Amnesty International Urges State of Louisiana Not to Appeal Federal Ruling Overturning Conviction in Angola 3 Case

From an Amnesty International news release:

Amnesty International called on Louisiana Attorney General James Caldwell today not to appeal a federal court ruling overturning the conviction of Albert Woodfox of the ‘Angola 3’ for the second-degree murder of a prison guard in 1972. Amnesty International has raised serious human rights concerns over the case for many years.

In a ruling on Tuesday, Judge James Brady of the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Louisiana found that racial discrimination lay behind the under-representation of African-Americans selected to serve as grand jury forepersons in the jurisdiction in which Woodfox, 66, who is African-American, was retried after his original conviction was overturned in 1992.

Judge Brady found that the state had failed to meet its burden “to dispel the inference of intentional discrimination” indicated by the statistical evidence covering a 13-year period from 1980 to 1993 presented by Albert Woodfox’s lawyers. The state, Judge Brady found, had failed to show “racially neutral” reasons to explain the under-representation of African-Americans selected as grand jury foreperson during this period.

Woodfox was convicted in 1973 along with a second prisoner, Herman Wallace, of the murder of Brent Miller. This conviction was overturned in 1992, but Woodfox was re-indicted by grand jury in 1993 and convicted again at a 1998 trial, and sentenced to life imprisonment in 1999. In 2008, a U.S. District Court ruled that Woodfox had been denied his right to adequate assistance of counsel during the 1998 trial and should either be retried or set free. The court also found that evidence presented by Woodfox’s lawyers of discrimination in the selection of the grand jury foreperson warranted a federal evidentiary hearing. While the State appealed the District court for a retrial – and won – yesterday’s ruling from the evidentiary hearing, once again sees the conviction overturned.

Amnesty International has repeatedly expressed concern that many legal aspects of this case are troubling: no physical evidence links Woodfox and Wallace to the murder, potentially exculpatory DNA evidence was lost by the state, and their conviction was based on questionable testimony – much of which subsequently retracted by witnesses. In recent years, evidence has emerged that the main eyewitness was bribed by prison officials into giving statements against the men. Both men have robustly denied over the years any involvement in the murder.

Woodfox has been held since his conviction over 40 years ago in solitary confinement. The extremely harsh conditions he has endured, including being confined for 23 hours a day, inadequate access to exercise, social interaction and no access to work, education, or rehabilitation have had physical and psychological consequences. Throughout his incarceration, Woodfox has been denied any meaningful review of the reasons for being kept in isolation; and records indicate that he hasn’t committed any disciplinary infractions for decades, nor, according to prison mental health records, is he a threat to himself or others. Amnesty International has repeatedly called on the authorities that both he and Wallace be removed from such conditions which the organization believes can only be described as cruel, inhuman and degrading.

"The fact that Woodfox’s conviction has been overturned again gives weight to Amnesty International's longstanding concerns that the original legal process was flawed," said Tessa Murphy, an Amnesty researcher.

Angola Three Member Albert Woodfox Has Conviction Overturned For Third Time

From the Angola Three News website:
Today, February 26, District Court Judge Brady released a 34-page ruling that granted habeas to Albert Woodfox on the issue of racial discrimination in the selection of the grand jury foreperson for his 1998 retrial. This decision now overturns Albert’s conviction for a third time.

In the 34-page ruling, Judge Brady reviews the arguments of both sides and concludes that Albert's team used the correct baseline for comparison, and that using that baseline, the discrimination is statistically significant no matter which tests are used. It was the State's burden in these proceedings to prove that there was a race neutral procedure in place for selecting forepersons. Judge Brady agreed with Albert that the State failed to do this.

Just as when Judge Brady overturned Albert’s conviction in 2008, the State is now expected to appeal today’s ruling to the 5th Circuit. Therefore, nothing is certain except that the legal team and A3 supporters will not stop fighting until this ruling is affirmed by the 5th Circuit and Albert is finally a free man.

This is an important victory, thanks in no small part to the efforts of our supporters!

As we learn more, we will post updates here, so please check back for more information about Albert’s case. For more background, this is our report from the evidentiary hearing that preceded today's ruling.

View/Download a PDF of Judge Brady's ruling at this link.

A Father's Day Message, By E. Johnson

Sunday, June 20, is a celebration of all the fathers of the world. It is a celebration that endures every year through a lifetime of highs and lows.

What determines who is a good father and who is not? Do we as a society evaluate fathers by wealth, by their enforcement of rules, or perhaps by their resemblance to our own fathers? Do we judge a father by his ability to afford material objects or simply by love?

I think love outweighs it all. Love endures when times seem rough and remains the same in our attitude and actions. In a time of changing technologies and ways of living, love remains a constant. How long does the new style of tennis shoe or cell phone last before a new style hits the shelf?

Love is a constant force that a father can give a child, but it is not the only force that affects that child. It is true that it takes a village to raise a kid, and sadly as a father I am but one part of that village. I have given my children my heart and soul to ensure that they know they are the most loved people on this planet. But they are faced with a village that is weakened by the cycle of poverty, rampant racism and the flaws of the justice system. These are all part of the village that I grew up in and have brought my children up in.

While I have done everything that I can for my children, I see other systems in our village that have failed. There is the education system that is supposed to provide a learning environment and experiences at all stages of a child’s development that are humane, just, and designed to promote excellence in order that every individual may be afforded an equal opportunity to develop to his or her full potential. But the policies that are in place provide just the opposite: the national dropout rate is still very high. The suspension and expulsion rates are at an all-time high and unfairly target people of color.

There is the judicial system that thinks the same 14 year-old who is not mature enough to even drive a car is mature enough to face an adult court and comprehend what is happening and how severe the punishment might be. Research shows that adolescents don’t put facts together and draw conclusions the way adults do. At what age should we determine that someone is an adult?

There are many great fathers in this world that come from all walks of life. As fathers we must stand up for what is right for our children and believe that change comes from within. Happy Fathers’ Day and allow love to be the center of your life: that’s what fathers do!

Mr. E Johnson is an organizer with Families and Friends of Louisiana's Incarcerated Children (FFLIC).

Photo by Abdul Aziz.

Thirty San Antonio Social Justice Activists Come to New Orleans for Free Speech Fight

The Esperanza Peace and Justice Center is a 24-year-old non-profit social justice and cultural arts organization in San Antonio, Texas. For the last three years, they have been fighting against an unjust ordinance in their city that requires organizers of street marches to pay up to tens of thousands of dollars for political marches and cultural processions in the public streets, effectively silencing protests and cutting off community access to the downtown streets.

The City of San Antonio requires some marching permit applicants to pay thousands of dollars for traffic control while waiving all costs for permit holders whose message is endorsed by City officials. In the next few weeks, the City of San Antonio will send the International Woman’s Day March Planning Committee a bill that the San Antonio Police Department has estimated will be somewhere between $1,500 and $7,500.

Here in New Orleans, we are familiar with these struggles, having faced similar post-Katrina attempts by the New Orleans Police Department to impose fines that would have made many Social Aid and Pleasure Clubs have to shut down their parades.

The Esperanza Peace and Justice Center filed a federal lawsuit against the City of San Antonio on behalf of the San Antonio International Woman’s Day March Planning Committee and the San Antonio Free Speech Coalition. The lawsuit is scheduled for Oral Argument in the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals on this Tuesday, April 27th, at 1pm. Thirty San Antonio activists and community members have come to New Orleans by bus to meet with social justice activists here and build solidarity across our movements. They hope New Orleanians will join them for their day in court, as well as various other community events while they are here,

“It is good news that the Court set the case for oral argument, because the City opposed our oral argument request, and a case is set for oral argument only when the Court determines that the case presents substantial legal issues,” writes attorney Amy Kastely in a recent issue of La Voz de Esperanza. “Less than 12% of the cases filed with the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals are set for oral argument,” continues Kastely.

On Monday, April 26th, the folks from Esperanza are planning to spend the day in solidarity visits with a wide range of local community organizations to learn about organizing going on in New Orleans. The agenda for the day has been coordinated by Viola Washington of New Orleans' Welfare Rights Organization.


On Monday night, the Esperanza Center invites you to join them for a get together and dinner at the Community Book Center, at 2523 Bayou Road, at 6pm. According to organizers, "We hope that this will be a chance to break bread together, to learn about and share stories about local community organizing work in San Antonio and New Orleans, and to get to know one another on a personal level. We will also be bringing some music and foods to represent the culture of San Antonio. We invite you to bring music, poetry, performance, etc. to share the stories and culture of the people of New Orleans."

You can read more about the case at www.esperanzacenter.org/freespeech.

The Community Book Center can be reached at 504-948-7323. To reach Esperanza, call Amanda Haas or Graciela Sanchez at (210) 228-0201 or (210) 667-5695.