Some of you may remember that the issue of tasers aka stun guns has been a hot topic at Dallas South in the past. Last December, the Dallas Morning News reported the details of a Waxahachie man (African-American) who was tasered by police after calling 911 (in April of '07) for help with a diabetic seizure. Well there have been more cases of taser abuse across the nation as of late, and Howard Witt of the Chicago Tribune details another such instance. In his article Taser death ignites racial tension, Witt chronicles an incident that occurred in a small Louisiana town. At 1:28 p.m. last Jan. 17, Baron "Scooter" Pikes was a healthy 21-year-old man. By 2:07 p.m., he was dead. What happened in the 39 minutes in between--during which Pikes was handcuffed by local police and shocked nine times with a Taser device, while reportedly pleading for mercy--is now spawning fears of a political cover-up in this backwoods Louisiana lumber town infamous for backroom dealings. Even more ominously, because Pikes was black and the officer who repeatedly Tasered him is white, racial tensions over the case are mounting in a place that's just 40 miles from Jena, La. Jena is ...

Washington, D.C. – (July 15, 2008) Congresswoman Eddie Bernice Johnson will hold panel discussions on wrongful convictions and DNA exonerations this Saturday, July 19. The event will consist of two discussion panels, one featuring three Texas exonerees and one featuring Michigan Congressman John Conyers, state Senator Rodney Ellis, District Attorney Craig Watkins and Jeff Blackburn of the Innocence Project of Texas. The discussions will be moderated by Judge John Creuzot.   Texas has more wrongful convictions proven by DNA evidence than any other state in the country, and of the 32 in the state, 19 were overturned in Dallas County.     A press conference will immediately precede the first discussion.     What: Panel Discussion: Wrongful Convictions and DNA Exonerations   Date: Saturday, July 19     Time: 4:00 – 4:15 PM – Press Conference 4:15 – 5:00 PM – Panel One – Discussion featuring three Dallas exonorees 5:00 – 6:00 PM – Panel Two – Discussion featuring Michigan Congressman John Conyers, State Senator Rodney Ellis, District ...

Gina McCauley from What About Our Daughters is calling for action in the case of PFC Lavena Johnson. By all accounts PFC Johnson was murdered by her colleagues. Here's a recap of the story by WAOD & Jezebel: (Johnson) enlisted in the Army right out of high school in 2003 and was sent to Iraq, where she died. When the Army returned her mutilated body to her grieving parents as a suicide, her dad, Dr. John Johnson, said to himself and the Army coroner, "Somebody murdered my daughter and you picked the wrong person to fuck with." When LaVena's father finally brought himself to look at his daughter's corpse in 2005, sent home from Iraq with a report that she'd committed suicide by shooting herself in the left side of her head with an M-16 — which, by the way, is not a handgun but a relatively long rifle, he thought there was something wrong. Private LaVena Johnson's nose was broken, teeth were loose, one eye was concave and there were abrasions over her body. The supposed M-16 hole to the head was far too small for the revolver-sized exit wound, and was on the wrong side of her skull for ...

Folks are often trying to tell me how the court system usually gets it right and how there is really much racial disparity there these days. Well if justice were blind, wouldn't Dallas County be freeing more white folks by way of DNA evidence?  You know that chick (Justice) is peeking through that blindfold every chance she gets. Today, Partick Waller will become Dallas County's 18th prisoner exonerated since 2001, widening a dubious lead for having the most such releases in the nation. The Dallas Morning News' James Ragland says the exonerations give him "mixed feelings." In a column in today's News, James Ragland credits Dallas County's preservation of DNA evidence -for decades in many cases- equally with current D.A. Craig Watkins' desire for justice as the reason so many are gaining freedom. While the preservation is key and a major factor, I can't give much in the way of kudos to the DA's office. Before I can get to praise, I share the feelings of John Rolater who Ragland quotes in is article. Rolater once worked for former Dallas District Attorney John Vance and oversaw DNA test requests for D.A. Bill Hill. "It's a threefold tragedy because ...

Thursday, August 7th thru Saturday, August 9th, the National Council of Negro Women, Inc. (NCNW) Texas Sections will convene in Dallas, Texas, at the Hilton Garden Duncanville Hotel to conduct the business of the National Council of Negro Women, Inc. founded by Mary McLeod Bethune and chaired by President/Emeritus Dr. Dorothy I. Height. The Texas State Convener, Dorothy Allen Chimney of Lufkin, Texas, presides over the entire state of Texas. The Minnie H. Goodlow Page Section will host the 3-day event chaired by Dr. Mollie A. Williams. All NCNW Dallas Sections have joined together to make the 2008 Texas Unity theme: "Yes We Can" unity conference a success. "Highlights" of the conference include: the Welcome to "Big D" Barbeque Reception, the Sisters Luncheon, and the Bethune Recognition Program, which will culminate on Saturday morning, August 9, 2008, to recognize Bethune Achievers, Life Members and Legacy Life Members of the organization. Three distinguished women of the community will be recognized. Dr. Mary E. Beck for Education, Ann Williams for Economic Development of the Dallas Black Dance Theater and Dr.Gayle Smith Blair in the field of Health. The mission of the National Council of Negro Women is to advance opportunities and ...

Everything changed after this post.  Everything changed after the Day of Blogging for Justice.  It's hard to believe, but when we blogged about the Jena Six at the end of August 2007, the national media still had not picked up on the story.   On September 4th I wrote: One of the main goals of the Day of Blogging for Justice creators was increased media coverage regarding the Jena 6.  Today I saw a piece on Headline News where they spoke to parents on both sides of the issue.  There is no doubt the Day of Blogging for justice made a tangible difference.  Just two weeks later I appeared in a Howard Witt Chicago Tribune piece and that was most of the nation's first exposure to Dallas South.  I then appeared on NBC Nightly News and Dallas South instantly went from a local Dallas issue blog to a site that people from around the country were interested in. How I blog has remains the same, but what I blog about has been different. Consequently the Jena story is not over.  The motion to remove J.P. Muffray from the bench has been tabled.  Hopefully someone less biased can take over the case and ...

Today a visiting judge was supposed to decide whether or not Jena 6 Judge J.P. Mauffray had been biased in his treatment of the fiver remaining defendants.  That judge has postponed the hearing until at least July. Howard Witt of the Chicago Tribune reports:  Attorneys for the five remaining defendants facing trial in the racially divisive Jena 6 incident in Louisiana presented evidence Friday of what they said was bias on the part of the judge presiding over the cases and sought his removal. After more than four hours of testimony, a visiting judge appointed by the state Supreme Court to hear the recusal motion against LaSalle Parish District Judge J.P. Mauffray asked for more evidence and postponed a ruling until at least July. Defense attorneys have long asserted that the white-dominated justice system in the small central Louisiana town was biased against their African-American clients: six high school students who were initially charged with attempted murder in the December 2006 beating of a white classmate. According to those present during Friday's hearing, defense attorneys testified that Mauffray had made prejudicial comments to them about their clients on multiple occasions. David Utter, an attorney for defendant Jesse Ray Beard, said Mauffray had labeled the Jena ...

From Color of Change.org - I will be updating you on the developments this Friday. Jena 6 Judge Put on Trial Lawyers Cite Clear Pattern of Bias, Demand Removal of Judge Mauffray Jena, LA--Citing powerful evidence of Judge J.P. Mauffray Jr.'s bias against them, five of the African-American youth known as the Jena 6 are back in court next week seeking to remove Mauffray from their cases. Legal documents filed in the proceedings reveal Judge Mauffray's personal vendetta against the Jena 6. Among other incidents, Mauffray characterized the young men as violent trouble-makers and confessed his intent to incarcerate one of the youth—regardless of the strength of the evidence. Given Mauffray's documented inability to preside over a fair trial for these youth, their legal teams have requested that a new judge be appointed to handle all Jena 6 related proceedings. "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 ColorOfChange.org, the 400,000 member group that has advocated on behalf ...

The NAACP has selected 35 year old Benjamin Todd Jealous as its next President and CEO. Jealous was the only candidate presented to the group's 64 member Executive Board. This quote by CNN says a lot about the vote. When the 34-21 vote was announced, "no one clapped or celebrated," one board member said after the meeting in Baltimore,Maryland. The story goes on to say, "Some board members wanted to hear from two others whom the search committee identified as finalists, but Jealous' supporters prevented it, sources said. " Roland Martin writes more about the vote at Essence.com. Another (board member) said "when we left the room, many were in disbelief." Those who didn't support Jealous say he was marked as the primary choice of board chairman Julian Bond, who began calling board members two weeks ago to line up support. There was vigorous discussion to postpone the vote to allow the board to hear from the other two finalists, but that effort was beaten back by those who backed Jealous on the board. In a subsequent article, Roland says "According to multiple board members, the search firm employed by the NAACP to find a new leader, the San Francisco-based Hodge /Niederer / Cariani / ...

Click on the link below to see a press release from the J.L. Turner Legal Association (JLTLA). The JLTLA, the African American Bar Association of Dallas, press release concerns the group's support of Sen. Rodney Ellis of Houston and Dallas District Attorney Craig Watkins' call for penalties against prosecutors that intentionally withhold evidence resulting in innocent people being imprisoned. jltla-press-release-for-prosecutorial-misconduct.pdf FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: E. Steve Bolden, II Phone: (214) 803-6093 estevebolden@hotmail.com J.L. Turner Legal Association Back’s Dallas County ...