Go LMetro stop allegatio based ona Dallas the ca resident killed by aGpolice was a 2014 University 04 to stayRidesharing. evin CoopJefferson, REST, aCshuttle se shot ov. Nofficer. ns of eviden ents physied is re with and t a good p conflwhile ewso covering af his ex alif. (AP) – more scbelow erworked icting sitting le qupharmaceutical and ride in-to the event. juvenile det . greatasoinnabthe m D ca ’s ce killed inside his home eating ice cream and es ar graduate who industry N ll d te ti ie t ta y ec A o n st o te m n ab ti is if te r s p fi io ad u ab b st er c evSaturday, yon road sed him n to ors used to eing10:00am ing, keeptelevision. outlived g comes ea idence. October the maetlife struck bytoaOffici 19,in2019 a mental h ention centers. In olescenceand watching raising California in livinwas contemplating becomingnaia l doctor, Southfrom hods an rly in the allow an othOn C g at polic o in ea er er ta 1 o 9 n ck lt p d G se 8 ro er h C 2 , st o v . u , L fa al er 8:00pm. The shuttle service provided at any of the shuttle an v o Th n C er ag iforn ries in cility in Pen te of th almattered to alld of d California. o nor awjury ree wea u days ia. gathered forpons w Only swornwho vestibefore e high expkilling, hose convicted escaped that - havAtatiana’s e below: ree attackerin those supporterrm nsylvania obpoferpurpose testim progressivoef the Orangnea Beach Police Offi er from th stops ec e o u ta n se ti y, s d o o s ce former Dallas Police Officer Amber Guyger for Botham n Jo During his C aefovigil on Sunday, Oct. 13, outside of her single-story, in n w s. shua Ryen ho ere W the pof re moving the “DNA test could have someone’s p ounty Register h r Thomas oliCrenshaw: tical Left murder tria h sa ingless gued that id he sareturning been Hisw shothan Jean’s murder, in 24mhours. East Worth. when Bank) uld im theverdict w solvethe l, prosecuto purple-paintedtohome in FFort panic. ite. He later te F R eb. 19.(nearetChase the cat dareteinitially th South Bronson & Coliseum st y u en ifi ed rt ed h ia Ryen, theirCooper killed husban ca er te rs succAtatiana Chiang said10-yearsesentence comeight-year at theya controversial received also mattered to her old nephew, Guyger th and finalinlyprison ly ta d in front plicating th ke p& an es sf 1 d n 0 la u 39th South Bronson (behind post office) am -y an ll ce y d ea d M ed en u to ar rw ri e cGuire says neighbor C - to bthis Diana Rop sure justice o ng the cam prosecution for her crime. re- th Parking that DNA who tragedy. ougisanadwitness el er hristopherld daughter Jessica ifane D w Tom Bradley Elementary Lot o p s’ is h n ev ca ai e P cl en g se g an eg id m in ai nlife,” rved,” encehad he e fo oldarFort gy in g to heratfoallrmto 34-year imal was big . “Not only ms,cannot a wommake Hughes. Po cantohellose d an 1But she seem t testof d with bloo“I - busense 1-yea ingwhy p laher Audubon al. Sto ger than aghot out to chec is it pMiddle er boyfrienrw in thshe waen r-odidn’t lice founWorth, hematter roven SchoolAParking nimal CLot ld dWorth turnedDean. isstated forcemen y clothPolice case wduring d ouse cat. Fort Chief Ed Kraus news d the blo Texas Police Officer Aaron w o th in E h o n o d t g e u v tr Stocker and Crenshaw Blvd. es so w ld en ev o to tr as lve crimes, l offi id ce over oyed it. th an animal h a violent crannouncing diedhis unidentified ough Newso come at no co Dean’s arrest. Deanoand were en asked to check to the pconference im- is bold ospital, whcers rushed the ble st to th West of Crenshaw: , m h tr ’s e au African Apartner d is o ec e m li tr st is ce a. ea er at io , but was din e it was dia e.and n in thObama issue th ” South Victoria Ave. merinican g careand Dean onat$200,000 bond on the well-being of the occupants hers, home theyreleased e CoopBlvd fullyhisonpolice gnose Hispan–icAtatiana alifornia Dr. KriLot erElementary a pis case watching. C otentiColiseum s and otherunion vowed to financially vodefense, sti Krause, support his which and her young nephew. te Parking rs al ly ac sh ro p H e o ss a e ex m la v th is ri in p et ec zi e o k er n p ri ts ee in g o ti p th li arian, tells a gun was later found ing hisinfoAtatiana’s It was very late at night and James Smith, a concerned certain toeshighlight e 11-pParking liv- Cothat l spectrHigh back into thCienega ound (5Lot ntin cus on fairticaDorsey th um areSchool/Rancho ued on p -kilallograday e wild af shuttle service provided neighbor, noticed that her door had been left ajar. Smith home. ness anContinuous m) cat to age A2 te d r M it ju cG re st ice and g u ai ir n 8pm. For more information, please e Lee Merritt, the lawyer representing Atatiana’s family, between 10am s dialed 311, a service established specifically for nonst v is re ited ngth. that if he se visit rideshare.lacounty.gov. es it again, the bobcat on Fri said that shouldn’t matter. emergencies, to ask police to simply check on the home. h e’ ll is su e Merritt was backed in his words by Kraus and Fort Dean and his partner arrived. Upon hearing the a ticket fodray. ja commotion outside of her home, Atatiana approached her Worth Mayor, Betsy Price. Texas’ “castle doctrine” law allows someone to use window to see what was happening. Without identifying Atatiana Jefferson, a 2014 Xavier University biolo- himself as a police officer, Dean shouted a command, “Let deadly force in their homes if there’s a threat, which means gy graduate, worked in the pharmaceutical industry me see your hands!” and immediately opened fire, shooting even if Jefferson carried her weapon to the window in which she was shot, she was within her rights legally. through the window and killing Atatiana. and was contemplating becoming a doctor. “The gun is irrelevant,” Mayor Price told reporters. Atatiana Jefferson didn’t matter to Officer Aaron “Atatiana was in her own home caring for her 8-yearDean, and his indifference meant that she would become sixth African American to die at the hands of police old nephew. She was the victim,” Price stated. “I was going to fire Dean even the Kraus stated that he would also refer the case to the gunfire in 2019. TRENTON, N.J. (AP) – A federal jury has deadIt’s a statistic that activists and residents are very much FBI so the agency could review federal civil rights charges. before he quit. We had already taken “This is a pivotal moment in our city, and we will have locked in the trial of a white former police chief charged aware of, one that has the city of Fort Worth on edge. his badge and weapon. There were After Dean’s resignation on Sunday, and his arrest on a top-to-bottom review of the police department,” Price with a hate crime against a handcuffed black suspect. A judge declared a mistrial Friday after jurors couldn’t murder charges a day later, residents are demanding action said. violations in his use of force, and he from the City’s leadership. “Nobody looked at this video and said there’s any reach a verdict on hate crime assault and deprivation of day you are worried about who might be the doubt that this officer acted inappropriately,” Forth Worth civil rights charges. didn’t follow de-escalation protocols. next “Every On Wednesday, they had convicted Frank Nucera of victim,” Stephon Little, one of the many mourners to Police Chief Ed Kraus noted. “I was going to fire [Dean] even before he quit. We had already taken his badge and lying to the FBI. gather at Jefferson’s home, told reporters. His conduct was unprofessional.” Authorities alleged the former Bordentown Township “You’re worried about what could happen if you’re weapon. There were violations in his use of force, and – Forth Worth Police Chief Ed Kraus pulled over, or in other circumstances. Now, you worry he didn’t follow de-escalation protocols. His conduct police chief smashed the 18-year-old’s head into a doorabout sitting inside your house eating ice cream, sitting was unprofessional. There are times for officers to act as jamb while he was being escorted by two officers from a inside your house playing video games with a child,” Little warriors and defenders, and there are times for them to act hotel in 2016. They said the assault was driven by racial hatred. as public servants and humble servants.” stated. Nucera’s attorney argued that some officers wanted to get rid of Nucera because of his tough disciplinary policies. The U.S. attorney’s office said Friday it would retry Nucera on the two deadlocked counts.
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Killed by Police in Her Own Home
Bobcfor at Recove Free Shuttles After2019 Being Hi Taste of Soul Police Car
Jury Deadlocks in Police Chief’s HateCrime Trial
The Truth, The Whole Truth and Nothing but the Truth
Judge Tammy Kemp One on One
Judge Tammy Kemp (Photo Caption: Cheryl Smith / I Messenger Media L.L.C.)
By Cheryl Smith Publisher of Texas Metro News/I Messenger Media L.L.C. I Messenger Media (Texas Metro News/Garland Journal/I Messenger) sat down recently with Judge Tammy Kemp to discuss criticism she has received as a result of her actions following the conclusion of the Amber Guyger murder trial last week. On October 1, 2019, Ms. Guyger, a former Dallas police officer, was convicted by a Dallas County jury of murder for fatally shooting 26-year-old Botham Shem Jean, in his apartment at the Southside Flats on September 6, 2018. Ms. Guyger claimed self-defense as she said she thought she was in her apartment and that Mr. Jean was an intruder. Mr. Jean’s apartment, #1478, was located on the fourth floor and Guyger’s apartment, #1378, was located directly beneath his on the third floor. The jury found her guilty of murder and sentenced Ms. Guyger to serve 10 years in the Texas Department of Criminal Justice. After Judge Kemp read the jury’s punishment verdict, she thanked the jury for their service, released them from the court’s previous restrictions regarding reading or watching coverage or engaging in/consuming social media content about the trial and offered contact information for counseling services should they find themselves in need of assistance following the trial. The jury exited the courtroom, the trial was over and the court was officially off the record. However, as is customary in any case where there is a victim of a crime, the victim’s family has a right to make a victim impact statement to the defendant before he/she is transported from the courtroom. In this case, Brandt Jean, the 18-year-old brother of Botham Jean, took the witness stand to address Amber Guyger directly and delivered an undoubtedly unexpected, yet powerful message of forgiveness and love to the woman who took his brother’s life. Then in a stunning turn of events, the victim’s brother asked Judge Kemp if he could “give her a hug.” He pleaded with Judge Kemp, “Please.” There was a brief pause of silence before Judge Kemp responded, “Yes.” Mr. Brandt descended from the witness stand and approached Ms.
Guyger, who ran to him and they embraced and whispered to each other for a couple of minutes before releasing from the embrace and returning to their respective seats. Next Judge Kemp walked over to the Jean Family and after a short conversation, there were embraces. The next exchange was between Judge Kemp and Ms. Guyger and also ended in an unexpected hug; one that not only sent shock waves across the nation but has drawn fire from the African American community in particular as well as a formal complaint filed by the Freedom From Religion Foundation. I Messenger reached out to Judge Kemp to provide the facts and set the record straight on several issues that were raised during and after the trial. I Messenger: Explain the difference between a jury trial and a trial before the court. Judge Kemp: In the State of Texas, a jury trial is when the accused has his or her case argued before a jury of 12 citizens. Jurors are selected by prosecutors (the State) and defense attorneys prior to the trial during the jury selection process. In a jury trial, the defendant has two decisions to make — who will decide guilt/innocence, the judge or a jury, and if convicted, who will decide punishment, again the judge or a jury. In contrast, a trial before the court or TBC, is when a defendant has his or her case presented to the judge of a specific court and the judge decides both guilt/innocence and any associated punishment for that individual. Both the State and the defense have to agree to a trial before the Court. Just to be clear, the State vs. Amber Guyger was a jury trial in which the defendant, Ms. Guyger, decided to have both guilt/innocence and punishment decided by a jury. I Messenger: One source of contention was your ruling to allow the jury to consider the Castle Doctrine Continued on page A3
California to End Private Prisons
By DON THOMPSON and AMY TAXIN Associated Press SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) _ California will ban the use of for-profit, private detention facilities, including those under contract to the federal government to hold immigrants awaiting deportation hearings, under a bill that Gov. Gavin Newsom said Friday that he had signed. The Democratic governor said the measure helps fulfill a promise he made to end private prison use, which he said contributes to over-incarceration and does “not reflect our values.” The state’s prison system was already phasing them out, despite having to comply with an inmate population cap imposed by federal judges. Immigrant advocates have praised the bill authored by Democratic Assemblyman Rob Bonta, which they said would put an end to almost all immigration detention in California in the next year. However, one private prison company said it expects most if not all of the law would fail a legal challenge, particularly requiring the federal government to end its contracts. “States cannot lawfully pass legislation mandating the closure of federal facilities that displease them on the basis of ideological differences,” The Geo Group of Adelanto, California, said in a statement. California has been at the forefront of resisting President Donald Trump’s efforts to deport those who are in the country illegally and has a so-called “sanctuary state” law that restricts police from asking people about their Continued on page A3
Killer of Black Man in Parking Dispute Gets 20 Years
A white Florida man who told detectives he was irritated by people who illegally park in handicapped spots was sentenced on Thursday to 20 years in prison for the fatal shooting of an unarmed black man outside a convenience store. Circuit Judge Joseph Bulone called 49-year-old Michael Drejka a “wanna-be” law enforcement officer and a self-appointed “handicapped parking space monitor.” Jurors found Drejka guilty of manslaughter in August. Drejka showed no emotion when the judge sentenced him. Drejka confronted Markeis McGlockton’s girlfriend Britany Jacobs in July 2018 for parking in a handicapped space at a Clearwater convenience store. McGlockton had gone inside the store with his 5-year-old son to buy drinks. As the confrontation continued, a customer went into the store and alerted McGlockton. Security video shows McGlockton leaving the store and shoving Drejka to the ground. Seconds later, Drejka pulls out a handgun and shoots the 28-year-old McGlockton as he backs away. Initially, Pinellas County Sheriff Bob Gualtieri said he wouldn’t arrest Drejka, saying the shooting was not a crime under the state’s ‘stand your ground’ law, which allows someone to use deadly force if they believe it necessary to prevent death or great bodily harm.\ A security video from the store, however, shows McGlockton appearing to step back and turn away as Drejka fires the shot, which strikes McGlockton in the side. McGlockton’s family hired a lawyer and held a news conference demanding justice, while U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson asked the U.S. Department of Justice to investigate. Authorities later decided to charge Drejka. The judge said he found it most ironic that Drejka drove up, illegally parked next to Jacobs’ car and then confronted her about parking illegally in a handicapped space. “He just seems to come out of nowhere, kind of like a superhero, to see that he enforces the handicapped parking spot,” Bulone said. Jacobs, along with McGlockton’s parents, spoke before the sentencing. “There are no words to fully describe what his loss has done to our family,” said Jacobs, who had four children with McGlockton. “Our youngest two children will never have memories of their daddy.” Defense attorney Theresa Jean-Pierre Coy read a letter from Drejka’s wife in which she defended her husband, saying he was not a bad person. She also wrote that she and other family and friends had received threats and decided to stay away from the courtroom.
NY Govenor Uses Racial Slur
ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) – New York’s Democratic Gov. Andrew Cuomo has used a racial slur while he quoted a newspaper opinion article about racism toward darker-skinned Italian immigrants. Cuomo in a radio interview Tuesday said the name of a slur that combined the N-word with an insulting term for Italian immigrants. His office didn’t offer further comment. Democratic Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie said he didn’t take offense at Cuomo’s comments. Heastie, the first African-American speaker, said Cuomo was quoting a New York Times editorial about racist language once used to describe Italian immigrants. But Bertha Lewis, founder and president of the Black Institute, a public policy think tank, said Cuomo appears to think he has so much privilege he can say anything. She said there’s no comparison between oppression against Italian immigrants and black people.