Mychal Bell's conviction overturned in Jena 6 case
Yet another update on the Jena 6: Today a state appeals court threw out the aggravated battery conviction of Mychal Bell, one of the half-dozen black teens facing unusually serious charges for the beating of a white schoolmate amid escalating racial tensions in a small Louisiana town. The Associated Press reports:
Bell's attorney told the AP that he wasn't sure whether his client would get out of jail immediately or face new charges. Four other teens involved in the beating still face adult charges because they were 17 years old at the time of the fight.
Mychal Bell, 17, should not have been tried as an adult, the state 3rd Circuit Court of Appeal said in tossing his conviction on aggravated battery, for which he was to have been sentenced Thursday. He could have gotten 15 years in prison.Bell was only 16 at the time of the beating. It occurred after a series of troubling incidents that started when black teens sat under a schoolyard tree that had traditionally been reserved for white students. In response, a group of white students hung three nooses from the tree, an act for which they were punished with a brief expulsion.
His conspiracy conviction in the December beating of student Justin Barker was already thrown out by another court.
Bell's attorney told the AP that he wasn't sure whether his client would get out of jail immediately or face new charges. Four other teens involved in the beating still face adult charges because they were 17 years old at the time of the fight.
Labels: jena six, race and racism
15 Comments:
The Jena 6 should be given the same fair treatment that is the right of ALL U.S. citizens. But we shouldn't get too upset when we're dealt a bad deal or two now and then. After all, don't forget that we are given special treatment when it comes to college admissions, hiring, etc.
In related news, the New York Times book review has given a big thumbs up to UNTIL PROVEN INNOCENT: "From the Scottsboro Boys to Clarence Gideon, some of the most memorable legal narratives have been tales of the wrongly accused. Now UNTIL PROVEN INNOCENT, a new book about the false allegations of rape against three Duke lacrosse players, can join these galvanizing cautionary tales.."
Anonymous, who is this "we" that you speak of? Seems to me you are posing as a certain type of "we".
To anonymous,
With all due respect...college admissions and an unfair prison sentence should never be compared. After all african americans have yet to be paid for the more than 500 years of free labor. This should equal free education at the very least for all african americans.
I personally support Mychal Bell and those who are involved in the Jena 6 case. There is defintely an injustice here. Everyone involved in the case should have to suffer the consequences, that includes the white guys who jumped the black boy. Racism needs to come to an end, not tommorow but right now today.
When you here and read about the JENA 6 you know that it is injustice. So I would like to know why don't the familys of Mychal Bell and others.Take some kind of civil lawsuit are action aganist District Attorney Reed Walter.
WHY ISN'T THIS CASE GETTING THE RECOGNITION IT DESERVES. The media, outside of the internet, is trying to sweep this under the rug. They need to let this country and everyone else know that racism is still strong and present in this so call "LAND OF THE FREE". Why hasn't the president have anything to say about this yet...he talks about everything else, even things that he has no business talking about.
This is crazy Im really hurt by this situation it seems like no matter how hard the black community fights we are never going to be treated fairly.. Im supporting the JENA 6 to the fullest keep ya head up fellas everything is going to be ok.....
Anonymous your statement is very interesting, i hope you are not one of "us" because your mentality it a disgrace. Notice that you said " we're dealt a bad deal" this is you admiting that this situaion is not fair. Mychall Bell was 16 a child therefore he should have been treated as such. In my opinion the others are children- simply teenages reacting to a continuos blatant disrespect, and racism, i wonder how you would react if you were ostracize in such a manner. We - African American arent not given special treatment unless you consider prejudices, racism, stereotypes, or profiling special treatment- laws were made ensure equality for all- if this country really stood for justice there would no need for such progrms
Racism will never ever end, we just have to face that. I believe that he should receive a fair trial and hopefully he can one day go back to his parents and loved ones, he is indeed a citizen of this country, but at times we feel like prisoners
Well first off, I have to comment on the post I saw earlier where a guy commented & said that African Americans should get paid for free labor, or at the very least, free education. That's total crap! All of the "free labor" slaves are dead. Black people should pay for education just like anyone else! They should be thankful they were brought to this country, instead of holding a grudge.
Now about the Jena 6, just look at how the NAACP pushed to get those Duke boys jail time over a FALSE allegation! Now, they're trying to "FREE the Jena 6" because they definately COMMITED A CRIME??? That dont make a bit of sense. The noose incident happened in September & this fight happened in December. It had nothing to do with it!
Regardless of how you look at it, 6 people jumped 1 person... regardless of race or sex, that deserves jail time, PERIOD!!!
They are saying that the hanging of the nooses was in september and the fight in december but they didnt read about the stuff that lead up to the fight the kids got tired of that shit and they FOUGHT FOR WHAT IS RIGHT.
I'd like to address the comment left by the anonymous poster who wrote,"Now about the Jena 6, just look at how the NAACP pushed to get those Duke boys jail time over a FALSE allegation!" That is simply incorrect. The NAACP did not "push" for jail time for the accused Duke lacrosse players. Quite the contrary. In April 2006, Rev. William Barber, the head of the N.C. NAACP, asked to meet with the DA prosecuting the charges, saying in a statement, "Our position as an organization whose mission is civil rights and community justice is that the investigation of the allegations are fair, meticulous, comprehensive, aggressive and thorough." In January 2007, Rev. Barber called on everyone involved in the case to ease up on the inflammatory public statements for fear that they threatened "to pervert the truth finding process." Perhaps the poster is confusing the NAACP with some other groups that did rush to judgment.
I Support Jena Six. I know that everything will work out fine for these young men. God does not sleep. I am glad the FBI is now involved because yes, this was a hate crime. And now I see the KKK in Richmond, Virgina has a website and have been keeping in touch with Justin, the rest of the white classmates involved, and the people in Jena. Young Black American males ranging from 14-29yrs old is a target in the Criminal Justice System. It is like Black Americans especially males will never win. No, I do not like the fact that the black boys attacked these young men and I wish there was another way that they could have went about it. But, do you really think they had anyone on there side that they could go and talk to. The white boys also taunted these young men which is a form of harrassment for several months. Why wasn't anything done while they verbally and physically harrassing the black boys. You can only take so much from people now a days. This Jena, LA case is history repeating itself all over. We as Black Americans will continue to fight for what is right, but will we get anything accomplished. We have been fighting for decades and we will always fight for what is right. This is White America. The white americans has turned the house and field "black american" against each other during slavery and that is why we are not as strong together as a race compared to the others. Another example is when a single mother is left to rear 3 or four children alone. Where is the father? Well during slavery time they took fathers from their families. Some Black Americans do not know how to express themselves and only know how to do it by fighting. So will Justice ever be Served. Will we ever rise is this nation "Land of the Free. Good luck to the Jena Six guys and if I were them I would leave that town because some of them might come up missing or found dead somewhere which is known in that state along with other southern states.
wow this is serious. i never hurd of the jena 6 cuz i live in england but to have this going on in our day and age is disgraceful. personaly i think those 6 should be released as they were taunted and abused by other people and when they decided to do something they all face prison i mean how can one of these kids get 22 years for having a fight in skl.
so what if it was 6 against 1 personally i think what they did was understandable.
and anonymous that said the BULL about special treatment to college admissions boy u chat airrrr wat kinda rubish is that so u fink cuz were given special treatment for colleges that those 6 can go to jail for something so little i mean the person they beat up juz had cuts and bruises boy all this is juz so messed up i juz feel for the parents of the 6 hu have to go thru this cuz they r losing their kids to racial injustice and that aint right.
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