Variety

Peter Debruge

February 6, 2018

Now showing in theaters

 SPOILER ALERT: The following review contains mild spoilers for “Black Panther.”

Until now, whether they hail from the DC or Marvel cinematic universes, big-screen superheroes have traditionally been white dudes put on this earth (e.g. Superman and Thor, who each came from other planets) or fashioned by the U.S. military (à la Captain America and War Machine) to defend America from its enemies. Co-written and directed by Ryan Coogler, “Black Panther” is a radically different kind of comic-book movie, one with a proud Afrocentric twist, featuring a nearly all-black cast, that largely ignores the United States and focuses instead on the fictional nation of Wakanda — and guess what: Virtually everything that distinguishes “Black Panther” from past Marvel pics works to this standalone entry’s advantage.

Chadwick Boseman as TChalla in “Black Panther” Photo Matt Kennedy 2018 Marvel Studios

Before we get carried away, let’s be clear: “Black Panther” is still a superhero movie, which means that it’s effectively conceived for 10-year-olds and all those who wish a film like this had existed when they were 10. Except that the latter category is potentially bigger than ever this time around (for a Marvel movie, at least), since there has never in the history of cinema been a film that allows an ensemble of black characters to take charge on a global scale quite like this — and many have waited their entire lives to witness just such a feat (the way that “Wonder Woman” was a hugely empowering game changer for women).That alone would be reason to get excited, and Coogler makes good on the landmark project’s potential by featuring a predominantly black ensemble, casting some of the best young actors around — from Chadwick Boseman (who proved his dramatic chops playing James Brown, Jackie Robinson, and Thurgood Marshall in recent years) to Michael B. Jordan (even more buff, and twice as charismatic, than he appeared in the director’s two previous features, “Fruitvale Station” and “Creed”) — as well as such legends as Forest Whitaker and Angela Bassett. But historical significance aside, what superhero fans want to know is how “Black Panther” compares with other Marvel movies. Simply put, it not only holds its own, but improves on the formula in several key respects, from a politically engaged villain to an emotionally grounded final showdown.

Angela Bassett, Forest Whitaker, Martin Freeman, Michael B. Jordan, Andy Serkis, Chadwick Boseman, Danai Gurira, Lupita Nyong’o, Daniel Kaluuya, and Letitia Wright in Black Panther (2018)

Opening in the mythical kingdom of Wakanda, “Black Panther” effectively anticipates President Trump’s alleged comments about “s—hole countries” whose refugees prefer the American way of life “to their huts.” Without disparaging the rest of Africa, Coogler and his crew suggest what the continent might have become had it never been stripped of its resources — and had those resources included highly advanced alien technology and ultra-efficient energy sources. Hidden from the world, Wakanda is home to the world’s most technologically advanced city, protected by a ruler with special powers (never fully defined, all-too-easily revoked) and a fearsome black panther costume.

Of course, Wakanda doesn’t really exist, but then, Europeans so exploited the continent that we’ll never truly know the full extent of what Africa could have taught the world. (No wonder Wakandans pejoratively refer to white people as “colonizers,” a not-unreasonable epithet that’s virtually certain to enter the national vocabulary from here.) As Prince T’Challa, Boseman plays the latest Wakandan leader to don the catsuit, a matte-black onesie that receives a nice upgrade courtesy of his tech-savvy sister, Shuri (scene-stealer Letitia Wright, whose irreverent delivery makes a welcome counterbalance to Boseman’s dead-serious attitude).

Truth be told, T’Challa is kind of a bore, even if the movie that surrounds him seldom fails to thrill: He’s prince of a utopian city with little interest in the fate of the world beyond his borders — until his father, King T’Chaka (John Kani), is assassinated during a bombing at the Vienna International Centre (a flashback to “Captain America: Civil War”). Though the Black Panther who made his impressive, hyper-acrobatic debut in that film is one and the same as the character seen here, Coogler humanizes him to such a degree that T’Challa doesn’t feel like a superhero so much as a deeply conflicted world leader — albeit one who must defend his title via brutal hand-to-hand bloodmatches (in a ritual that suggests a considerably more primordial, and decidedly anti-democratic, form of governance).

Wakanda owes its utopian status to a precious extraterrestrial resource called Vibranium that the rest of the world covets (it presumably sits somewhere between Kryptonite and Unobtanium on the periodic table of elements, and far out-values the diamonds and uranium for which Africa has been plundered over the past century). Halfway around the world, an MIT-educated former black-ops soldier named Erik Killmonger (Jordan, sporting a modified Basquiat haircut) waltzes into a museum and steals a misidentified Wakandan relic. (When a curator objects to the theft, he quips, “How do you think your ancestors got these?”)

Because Black Panther’s skills seem to rely more on gadgets than fantastical powers, his standalone Marvel outing actually feels more like a James Bond adventure than a conventional superhero movie at times — as in the subsequent set piece, which was clearly inspired by the Macau casino scene in “Skyfall.” Accompanied by two spear-wielding warriors (Danai Gurira and Lupita Nyong’o play members of the Dora Milaje, Wakanda’s elite female fighting force), a tuxedo-clad T’Challa attempts to go incognito while South African gunrunner Ulysses Klaue (a suitably thuggish Andy Serkis, ever the chameleon) makes ready to pass the pilfered treasure to a CIA agent (Martin Freeman, who may as well be playing 007 ally Felix Leiter).

An elaborate shootout ensues, conspicuously choreographed as a single-take “oner.” Unlike “Atomic Blonde” (the best use yet of that approach), the device calls a bit too much attention to itself here, cartoonishly inflating the action, rather than making it more realistic and relatable. Still, if it’s the cool factor Coogler is going for, the scene delivers, segueing into a stunning car chase across Busan, South Korea.

“Black Panther” may not have the most impressive action sequences or visual effects of any Marvel movie, but it boasts the best villains. As an arms dealer whose arm doubles as a Vibranium super-cannon, Klaue makes for a nasty henchman, while Killmonger keeps his cards up his sleeve until relatively late in the film but emerges as the most satisfying comic-book adversary since Heath Ledger’s Joker. Both characters have a ruthless anarchic streak, although Killmonger has more than just wreaking chaos in mind. He’s motivated by a feeling of deep political injustice, plus a “This time it’s personal” sense of vengeance, and he’s convinced that raiding the Wakanda’s stockpile of Vibranium could put genuine firepower in a worldwide black uprising.

“The New Jim Crow”–by Michelle Alexander

It’s a compelling idea (enough to sway a key ally played by Daniel Kaluuya), and a reminder that throughout the African diaspora, the black-white power balance remains as it is courtesy of Jim Crow practices designed to keep minorities in check: persistent segregation, broken drug laws, racially targeted policing, disproportionately high incarceration rates — all of which are identified and indicted by Coogler’s truth-to-power script. Arm the oppressed, Killmonger passionately argues, and it won’t take a century for the system that produced “The Birth of a Nation” to grant a black artist the right to tell this kind of story — not that Coogler endorses the character’s lunatic ideas.

But he’s not about to waste the opportunity either. Rather than simply concocting another generic plan to save the world from annihilation, Coogler revives the age-old debate between Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X — between passive resistance and the call for militant black activism. Think of it as “Black Panther vs. the Black Panthers,” except you can’t have a nonviolent action hero, which puts T’Challa in a strange position. It’s not quite clear what he stands for, whereas his independent-minded ex-girlfriend Nakia (Nyong’o’s character) has ambitious ideas about how Wakanda could help the world — which means it’s up to her to spark his engagement with the outside world.

While far more mainstream — and by extension, kid-friendly — than such blaxploitation classics as “Foxy Brown” and “Cleopatra Jones,” “Black Panther” upholds the same tradition of celebrating strong, assertive black women. At the end of a big rhinoceros battle, a male character submits to Gurira in the film’s single most iconic shot, while an earlier scene in which she tosses aside a bad wig ranks as the most gay-friendly Marvel moment to date.

In their print form, comic books have led the way in terms of representation and inclusivity, long empowering non-white, non-male characters in their pages. Although previous big-screen examples certainly exist — among them Wesley Snipes’ “Blade” and Will Smith’s “Hancock” — “Black Panther” celebrates its hero’s heritage while delivering one of Marvel’s most all-around appealing standalone installments to date. Going forward, Black Panther will join the ranks of the Avengers, further diversifying their ranks. In the meantime, it’s awesome to see Black Power celebrated in such a mainstream fashion.

Subscribe to Variety Newsletters and Email Alerts!

Libyan Pres. Muammar Gaddafi with leaders from African continent.

Voice of Detroit is particularly interested in this movie as it brings to mind the plans that Muammar Gaddafi had for the great nation of Libya and a united continent of Africa. Among them were an African currency based on gold that would have competed with U.S. and European currencies on the market, an all-African army, and basically, a United States of Africa. See a sampling of articles published in VOD on the vicious U.S.–CIA invasion of Libya and the brutal assassination of its leader, revered all over the African continent, below.

http://voiceofdetroit.net/2015/02/09/the-covert-origins-of-isis-united-states-cia-in-libya-syria-iraq-afghanistan/

http://voiceofdetroit.net/2012/10/27/human-rights-watch-executions-of-libyas-gadhafi-supporters-a-war-crime/

http://voiceofdetroit.net/2012/08/27/neo-colonialism-chaos-haunt-the-new-libya-2/

http://voiceofdetroit.net/2011/09/02/u-s-nato-guilty-of-war-crimes-in-libya-says-cynthia-mckinney/

THE BLACK PANTHERS #2–BY KENNY SNODGRASS

UPDATE:

Dow closes down 1,100-plus in biggest single-day point loss ever

CNBC

Feb. 5, 2018

 The Dow traded more than 1,500 points lower at one point before swinging back to close down more than 1,100 points. 

The S&P 500 lost more than 4 percent, with health care and energy lagging. The broad index had traded positive earlier Monday as the tech sector briefly rose. The Nasdaq declined by more than 3.5 percent, also off its earlier low.

“Breaking the early lows of the day means the correction could go on for longer,” said Art Cashin, a UBS director of floor operations. 

“We’re not used to getting washouts like this anymore,” said Quincy Krosby, a chief market strategist at Prudential Financial. “The buy-the-dip mentality that has taken over hasn’t allowed for that.” 

“This sell-off, in the bigger scheme of things, is not that big. But it is very important in psychological terms,” Krosby said. 

Frantic Wall Street brokers during 2008 crash.

The Dow fell 665.75 points, or 2.5 percent, Friday, notching its biggest one-day sell-off since June 2016. The S&P 500 had its worst one-day performance since Sept. 2016, and the Nasdaq posted its worst session since August 2017.

Stocks were pressured by a fast rise in interest rates last week. The benchmark 10-year yield rose to its highest levels in four years. Overnight, it reached 2.88 percent before trading around 2.84 percent.

The major indexes also capped off their worst weekly performance in two years Friday after a steep sell-off. The Dow and S&P 500 pulled back 4.1 percent and 3.9 percent, respectively, last week. The Nasdaq lost 3.53 percent.

“What we noticed in January was that stocks and bond yields wanted to run through their year-end targets” to start off 2018, said John Augustine, a chief investment officer at Huntington Private Bank. “I think both markets just need to take a breather.” He also noted these pullbacks in bonds and stocks should be viewed as buying opportunities by investors.

Stocks began the new year ripping higher. The Dow and S&P 500 had their best monthly gains since March 2016 last month. The Nasdaq posted its biggest one-month gain since October 2015 in January. The major indexes had also notched record highs.

Equities benefited from strong economic data and solid corporate earnings growth at the start of the year. But increasing inflation concerns have sent interest rates higher recently, rattling Wall Street.

The CBOE Volatility index (VIX), widely considered the best gauge of fear in the market, hit 21.75 — its highest level since November 2016 — when it reached 23.01.

STOCKS FALL FURTHER AS BANKS SINK; WELLS FARGO PLUNGES AFTER FAKE ACCOUNTS EXPOSED

By Marley Jay, Associated Press

Feb. 5, 2018

Jeffersonian Apts. have been sold to suburban developers Joe Barbat and Arie Liebowicz. Huge rent and parking increases, along with new water/sewerage and other charges may force many residents out.

VOD commentary: Detroit’s economic “boom” may go “bust” along with the stock market, as unbridled development of upscale retail, entertainment, and residential complexes, from downtown Detroit, going east on Jefferson, and in the so-called “Mid-City” (formerly “Cass Corridor”) neighborhoods continues. Such development is financed by bank loans as well as HUD grants and is pushing long-time residents, particularly Blacks, senior citizens and those on fixed-incomes, out of their homes.

Meanwhile, Wayne County’s “mortgage fraud” unit sent Detroit senior citizen Mary Stafford to prison for a year and is now demanding that she pay over $75,000 to Wells Fargo on falsified charges related to a mortgage she was not party to. Wells Fargo has given her sworn affidavits saying she owes them no money.

New York – U.S. stocks are continuing to sink Monday afternoon as banks and health care and energy care companies slip. Wells Fargo is plunging after the Federal Reserve hit the bank with new sanctions over a scandal that involved opening millions of phony consumer accounts.* The market erased a portion of its early losses following a mid-morning report showing more evidence of economic strength in the U.S economy. Bond yields stabilized after moving sharply higher Friday.

Keeping score: The Standard & Poor’s 500 index lost 27 points, or 1 percent, to 2,734 as of 1 p.m. The Dow Jones industrial average gave up 308 points, or 1.2 percent, to 25,201. Early on, it fell 355 points. The Nasdaq composite fell 45 points, or 0.7 percent, to 7,191. The Russell 2000 index of smaller-company stocks was down 15 points, or 1 percent, to 1,531.

Mary Stafford

The S&P 500 is down about 4.5 percent from its latest record high, set January 26.

Investors are worried about evidence of rising inflation in the U.S. Increased inflation might push the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates more quickly, which could slow down economic growth by making it make it more expensive for people and businesses to borrow money. Rising bond yields are also making bonds more appealing to investors compared with stocks.

Wells Fargo plunges: Wells Fargo dropped $4.96, or 7.7 percent, to $59.11. Late Friday the Fed said it will freeze Wells Fargo’s assets at the level where they stood at the end of last year until it can demonstrate improved internal controls. The San Francisco bank also agreed to remove four directors from its board.

Waking up: The stock market has been unusually calm for more than a year. The combination of economic growth in the U.S. and other major economies, low interest rates, and support from central banks meant stocks could keep rising steadily without a lot of bumps along the way. Experts have been warning that that wouldn’t last forever, and after big gains in the first three weeks of January, that stretch might be over.

Stocks haven’t suffered a 5 percent drop since the two days after Britain voted to leave the European Union in June 2016. The market hasn’t gone through a 10 percent drop since early 2016, when oil prices were plunging as investors worried about a drop in global growth that would hurt demand. U.S. crude hit a low of about $26 a barrel in February of that year.

Brexit caused $2 trillion loss from global markets.

Sweetened offer: Chipmaker Broadcom raised its offer for competitor Qualcomm to $121 billion in cash and stock, or $82 per share, and called the bid its best and final offer. It had offered $103 billion for Qualcomm, and that company says it will review the bid. Broadcom rose $4.86, or 2.1 percent, to $240.34.

However Qualcomm dipped $2.27, or 3.4 percent, to $63.80 after analysts said Apple may end a deal with Qualcomm and have Intel make chips for futures iPhone models instead. Intel gained 65 cents, or 1.4 percent, to $46.80.

Energy: Benchmark U.S. crude slid $1.15, or 1.8 percent, to $64.30 a barrel in New York. Brent crude, used to price international oils, fell 72 cents, or 1 percent, to $67.86 a barrel in London.

Exxon Mobil lost $3.51, or 4.2 percent, to $81.02 and Chevron gave up $2.33, or 2 percent, to $116.25. Both companies reported disappointing fourth-quarter results on Friday and are coming off their biggest losses in years.

Banks and mortgage companies created 2008 economic crisis, not Mary Stafford.

Market leaders losing: Almost three-fourths of the stocks on the New York Stock Exchange traded lower. Some of the largest losses went to companies that have done exceptionally well over the last year. Alphabet, Google’s parent company, lost $19.81, or 1.8 percent, to $1,099.39. Chipmaker Nvidia fell $6.i94, or 3 percent, to $226.58. 3M skidded $4.40, or 1.8 percent, to $240.77.

Bonds: Bond prices held steady after moving sharply higher on Friday. The yield on the 10-year Treasury was unchanged at 2.84 percent.

Currencies: The dollar fell to 110.02 yen from 110.28 yen. The euro slipped to $1.2425 from $1.2451.

Survey says: Stocks perked up somewhat after a strong report for the service sector. The Institute for Supply Management released a survey that showed January was the best month for the service sector since 2005 as production, new orders, hiring and new export orders all grew faster in January. Private service companies dominate the U.S. economy and the ISM’s index has showed growth every month for the eight years.

Bitcoin woes: Bitcoin prices and futures continued to sink. According to Coindesk, the price of bitcoin fell 13 percent to $7,082. It reached a high of almost $20,000 in December, and traded under $1,000 in early 2017. Many financial pros warn that bitcoin is in a speculative bubble that could burst anytime. On the CME, bitcoin futures plunged 15.5 percent to $7,255. They tumbled 15 percent to $7,230 on the Cboe.

German coalition talks: Stocks in Europe also fell as German political parties struggled to form a government. Chancellor Angela Merkel’s conservative Union bloc and the center-left Social Democrats originally set a Sunday deadline to wrap up talks on extending their alliance of the past four years but budgeted two extra days as a precaution when formal negotiations started Jan. 26.

Britain’s FTSE 100 lost 1.5 percent while France’s CAC 40 slid 1.5 percent. The DAX in Germany shed 0.8 percent.

Asia: Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 tumbled 2.6 percent and the South Korean Kospi shed 1.3 percent. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index sank 1.1 percent. 

*Federal Reserve Restricts Wells Fargo’s Growth  in Unprecedented Punishment after Fraud Scandal 

BY Jessica Chia

NEW YORK DAILY NEWS

February 2, 2018

Janet Yellen lowered the boom on Wells Fargo on her last day as chairman of the Federal Reserve

The Federal Reserve on Friday imposed an unusually harsh punishment on Wells Fargo for the “widespread consumer abuses” uncovered in the bank’s fraud scandal.

Wells will not be allowed to grow beyond the $1.95 trillion in assets it had at the end of last year “until it sufficiently improves its governance and controls,” the Fed said in a statement.

Regulators have rarely intervened directly in a bank’s operations in the past, and it is unprecedented for the Fed to order a bank to stop growing altogether, officials said.

But Wells Fargo’s aggressive business strategy prioritized growth over effective risk management, leading to serious compliance breakdowns, the central bank said.

In 2016, Wells Fargo forked over a hefty $185 million settlement after employees opened 3.5 million unauthorized bank accounts and credit cards without their customers’ consent.

The Federal Reserve announced it was punishing Wells Fargo on Janet Yellen’s last day as chairwoman of the Federal Reserve.

The employees, pressured by internal sales targets, used fake email addresses and forged signatures in the widespread practice known as “sandbagging.”

The bank also sold auto insurance to customers who did not need it and admitted its mortgage bankers unfairly charged customers fees to lock in interest rates. 

Timothy Sloan, Pres. and CEO of Wells Fargo, testifies before Congress.

Wells Fargo also overcharged their corporate clients on foreign exchanges and levied unusually high transaction fees, according to a Wall Street Journal report in November.

In a cease-and-desist order on Friday, the Federal Reserve blasted the bank’s board of directors for failing to oversee the bank, and ordered three members to be replaced by April.

A fourth board member will be replaced by the end of the year, according to the Fed, without releasing specific names.

The announcement was made on Janet Yellen’s last day as chairwoman of the Federal Reserve.

“We cannot tolerate pervasive and persistent misconduct at any bank and the consumers harmed by Wells Fargo expect that robust and comprehensive reforms will be put in place to make certain that the abuses do not occur again,” Yellen said.

The bank must now submit a plan to the Fed within 60 days, detailing how it has enhanced oversight from its board of directors and improved compliance and risk management functions, and how it plans to improve further.

Once the Fed approves those plans, Wells will hire third-party consultants to review them and monitor its progress until the regulator is satisfied.

Wells Fargo’s balance sheet expanded steadily from the end of 2013 to 2016, but growth slowed dramatically last year as it battled to address the issues raised by the scandal.

The news on Friday sent Wells Fargo shares tumbling by 6.1 percent to $60.10 in after-hours trading.

Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy (center) with San Bernadino County DA Michael Ramos (l) and Orleans Parish DA Leon Cannizzaro (r)

When convictions are clearly wrong, these prosecutors don’t just hinder justice—they actively work against it.

Jan 10, 2018  Excerpt from full story by Lara Bazelon in Slate Magazine. She also discusses California’s San Bernardino County District Attorney Michael Ramos, and Louisiana’s Orleans Parish District Attorney Leon Cannizzaro, but this excerpt focuses on Worthy.

Davontae Sanford (center) beams as his family including (l to r) nephew, sisters, mother Taminko Sanford-Tilmon, stepfather the late Jeremaine TIlmon, and Apostle W. J. RIdeout III applaud his release. at press conference June 9, 2016/Photo by Diane Bukowski

Davontae Sanford was 14 years old when he confessed to murdering four people in a drug house on Detroit’s East Side. Left alone with detectives in a late-night interrogation, Sanford says he broke down after being told he could go home if he gave them “something.” On the advice of a lawyer whose license was later suspended for misconduct, Sanford pleaded guilty in the middle of his March 2008 trial and received a sentence of 39 to 92 years in prison.

Sixteen days after Sanford was sentenced, a hit man named Vincent Smothers told the police he had carried out 12 contract killings, including the four Sanford had pleaded guilty to committing. Smothers explained that he’d worked with an accomplice, Ernest Davis, and he provided a wealth of corroborating details to back up his account. Smothers told police where they could find one of the weapons used in the murders; the gun was recovered and ballistics matched it to the crime scene. He also told the police he had used a different gun in several of the other murders, which ballistics tests confirmed. Once Smothers’ confession was corroborated, it was clear Sanford was innocent. Smothers made this point explicitly in an 2015 affidavit, emphasizing that Sanford hadn’t been involved in the crimes “in any way.”

Vincent Smothers appears in court March 25, 2012.

But Smothers and Davis were never charged. Neither was Leroy Payne, the man Smothers alleged had paid him to commit the murders. (Through his attorney, Payne has denied any involvement.) Instead, Smothers pleaded guilty to the other eight killings. Davis, who was never prosecuted, was convicted of an unrelated felony in 2013 and could be released from prison as early as July. Payne, who remains a free man, left Detroit in 2016. His whereabouts are unknown.

Davontae Sanford, meanwhile, remained behind bars, locked up for crimes he very clearly didn’t commit.

Police failed to turn over all the relevant information in Smothers’ confession to Sanford’s legal team, as the law required them to do. When that information was leaked in 2009, Sanford’s attorneys sought to reverse his conviction on the basis of actual innocence. Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy fought back, opposing the motion all the way to the Michigan Supreme Court. In 2014, the court sided with Worthy, ruling that actual innocence was not a valid reason to withdraw a guilty plea. Sanford would remain in prison for another two years.

In an adversarial legal system, it’s natural to presume that prosecutors and defense attorneys are driven by the same goal: to win. They aren’t. In Berger v. United States, decided in 1935, the Supreme Court famously declared that the prosecution’s ultimate goal “is not that it shall win a case, but that justice shall be done.” A prosecutor, the court wrote, “is in a peculiar and very definite sense the servant of the law, the twofold aim of which is that guilt shall not escape or innocence suffer.”

Some prosecutors—the most powerful actors in the criminal justice system—refuse to correct life-altering errors.

Maryanne Godboldo speaks at church rally after her initial release. She defended her daughter from illegal kidnapping by Child Protective Services and police in 2011 and became world renowned for her courage. But Kym Worthy brought multiple criminal charges against her, which were twice thrown out by District and Circuit Court Judges who called the seizure illegal. But Worthy continued to appeal. Eventually Godboldo sustained a brain aneurysm on the eve of her third criminal trial, which caused her death last year.

Embracing this “twofold aim” is at the core of a prosecutor’s work. The government brings cases it believes are supported by proof beyond a reasonable doubt. A victory at trial proves them right. But if new evidence is uncovered showing the conviction was error-ridden to the point of unreliability, the imperative that “justice shall be done” requires prosecutors to admit they were wrong. This responsibility exists even if a defendant may be guilty—if, for example, crucial evidence was obtained by illegal means. The moral imperative underpinning this precept, though, is brought into sharpest relief when it appears the defendant is actually innocent.

Many prosecutors accept this responsibility and, when proven wrong, ask the judge to dismiss a case or settle by way of a plea bargain. But too many do not. Indeed, there is a class of prosecutors that might fairly be called innocence deniers.

These prosecutors do not “do justice” as the Supreme Court defines it. Instead, they delay justice and in some cases actively work against it. When a prisoner is exonerated by a lower court, these prosecutors double and triple down, filing appeal after appeal. Or they indict and prosecute the exoneree all over again, sometimes under a wildly different theory at the expense of time and resources that should be used to pursue the crime’s actual perpetrator. They may also threaten endless legal challenges to wring “no contest” pleas from innocent prisoners in exchange for time-served sentences. The prisoners, desperate to be free, accept these Faustian bargains, which brand them convicts for life and allow prosecutors to proclaim their guilt and the state to deny them compensation. Some prosecutors are so committed to adhering to the original mistake that they fail to prosecute the actual perpetrators, even when there is evidence to convict them.

Innocence deniers are a diverse group: male and female, young and old, white and people of color. They are Democrats and Republicans from red, blue, and purple states. What they have in common is their insistence—in the face of all evidence to the contrary—that wrongfully convicted people are in fact guilty.

Simply opposing an exoneration effort does not make a prosecutor an innocence denier. Some exoneration claims are bogus and others are murky, requiring rigorous legal testing to be proven conclusively. Increasingly, conscientious prosecutors are working collaboratively with defense attorneys to reinvestigate innocence claims, keeping an open mind and doing the right thing in the end. Innocence-denying prosecutors are different. The cases collected here are extreme, either because the prosecutor in question has a pattern of reflexively denying innocence or because, even in a single case, the evidence of innocence is so manifest as to make the fight against it profoundly misguided.

Eddie Joe Lloyd at hearing in which he was exonerated from a rape/murder of a teenage girl.  Barry Scheck of the Innocence Project is at the left.

In the past quarter-century, the work of dogged attorneys and advances in forensic science have exonerated more than 2,150 men and women, 161 of those from death row. The Innocence Project, a New York–based nonprofit founded by Barry Scheck and Peter Neufeld in 1992, has freed more than 200 people and spurred the creation of numerous smaller organizations around the country devoted to the same mission. (From 2012–2015, I was the director of the Loyola Law School Project for the Innocent in Los Angeles.) By some estimates there are tens of thousands more wrongfully convicted prisoners languishing behind bars. Nevertheless, some prosecutors—the most powerful actors in the criminal justice system—refuse to correct life-altering errors. (You can read more about 17 such cases here.) If we are committed to fostering a justice system that is truly just, it is imperative to call out these innocence deniers and hold them to account.

Kym Worthy, a Democrat and the first black woman or man to serve as Wayne County’s lead prosecutor, first took office in 2004 and coasted to re-election for a fourth term in November 2016. The former circuit court judge has a national reputation as a trailblazing progressive—last April, Essence named her to its “Woke 100 List” to honor her efforts “to achieve equality for people of color.” Worthy’s office, however, has repeatedly refused to admit error in cases like Davontae Sanford’s, where there is compelling evidence of actual innocence.

The lid was covered with bloody fingerprints, which had never been tested.

Attorneys Megan Crane and David Moran of two Innocence Clinics announce filing of motion for relief from judgment for Davontae Sanford May 4, 2015, as family members listen.

The Michigan Supreme Court’s adverse ruling in 2014 wasn’t the end of the line for Sanford. The court ruled against him on technical grounds and noted that there was nothing to prevent his legal team from filing a post-conviction motion for relief from the judgment, rather than making a direct challenge to his guilty plea.

In 2015, attorneys for Sanford, who is black, did just that, and the Michigan State Police began to re-investigate the case. One year later, the police issued a 117-page report detailing compelling evidence that Smothers and Davis were guilty; that Sanford was innocent; and that Detroit’s then deputy police chief, James Tolbert, had lied to convict Sanford. It was at that point, nine years into Sanford’s incarceration, that Worthy finally agreed to his release—but only on account of Tolbert’s misconduct. She continues to insist that Sanford is guilty, pointing to his discredited confession. The state police recommended bringing perjury charges against Tolbert and murder charges against Smothers and Davis. Worthy declined in all three cases.

In July 2017 Sanford filed a civil suit under Michigan’s Wrongful Imprisonment Compensation Act, and only four months later the state attorney general conceded that Sanford was innocent, had been wrongfully convicted, and was entitled to compensation, but noted that Worthy’s office “has been consulted and disagrees.” Julie Hurwitz, one of the attorneys who represents Sanford, told me she was “surprised” that the state acquiesced so readily but that given the crush of media attention the case has received, “the attorney general’s office probably knew that fighting this would be a political bombshell.” On Dec. 21, a judge awarded Sanford $408,356.16. 

In reference to her office’s handling of Sanford’s case, Worthy has said, “I don’t know what we could have done differently.”

David Moran, director of the Michigan Innocence Clinic, has tangled with Worthy in a half-dozen cases in which he says her office has fought his efforts to free clients. Moran, who helped lead the fight to exonerate Sanford alongside the Center on Wrongful Convictions of Youth at the Northwestern Pritzker School of Law, also battled the Wayne County prosecutor in the case of Lamarr Monson, who was convicted in the 1996 murder of a 12-year-old girl and sentenced to 30 to 50 years in prison. Monson, who like Sanford is black, claimed he’d been tricked into signing a false confession stating that he’d stabbed the victim to death.

Lamarr Monson, hugs his mother in 2017 after all charges were dismissed against him in the 1996 slaying of 12-year-old Detroiter Christina Brown. Clarence Tabb/The Detroit News

 Nearly 20 years after the murder in question, Moran and his students examined the object that the medical examiner had identified as the likely murder weapon: a ceramic toilet lid used to bludgeon the victim over the head. The lid was covered with bloody fingerprints, which had never been tested. The Michigan State Police found that all the fingerprints matched a man named Robert Lewis, who was living in the same building as the victim at the time of the murder.

Wayne Co. AP’s David McCreedy (top), Valerie Newman (bottom) at forum. Newman switched sides from defense to prosecution.

During a four-month-long evidentiary hearing in late 2016, the Michigan Innocence Clinic presented the fingerprint evidence and called Lewis’ then live-in girlfriend Shellena Bentley as a witness. Bentley testified that Lewis came back to her apartment on the night of the murder “frantic” with “blood on him; it was dripping off his fingernails.” David McCreedy, the assistant prosecutor assigned by Worthy to fight the case, didn’t find this account convincing. He explained that Lewis might have wandered by the apartment while the building manager was on the phone with 911, then moved the toilet tank out of the way to help the paramedics. Moran told me that he responded: “There might be 12 gullible citizens that would buy that, but that’s why we need a new trial: to see if the state can find them.”

The judge granted Monson a new trial; he was subsequently released on bond. Worthy, who agreed to be interviewed about Monson’s case—she declined to comment on Devontae Sanford’s, citing ongoing litigation—told me her office sought to delay the retrial so it could conduct an additional investigation. Two homicide investigators were dispatched to interview Lewis, who denied committing the murder. “His statements were consistent with the evidence that was available in the case,” Worthy says, despite Lewis’ fingerprints being all over the bloody toilet lid, including around the edges, Moran says, suggesting that he gripped it. (Worthy’s deputies do not concede that the toilet tank was the murder weapon; one told me that the victim’s “head could have been slammed against the back of the bathtub,” causing the fatal injury.)

In August, a few weeks before Monson’s retrial, the prosecution dismissed the case. In a public statement, Worthy said Monson had lived with the 12-year-old victim, that he’d had sex with her, and that he’d demanded that she sell drugs for him. The decision to drop the charges against Monson, Worthy said, was not due to a belief in his innocence, but instead due to “the destruction of evidence and the possible coercive conduct of the then-homicide inspector in obtaining statements from the defendant.” Her office, she said, would not be charging Robert Lewis with the murder. Lewis is still free.

Moran says Worthy’s charge that Monson had sex with the 12-year-old victim is “false and disturbing,” adding that “it is unethical for a prosecutor, upon dismissing charges against a defendant, to then publicly defame that defendant.” His client, he says, emphatically denies that any sexual contact occurred. Asked to respond, Worthy cited Monson’s statements to the police—the same statements she has admitted were possibly coerced in a manner that “supports Monson’s defense of a false confession.”

Worthy did tell me, however, that her office is in the process of launching a standalone unit to review possible wrongful convictions. That group will be headed up by Valerie Newman, a longtime attorney at the Michigan State Appellate Defender Office, which represented Sanford before the Michigan Innocence Clinic took over his case. Worthy says that project has been in the works for some time, but became possible only after she obtained funding from the Wayne County Commission.

Moran reacted to the news with cautious optimism, saying, “I hope that the Wayne County Prosecutor’s Office is changing its attitude and will seriously consider these cases.” He has cases lined up to present to the unit as soon as it opens for business.

Lara Bazelon is an associate professor at the University of San Francisco School of Law and a contributing writer for Slate. Her book Rectify: A Story of Healing and Redemption After Wrongful Conviction will be published in the fall.

The full story is at https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2018/01/innocence-deniers-prosecutors-who-have-refused-to-admit-wrongful-convictions.html.

Demand ‘Michigan Needs Unions’ as a Solution to a Rigged Economy

 Detroit youth stand out in the movement, fighting their real adversaries, not each other

 January 23, 2018

 By Diane Bukowski and SEIU Staff

DETROIT –  Dozens of State Police cars, with their sirens blaring and emergency lights flashing, flew down the Lodge Freeway Jan. 23, as other drivers got out of the way to save their own lives, wondering what in blazes was going on.

Workers and poor people had taken over the state’s Cadillac Building lobby en masse, chanting, banging drums, and speaking on bullhorns, delivering a “Workers State of the State” address and protest, where Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder’s Detroit office is located. Many were young fast food workers from D15, fighting for a $15 minimum wage. Joining in with them were  janitors and health care workers from the Service Employees International Union (SEIU), demanding higher wages, benefits and the right to unionize in this “Right to Work” up south state.

City retirees and supporters protest outside federal courthouse in downtown Detroit Oct. 28, 2013 as Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder, depicted as the devil in signs, testifies in favor of the bankruptcy that has stripped Detroit of its assets, and retirees and workers of their wages and benefits.

“Governor Snyder has spent his two terms in office attacking Michigan’s workers, including hard working janitors, fast food workers, health care workers and others, lowering wages by passing open shop laws, stripping cities of their right to raise the minimum wage and installing emergency managers,” the group said in its press release.

“Now, workers are sticking together and fighting back to let their fellow citizens know the true state of Michigan, after eight years of lowered standards, low wages and, in some places, a lack of basic standard of living, including poisoned water. The number one job of our elected leaders should be to raise the standard of living for working people. SEIU and Fight for $15 workers are fighting to make politicians listen to working people and take action on issues that matter, including leading on raising wages by increasing the state and local minimum wage and ensuring workers have rights to strong unions.”

“Michigan’s working people have long been ignored by their elected officials, but SEIU and the Fight for $15 are changing that this year,” the release continued. “ Workers are joining together to elect officials who will instead raise wages, support the right to join together, build our communities and keep all Michiganders safe.”

D15 and SEIU have announced they are launching a massive “voter engagement” drive to elect candidates who support workers’ rights to unionize, in the wake of the disastrous 2012 state referendum that made “up south” Michigan a Right to Work state, under Gov. Snyder’s urging.

They said  they are volunteering 40 hours of each worker’s time to engage voters in Michigan who have been left out of the political process,  in anticipation of the 2018 elections. Their representatives said they plan to engage in door-to-door canvassing, digital and radio advertising and mail.

“SEIU and the Fight for $15 intend to show that those who have given up on the political process will reengage if politicians speak to issues that improve the lives of working Americans,” said their release.

DMC’s Harper and Hutzel Hospitals

In addition to the barbaric passage of Right to Work legislation, they said Snyder and  state lawmakers have also stripped cities of their right to raise the minimum wage and installed “emergency managers” to disenfranchise communities of color across the state.

Hospital workers in particular are key to the mobilization, organizers said.

“In Detroit and cities across the Midwest, hospitals are at the center of the economy the way factories were for previous generations,” they explained. Two of the three largest private employers in Detroit are health systems: Detroit Medical Center (9,184 employees), the city’s second-largest private employer; and Henry Ford Health System (8,790 employees), the city’s third-largest private employer. While many hospital service workers in Detroit are paid too little to support themselves or their families, the city’s hospital industry made a combined $519 million in profits in 2015 according to the most recent data from the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services. 

# # # 

Service Employees International Union Local 1 unites 50,000 workers throughout the Midwest including janitors, security officers, higher education faculty, food service workers, and others. Local 1 is committed to improving the lives of its members and all working people by winning real economic justice and standing at the forefront of the fight for immigrant, racial, and environmental justice.

# # #

Founded in November of 2012, the Fight for $15 is a movement led by fast food workers, fighting for a $15/hour living wage, the right to form a union without retaliation, and respect in the workplace. Workers live and work in different cities and states across the country. Since the Fight for $15 started, it has won raises for 22 million Americans, including 10 million workers who are on a path to $15.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, CONTACT: 

Kathleen Policy 440-724-9730, policyk@seiu1.org

Izabela Miltko-Ivkovich 708-655-9681, miltkoi@seiu1.org

 Jennifer Owens 312-218-8785, jennifer@fightfor15.org

                             313-653-9288

Our beloved brother and son ‘Loe’ spends his time in Monroe and the east side of Detroit. He was last seen in Monroe. He has been missing since Nov. 22, 2017. 

WE LOVE YOU DEARLY, LOE. PLEASE COME HOME.

(Above, Kimberly Simmons, one of only two women juvenile lifers released at the time, speaks at Juvenile Lifers for Justice rally in Detroit June 18, 2017.)

By Efren Paredes, Jr.

January 15, 2018

VOD note: This is an update from VOD’s previous article on the 6th Circuit ruling, at http://voiceofdetroit.net/2017/12/24/send-federal-troops-to-liberate-michigans-juvenile-lifers-6th-circuit-ruling-inadequate/ 

Efren Paredes, Jr.

The U.S. Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals (COA) recently made an important ruling on behalf of Michigan prisoners who received mandatory life without parole (LWOP) sentences when they were juveniles (“juvenile lifers”). The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in 2012 that mandatory LWOP sentences for juvenile offenders are unconstitutional. The high court subsequently issued another opinion in 2016 which made their 2012 ruling retroactive and applicable to all 2,500 prisoners in the nation serving the draconian sentence.

The recent U.S. Sixth COA ruling states that these prisoners will now be required to receive good time and/or disciplinary credits depending on the year of their conviction. This will change when they become eligible to pursue a meaningful opportunity for parole consideration based on positive behavior.

Juvenile lifers are also now eligible to participate in rehabilitative programming that they have been denied for decades. Previous to the court’s ruling prisoners serving shorter sentences have been provided an array of programs that juvenile lifers have been denied. The programs they will now become eligible for include Violence Prevention Program, Cage Your Rage, Thinking 4 Change, vocational trades, etc. The new court ruling ends these discriminatory practices and recognizes the right of juvenile lifers to equal protection.

The U.S. Sixth Circuit COA ruled against the issue raised by attorneys representing juvenile lifers seeking a categorical ban on imposing LWOP sentences on juvenile offenders on procedural grounds.

It is an issue that will persistently be raised in the U.S. Supreme Court by attorneys representing juvenile lifers from various states until a total ban is granted and the issue is finally resolved. Attorneys have already begun petitioning the high court seeking the ban and more are preparing to do so.

While the recent U.S. Sixth Circuit COA ruling is not a panacea to unravel all the juvenile lifer legal challenges before them it is a major decision that will have a profound impact on re-shaping the contours of Michigan criminal justice reform relating to juvenile offenders.

The U.S. Sixth Circuit COA ordered Judge John Corbett O’Meara of the U.S. District Court in the Eastern District of Michigan to expeditiously resolve the matter consistent with the court’s ruling. Judge O’Meara will now draft a court order specifying the details of what the State of Michigan must do to comply with the appellate court ruling as early as this month.

The Michigan legislature will also be required to revise MCL 769.25 to reflect the changes made by the U.S. Sixth Circuit COA as well. When they do it would be wise to also do two additional things that would make the sentencing process more reasonable, conserve valuable time and state employee resources, and save taxpayers millions of dollars when resentencing the remaining 260 juvenile lifers.

Earlier map of states banning JLWOP. SInce then, six more states have joined the movement.

First, it should join the [30] other states across the country and the 192 nations of the world [all but the U.S.] who have banned LWOP sentences for juvenile offenders. In the past six years nineteen states have abandoned LWOP sentences for juvenile offenders and the number keeps growing. The U.S. Supreme Court is likely to categorically ban the practice in the coming year.

Our state legislators should stand on the right side of history now rather than be compelled to make the right decision later. Remaining obstinate and tone deaf to this issue will burden taxpayers with millions more dollars in wasteful spending for repeating hundreds of resentencing hearings. It would also force victims’ families to continue down the painful road of reopening wounds and revisiting tragedies in their lives through unnecessary court hearings and appeals. Many of these families have been trying to move on with their lives without exacerbating their pain and being encumbered with decades of court hearings and appeals.

Second, the legislature should revise the sentencing guidelines for juvenile lifer term-of-year sentences from a 25- to 40-year minimum to a 15- to 30-year minimum. They should also revise the currently allowed maximum term-of-years from 60 years to a maximum of 40 years. If the 60-year maximum term is not reduced there will be additional years of protracted costly court battles asking courts to rule that 60 years is a veritable death sentence since it exceeds the life span of the average juvenile lifer. Other states have already ruled that such sentences are inordinate and deemed cruel and unusual punishment.

Alternatively, the legislature can convert the sentences of the remaining 260 juvenile lifers awaiting resentencing hearings to sentences of 15-year minimums to 40-year maximums all at once. It would save the state millions of dollars for resentencing hearings. Since nearly all the juvenile lifers are indigent all court expenses including attorney fees, expert witnesses, etc., will be paid for by taxpayer dollars. Conservative estimates place the price tag around $26 million to pay the fees for the 260 prisoners still awaiting resentencing.

Families AND victims of Michigan juvenile lifers who testified at state legislature before Miller decision in 2004. They asked legislators to bar juvenile life without parole period.

This move alone would not release a single prisoner. It would only give the Parole Board jurisdiction to begin reviewing their cases for release consideration annually after they have served a minimum of 15 years. The Parole Board would utilize their wealth of resources to decide when the prisoners merit release based on their conduct just as they do for over 10,000 other prisoners they safely release annually. The Parole Board will not release prisoners until they are satisfied they pose no risk or danger to public safety.

“Only the rarest child” should be sentenced to die in prison. — USSC; this family attended Juvenile Lifers for Justice Rally June 18, 2017.

In fact, the Parole Board could keep juvenile lifers incarcerated for up to 40 years under this sentencing scheme if the Parole Board is not comfortable releasing them until that time. By then most juvenile lifers would range in age between 55- and 57-years old after being behind bars since their mid-teens.

If we are to illogically believe that juvenile offenders are not capable of change, by that same standard we will have to believe no adult is capable of change and deserves a second chance either. After all, each adult who receives a second chance in life was once a teenager. Michigan should become a leader in criminal justice reform rather than lag behind other states. We can not lead from behind. We are being looked upon with shame and disappointment for our woefully failing record of human rights abuses against juveniles, the poor, and people of color.

It is a stain we can begin to slowly wash away by making decisions that respect the concept of redemption and inherent dignity of youthful offenders.

(Efren Paredes, Jr. is a blogger and social justice activist who appears as a weekly guest on Detroit Superstation 910 AM. You can learn more about Efren at www.fb.com/Free.Efren and www.4Efren.blogspot.com.)

UPDATED COMMENT FROM CORTEZ DAVIS-EL, VOD STAFF WRITER

Cortez Davis-El, still incarcerated at Thumb

After reading the opinion from the 6th Circuit in the Hill v Snyder case, I have conflicting feelings. While I would like to be excited and thankful, I’ve been built up just to be let down so many times I don’t want to give in to the excitement and be hurt in the end. Having said that. I think that the opinion was a well written much needed boost of hope.  I would have liked for the 6th Circuit to end this debate instead of remanding the case and issues back to the Eastern District Federal Court.

However, like many, I am happy that the process is moving forward and there is a great possibility that I will soon be able to contribute to society in a very positive way. Early on I didn’t know if I would ever get the chance to be a servant of my community, but I started preparing myself just in case and this decision continues to raise my hope and level of urgency to be prepared to serve on day one for being released.

VOICE OF DETROIT: While we are happy to see there is significant movement in the battle to release Michigan’s juvenile lifers, we would like to see the U.S. Supreme Court order the immediate release of juveniles serving more than 15 years under this unconstitutional statute, not subject to parole board review. Michigan’s parole board cannot be counted on ever since former Gov. John Engler made it an appointed board which declared that “life means life.” Any juvenile lifer who goes before this board must admit to guilt of the charge for which they are serving time. Estimates of innocent prisoners incarcerated in Michigan range from 20-40 years.

Stephen Marschke, first parole board chair appointed by Gov. Engler. He coined the phrase: “Life means life.” He is still suspected to have drowned  a Black teenager outside Benton Harbor when he was Benton County Sheriff.

Although Michigan’s Parole Board has released most of those juveniles for whom prosecutors recommended “Term of Years” sentences,  many such as Cortez Davis are still serving more time ranging from two years to decades until they reach the state minimum. 

Prosecutors recommended renewed life sentences for another 247 out of 363 state juvenile lifers, whose cases have not yet been heard, a gross violation of Miller v. Alabama and Montgomery v. Louisiana, which held that “only the rarest” child should be sentenced to die in prison.

Additionally, the Supreme Court has not yet provided for consideration of issues of innocence to be considered so that convictions and sentences can be outright dismissed. In Charles Lewis’ case, 41 years of his official court files have gone missing. Most significantly, all but a small portion of the transcripts of his first trial, for the killing of an off-duty cop in Detroit on July 31, 1976, are gone. Lewis was 17 years old.

His first Recorders Court judge, a noted racist named Joseph Maher, illegally dismissed his first jury after they had reached a verdict and it was handed over to Maher, as Judge Deborah Thomas later stated after reviewing the full first trial transcript. Maher did not read it into the record; instead he dismissed the jury without cause.  She said Maher’s action should have meant an acquittal, with no additional trials allowed under the double jeopardy statute.

Charles Lewis has been in prison for over 41 years, since the age of 17, framed up for a murder he did not commit. He has taken college, culinary arts and many other courses, and become a highly skilled jail-house lawyer.

Only months after Lewis was convicted, the Michigan Supreme Court held in People v. Benton, 402 Mich 47, in 1977, that a judge cannot sua sponte dismiss a jury; that there must be a proceeding on the record for cause, and that the DEFENDANT himself must agree to the dismissal.

“Fred Benton was charged with armed robbery,” Lewis wrote to VOD. “He was tried before Geraldine Bledsoe Ford and she dismissed the case for ‘manifest necessity.’ She re-tried him with a jury and he was found guilty of armed robbery and sentenced to 10 to 15 for the robbery. The Michigan Supreme Court ruled in his case that even though the case had been tried a second time and he was convicted that the second trial violated the double jeopardy rights of Fred Benton and they ordered his immediate release.”

See http://voiceofdetroit.net/wp-content/uploads/People-v-Benton-2-2.pdf

________________________________

VOD is now accepting ADS from our readers, entrepreneurs and local businesses. They will run permanently at the bottom of individual stories, for a cost of $50, negotiable according to size and nature of ad.  Call 313-825-6126 to arrange for an ad; we will also lay them out for you as in our premier ad below. A win-win for VOD and U!

_____________________________________________________________

 ♥ COASTERS BY KIM  $5 each/4 for $15 ♥

Kimberly Craighead is a skilled artist who has been creating ceramic tiles like those below for many years. Send her your photos as well, and she will transform those into permanent keepsakes like those below. 

Call her at 313-422-5443. 

♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥

Cab driver Jerry Bell, Jr. assaulted by armed guard at E. Warren CVS store

Detroit police have store videotape, tell Bell they are seeking charges

Incident follows killing of CVS customer in Dallas by guard in July, 2017

By Diane Bukowski

January 6, 2018

Jerry T. Bell, Jr., 43, files to run for a seat on the Warren City Council in the 2019 elections, at the City Clerk’s office, Sept. 20, 2017.

DETROIT — Jerry T. Bell, Jr. says police investigators have told him they want to bring criminal charges against a gun-toting guard from the CVS store on E. Warren at Mack in Detroit, near the border of Grosse Pointe, based on the store’s videotape of an incident involving the guard and Bell.

Bell is a 43-yr. old cab driver,  father and grandfather who lives in Warren. He is also a candidate for the Warren City Council in upcoming elections. He has been challenging what he says is the racist gerrymandering of Warren’s council districts.

Bell says the guard assaulted him Friday, Dec. 29 as he was leaving the store to get cash from his car to pay for prescriptions from Harper Hospital. He had been treated there overnight for a dangerous spider bite infection, which had caused his foot as well as his entire body to swell. He told VOD that doctors at Harper immediately put him on intravenous antibiotics and said he could have died from the infection.

“But then I was afraid I was going to die at the CVS afterwards,” Bell said. 

CVS Pharmacy E. Warren and Mack

“I stopped at that CVS to get my prescriptions filled on my way home to Warren,” he explained. “I told the pharmacist I had to go back to my car to get more money to pay for the scripts. On my way to the front door, a CVS guard put his hands on my chest, grabbed my jacket, and told me, ‘I can’t let you leave with that.’”

Bell was wearing torn-up gym shoes to fit his swollen foot and was still somewhat disheveled from being in the hospital. 

Bell says the guard had a gun on his hip, and started to reach for it. 

“All I could think of was what happened when George Zimmerman confronted Trayvon Martin,” Bell said. “I feared for my life. He was endangering not only me, but customers and clerks in the store. I kept thinking, ‘What should I do?’”

Bell said he shook out his coat and his shirt to show the guard that he had no stolen items. He said he left, but went back inside to file a complaint with the manager. He said the manager talked to the guard, then told Bell, “There’s no reason to get all hostile, it was just a misunderstanding.”

DPD Fifth Precinct

Bell said he went straight to the Fifth Precinct to file a police report. Fearing for his life, he did not go back to the store, but had a friend pick up his prescriptions the next day. A lawyer accompanied his friend, but the assistant manager for the day, named “Jim,” refused to discuss the matter with them and appeared hostile.

Ironically, Bell was shot multiple times several years ago in his cab by a customer, and was severely disabled for several months. He only survived by speeding to the nearest police headquarters.

VOD contacted CVS corporate headquarters by email to ask the following questions: 

• Since when have CVS guards been allowed to carry guns? Are they in fact allowed to do so?
• What is CVS policy for the behavior of security guards?
• What action, if any, has been taken against this security guard by CVS? Has he been disciplined or fired?
• Mr. Bell tells us that a CVS representative called him to apologize. Does CVS consider this sufficient compensation for what appears to be a life-threatening incident?
• What actions does CVS expect to take with its security staff to avoid such incidents in the future?

Gary Serby, CVS corporate communications director

Gary Serby, director of corporation communications for CVS, ignored most of the questions in a terse reply.

“CVS Pharmacy is aware of this alleged incident and we are cooperating fully with the police in their investigation,” Serby responded. “Our initial findings do not support the customer’s allegations, however the security guard, who is employed by an independent security agency, has been suspended from working at any CVS Pharmacy stores until the conclusion of the investigation.”

The incident comes on the heels of the killing of an alleged shoplifter in Dallas by another CVS “loss prevention officer,” Julio Ruvalcaba, July 9, 2017. Ruvalcaba chased the shoplifter down the freeway in his car. When the man’s car crashed, Ruvalcaba got out and shot him to death. Ruvalcaba was charged with murder. See http://www.nydailynews.com/news/crime/cvs-security-staffer-chases-fatally-shooting-shoplifter-article-1.3320358/

OTHER RELATED ARTICLES:

WARREN RESIDENT CHARGES DISENFRANCHISEMENT OF CITY’S BLACK, MINORITY POPULATION IN DOJ COMPLAINT

CHAMPION DETROIT HYDROPLANE RACER JERRY BELL MAKES COMEBACK IN 5 LITER GOLD CUP RACES JULY 11-13, 2014

NEW YEAR 2018: FIGHT FOR JUSTICE FOR ALL OUR INCARCERATED  BROTHERS AND SISTERS

Cortez Davis El

BY CORTEZ DAVIS EL

VOD Staff Writer

Jan. 1, 2018

The men at the Thumb Correctional Facility began the annual Kwanzaa Cultural Celebration early this year. They were blessed with the presence of the Honorable Judge Bruce Morrow and Frank Murphy Hall of Justice General Counselor, Attorney Valerie Albright.

Attending this event was a must for so many men that cling to the hope and promise of what tomorrow might bring. Listening to a judge speak and share words of wisdom and encouragement while fighting for your freedom is rare, but welcomed.

Without knowing who Judge Morrow is, one would believe that he was a super star from the warm reception that he received. There was laughter and nonstop smiles of joy throughout the evening and the days that followed. Before Judge Morrow got into his message, he introduced the men to the Beautiful Spirited Angel, Valerie Albright.

Atty. Valerie Albright, Office of the General Counsel

Mrs. Albright’s message, although short and sweet, was deeply felt and it hit home for many. She is a reminder of the joy that is absent and the joy that is possible. Mrs. Albright reflected on her two year old son and stated “the same light that I see in him, I see in the eyes of the men here. ”

That statement ignited a sense of urgency in the hearts and minds of all that paid attention to the compliment. Her words were like being touched by an angel. To a degree, you felt healed and energized and ready to be the change that is needed in the world.

Judge Morrow once again took the podium and began to share his message. He made listening fun. He started by showing various images of well-known products. The men were happy to share their knowledge and ability to identify each product. However, the message was really about what you see and how you are seen by others. The men engaged Judge Morrow and as a result the mind was opened and the desire to think was unlocked.

The Honorable Bruce Morrow opened up about who he is and what his 26 years of service has been about. He left no doubt that he is a reflection of the spirit of God and serves His people by the service that he gives on and off the bench. The first principle of Kwanzaa is Umoja which means unity. Both Judge Morrow and Attorney Valerie Albright helped us to understand what it means to have unity and why unity is important.

Third Judicial Circuit Court Judge Bruce Morrow

Judge Morrow stated ” content and context is always important ” and this was felt deeply especially when our superstar and in that moment, the voice of God, read from Genesis 24 to remind us that true and lasting unity begin with unifying with God first. When most people that are incarcerated think about judges, they tend not to think of them as human. Judges are most often seen as the enemy or the cause and effect of the problems in the lives of the incarcerated.

However, being up close and personal with Judge Morrow and being able to speak freely and embrace him as if he was a long lost friend, relative, or neighbor allowed us to see him as someone that feel, love, and worship just like us. The prisoners were able to see him, the man not just the judge. There was no fear or negativity displayed in Judge Morrow. There was only the reflection of spirit of man helping the hopeless restore that which was lost, their faith.

Having this honorable judge in the midst did more for the self esteem and morale boost than one could ever have hoped for. Being able to witness and feel the energy of this event was nothing short of mind blowing and the men are grateful to have someone that takes an active interest in their positive development the way that Judge Morrow does.

Judge Vera Massey Jones in 1990. Four years later, she declared JLWOP unconstitutional in Cortez Davis El’s case, 18 years before the U.S. Supreme Court ruling in Miller v. Alabama. She reiterated her stand in 2012.

Judge Morrow gave honors to the men that are changing their lives for the better in spite of the environment and circumstances that we are. It felt really humbling to have someone, a judge nonetheless, actually see who we are today, opposed to who we were yesterday.

I could not help but to think about another great judge that that took an interest in the positive development of a prisoner that lost his way early in life. The Honorable Judge Vera Massey Jones touched this writer’s soul and is partially responsible for the man that I am today. She saw beneath the rock soil of my carnal nature and saw my value long before I knew that good is in my power.

This is also what Judge Morrow is doing for the prisoners that look at him as family. To judges like The Honorable Bruce Morrow and Vera Massey Jones and to attorneys like Valerie Albright, thank you for your strength, support, and concerns. You will never be forgotten and your message will always inspire greatness in the lives that you’ve touched. Just like you all are able to see the true essence of who we are, we are now able to see it for ourselves and recognize it in others just as you do. Thank you all for being the message that you bring and for being a real inspiration to so many that is now able to see the path of wisdom.

Judge Vera Massey Jones’ 2012 order to resentence Cortez Davis.

SOJOURNER TRUTH

Southern state rejects Moore’s support of slavery as well as his attacks on women

During slavery, sexual assaults on women, especially Black women, were hailed as part of white supremacy

BY CORTEZ DAVIS EL

VOD Staff Writer

December 14, 2017

Cortez Davis-El

Tuesday December 12, 2017 marks a very important and historical moment in America’s Democracy. Why was the special election in Alabama so important and what does it mean for the rest of the country?

Alabama Senate Candidate Roy Moore was accused of sexually assaulting at least two young girls years ago as an Alabama District Attorney. In spite of these allegations Roy Moore continued to pursue a seat in the U.S. Senate.

One of the things that people in the urban communities were frowning upon aside from the sexual allegations are the remarks made by Moore that America was at it’s greatest during the time of slavery.

During that dark period in our history, sexual assaults were common practices among the so called elite, women did not have a voice, and bigotry was readily accepted. Those times are meant to be a thing of the past and the citizens of Alabama, the fifth most Republican state in the Union rejected the back peddling offered by Moore.

The rejection of Moore is an important move because Alabama rejected making Americans that find love with people of the same gender live in fear of prosecution.

Alabama rejected the notion that Muslims should not be allowed the privilege of holding office simply due to the fact that they can’t be sworn in with a Christian Bible.

Failed Senate candidate Roy Moore

A rejection of Judge Roy Moore was a rejection of the government making decisions that affects a woman’s right to choose what is right for her without fear of persecution from people that want to control her body. Nothing in this world is more important than women and children and Alabama has made that abundantly clear. No matter who the woman or child is, they should always feel the safest when there are men around.

If you are trying to relive the moments when America was at it’s greatest, then it is time for us to go back to the time when men protected and defended the honor of women and children. If there was never a time when America did that, then maybe it’s time to create that environment and teach the young boys how to be men that are respectful of women.

Now that Alabama has rejected so much with the electing of a Democrat for the first time in two and a half decades, the rest of the country should follow that example in the 2018 mid-term election. Everyone that is in office that supported a candidate that was accused of sexually assaulting a woman or child should meet the same fate as Judge Roy Moore.

America should make it crystal clear that sexual abuse will not be tolerated in our society or in our elected officials. If you are a supporter of someone like Moore or Trump and you defend them by shaming their accusers, then speaking for the people is something that you are not qualified to do. You should be repealed and replaced with someone that will not tolerate sexual assaults nor side with the abusers. This was truly an election for women and with any luck, the rest of America will follow the example in 2018.

Maps courtesy of Quartz Magazine