America’s Poor is under Attack from its own Justice System

There was a time, in America, when your best calling card was simply a business card and your reputation was built upon being firm yet fair and treating people as you wished to be treated.  That time seems to have passed us by and now it appears that how you build a reputation is to do and say the most outlandish things that you can.  I remember watching the old western and wondering who the good guy was because that’s what people always wished to be the good guy but today it seems like no one wishes to be the good guy anymore and wear the white hat.  They want to be the bad guy and the big dog on the block which pits immature males in a battle that no one will win.  This disease has now affected our police departments, with the recent unarmed shootings, and our justice system with these current and recent miscarriages of justices that is rampant as we speak.  Case and point is a local article from one of our local channels WREX which reports that “a trial begins for a Freeport teen accused of shooting a man to death two years ago. Carl Green, Junior was killed after getting off work at the Snack King plant. Traveontaye Berry is accused of shooting him while Green walked down the street. But while the state is starting its case, the defense is raising questions about a lack of physical evidence.  On October 16, 2013, Carl Green, Jr. ended his shift at the Snack King plant in Freeport. Prosecutors say he was heading to a friend's house on the city's southeast side when he was shot. Freeport Police say they caught Traveontaye Berry as he was running from that area. But the defense says there was no gunshot residue on Berry's hands. They also tested gloves and a shirt he was wearing. Police found a gun in the area where Berry ran from. There was also no physical evidence tying to him. What the Stephenson County State's Attorney John Vogt says the state does have is a witness who picked out berry as the shooter. But the defense accuses her of tampering with evidence and repeatedly changed her story to police. They say she is the only person who says Berry was the shooter. And no other evidence, not DNA, gunshot residue or any physical evidence connecting him to Green's death.” 

Now wasn’t there a saying that all are guilty until proven innocent and in order to find guilt, our justice system owes all of us nothing more than to be able to present clear evidence that we did commit the crime to which we are charged or have I just been dreaming?  Anyone with any knowledge of even the basic law enforcement knows that the most unreliable evidence is eyewitness testimony especially if the physical evidence does not support that account.  We also know that circumstantial evidence should never be used to convict because circumstances does not prove anything except maybe you were in the wrong place at the wrong time and unless we are soothsayers or forecasters, how would you know where to be standing at any particular time.

What this tells me is this is another attempt to get him to plead guilty so that they do not have to prove their case.  It is bringing a case to trial long before you have honestly considered all things and not to mention how quickly many have made the decision not to pursue charges against those police officers who have clearly shot and killed unarmed people.  What this tells me is Minorities, the Poor and the Cash-Strapped citizens of every town need to wake up and see what is actually happening to their community, their cities and their children.  You are being sacrificed for speediness sake and to help cultivate a reputation for those pushing trials based on nothing more than circumstantial evidence as well as those judges who allow this to continue to happen and defense attorneys who avert their eyes when it is happening.  One can only hope that the defense in the above case does not silently accept this travesty, the family finds the money to keep them honest and the judge and jury hear what we hear.  Someone saw me running away from a scene, I was caught near that scene but I have no other physical proof that I had anything to do with that scene.  Perhaps I was running from something else and I live in the area.  Perhaps I was standing around with a few friends and one of them pulled a gun and fired it, frightening me to the point where I chose not to stand around but took off seeking protection from a bullet.  All this does make me guilty of murder and I should not have my life ripped apart by professionals who should know better.  They teach us this on Judge Judy so surely they teach them that in law school.

What this tells me is the need for Po Folks Legal Defense Fund is needed now more than ever.  Minorities, the poor and cash-strapped citizens need to know that they will have their rights protected in a court of law just like the rich, wealthy and those with enormous resources.  We need to know that there is a place for us to go that hears our lonely and sometimes silent voices as we pray, scream and yell for justice.  This is the link, http://www.gofundme.com/kawbrw,  you need to make sure that your neighbors, your sons, your daughters ad your loved ones will be represented properly when and if circumstances ever find them in the wrong place at the wrong time.  How many more injustices must we endure before we finally stand up and say enough is enough unless of course you enjoy being treated like someone else’s punching bag.