Subject: Amnesty International calls for new trial for Mumia
Date: Fri, 18 Feb 2000 09:08:29 EST
[Copies of the Amnesty report on Mumia will be available at the Emergency
National Conference to Save Mumia Abu-Jamal in New York, February 19 -- see
www.j4mumia.org ]
Mumia Abu-Jamal -- Amnesty International calls for retrial
A Life in the Balance - The case of Mumia Abu-Jamal ( AI Index: AMR
51/001/2000), a new Amnesty International report, highlights inadequate
legal representation, legal proceedings that fail to reach minimum
international standards for fair trials, and possible bias of the appeal
courts
New York City -- Amnesty International today called for a new trial in the
case of Mumia Abu Jamal on the basis that his original trial was deeply
flawed.
"This is not about an issue affecting the life of just one man. This is
about justice -- which affects us all. And justice, in this case, can only
be served by a new trial," Amnesty International said.
After many years of monitoring the case and an exhaustive review of the
original documents, Amnesty International has concluded that the proceedings
under which Mumia Abu-Jamal was tried, convicted and sentenced to death fail
to reach the minimum international standards for fair trials.
"Amnesty International has chosen this moment to publish the results of
their painstaking review of the case because Abu-Jamal's life and the
fairness of the judicial system are now, more than ever, in the balance,"
the organization said.
Without a new trial, the federal courts are Mumia Abu-Jamal's final
opportunity to have many of the troubling issues in his case addressed.
However, the 1996 Anti-terrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act severely
limit the federal courts' ability to guarantee a defendants' rights.
Amnesty International fears the act has increased the number of executions
that were in violation of international laws and standards governing the use
of the death penalty.
The organization is also alarmed that the Philadelphia Fraternal Order of
Police Officers is actively campaigning for the execution of Mumia
Abu-Jamal.
"Police officers and their representatives should be impartial enforcers of
the law. Amnesty International understands the anguish officers must feel
when a fellow officer dies in the line of duty but their attempt to pressure
the judicial system to execute Mumia Abu-Jamal is inappropriate," the
organization stressed.
Abu-Jamal's case illustrates broader problems in the judicial system,
particularly those that involve the administration of the death penalty.
"Given the contradictory and incomplete evidence in the trial transcript,
Amnesty International cannot take a position on Abu-Jamal's guilt or
innocence," Amnesty International said. "In calling for a new trial we are
not ignoring the pain of the relatives and colleagues of Officer Daniel
Faulkner, for whom we have the greatest sympathy."
"Nevertheless, Mumia Abu-Jamal's inadequate legal representation at his 1982
trial, the fact that the judge appeared more concerned with expediting the
trial than with ensuring justice, the politisation of the judicial process,
and the possible bias of the appeal courts has lead Amnesty International to
conclude that only a new and fair trial could prevent the execution of a man
who has not been proved guilty in a fair trial," Amnesty International
stressed.
The prosecution of Mumia Abu-Jamal was built upon three pillars:
the testimony of eyewitnesses;
ballistics evidence;
and an alleged confession by the accused. After a thorough study of original
trial documents, Amnesty International has determined that the veracity of
each of these three pillars is in sufficient doubt to make a new trail
essential.
Key concerns
·The three prosecution eyewitnesses substantively altered their description
of what they saw between their original statements to police and their trial
testimony.
·The witnesses were confused and unclear about the height of the shooter,
what clothes he was wearing, in which hand he held the gun, and whether he
ran away from the scene.
·The alleged confession, reportedly crucial to the jury's decision and
sentencing, was first reported more than two months after the shooting.
·The alleged confession directly contradicted the contemporaneous notes of
one of the alleged witnesses to the confession (a police officer) that "the
negro male made no comments." This evidence was not put before the jury.
·There is also evidence that witnesses were offered inducements to alter
their testimony in favour of the prosecution's
version of events. This evidence was not put before the jury.
·Lack of adequate ballistic tests to determine whether Abu-Jamal's gun had
recently been fired. It was not determined, for instance, whether there was
residue on his hands from firing a gun.
Additional information and background
Amnesty International opposes the death penalty in all cases as a violation
of human rights. The organization is therefore calling for a new trial in
which should preclude the re-imposition of a death sentence.
Mumia Abu-Jamal, black, was convicted and sentenced to death in July 1982
for the murder of white police officer Daniel Faulkner on 9 December 1981.
He has consistently maintained his innocence.
Amnesty International can take no position on the guilt or innocence of
Mumia Abu-Jamal. The organization has expressed concern however, over the
activities of a government counter-intelligence programme which appeared to
list Abu Jamal among its targets. Amnesty International is also concerned
that political statements attributed to him as a teenager were improperly
used by the prosecution in its efforts to obtain a death sentence against
him.
Source: Amnesty International, International Secretariat, 1 Easton Street,
WC1X 8DJ, London, United Kingdom
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