The Jena 6: My Last Word
October 10, 2007 by Laura | Trackback URI
This will be my last substantive post on the Jena 6, and comments will be closed on older posts after this is published. I may note new developments on the case, but I’m not going to spend nearly as much time on it as I have in the past.
I was struck by this comment by From Jena, a person I have often disagreed with but have also come to respect because he’s honest and working hard to do what he believes is right:
The CORE issue of this whole thing is the potential injustice created by the DA charging these boys too harshly. I would LOVE for an investigative team (unbiased) to come in and compare all cases which Reed Walters has prosecuted in the past to see if racism does indeed factor into his judgment. If it DOES, then the black community has every right to be angry, and Reed Walters deserves to be punished in some way. If it DOESN’T, the black community will have little to say about the charges that were applied to these students being too harsh because of their color, in THIS particular instance.
I agree. That is the core issue. Although I disagree that if it can be proved that Reed Walters is not selectively prosecuting black people, it means that these charges are fair. The second degree attempted murder charges were patently ridiculous, and the 2nd degree battery charges are still a bit of a stretch.
In any event, reasonable people can and do disagree whether the Jena 6 have been charged too harshly, and if they have been, what the motivation for that might have been. My original Jena 6 post complained about the attempted second degree murder charges. If Walters had originally charged them with battery - any variation of battery - I honestly believe we would never have heard the phrase “Jena 6.” And in fact, Mychal Bell’s jury did ask for clarification on lesser charges, and were stymied by Reed Walters refusal to give the jury a written copy of the charges. I also didn’t assume, as many have, that an all-white jury automatically meant “racism.” In an 85% white town, it was practically inevitable. I was concerned about reports that literally half of the jury had ties to the prosecution; reports which may or may not have been true.
I was shocked and offended that a) anybody would hang a noose and b) others would excuse it. Anyone from the south who claims to not know the significance of the noose is either lying or a special kind of stupid. I just don’t know how else to put it. The original excuse, that the nooses were a “prank,” is to me, frankly unbelievable. The current story is that nooses are sometimes hung before football games in upstate Louisiana as a show of school spirit, and this was apparently just the first time it was done in Jena. Well, I’m from south Louisiana so I can’t speak with authority on what gets done upstate before football games. But IF that were what happened in Jena, I believe it would have been mentioned early on, and if it were true, Reed Walters certainly would not have wasted his time desperately seeking some way to charge the noose hangers, as he claimed in his NYT op-ed.
The high school I attended was pretty rough, and that certainly colored my perception of the Justin Barker beating. First of all, I have seen enough fights to know how quick and how chaotic they are. Second, a 6 on 1 brutal beating does not result in the victim spending a couple of hours in the ER and attending a social function that night. I’ve seen Justin Barker’s medical report, and I stand by my characterization of his injuries as not being serious. I knew that there was no way that six athletes beating an unconscious victim would have done so little damage. And I was right; it wasn’t a 6 on 1 beating. Here are the two most pertinent witness statements - by friends of Justin Barker who took part in the fight:
JH – Jena 6 Incident 05
“Justin and KR was walking out of the gym when I saw a black boy heard a black boy say something to Justin I turned my head and I saw somebody hit Justin. He fell in between the gym door and the concrete barrier. I saw Robert Bailey kneel down and punch Justin in the head. ES pushed Robert Bailey and he fell. Then Carwin Jones kicked him in the head. Eric pushed Carwin back. I ran over there and Theo Shaw tried to kick him and I pushed Theo Shaw down. I also saw Mychal Bell standing over him. Then somebody yelled teacher and they all ran away. The last person I saw was RB
(Bug) standing over him, but I’m not sure if he kicked him or not. Then I saw Coach Lewis kneel down on the ground beside Justin, but I never saw him during the fight.”
Okay, let’s review that -
- Sombody hit Barker
- Barker goes down
- Robert Bailey gets down on the ground and begins to punch the unconscious Barker in the head
- ES quickly joins the fray and knocks Bailey down
- Carwin Jones joins and kicked Barker in the head
- ES pushes Jones back
- Our witness, JH, jumps in and stops Theo Shaw from kicking Barker
That statement from, I must emphasize again, A FRIEND OF BARKER’S WHO HAS NO REASON WHATSOEVER TO DEFEND THE JENA 6, describes a 5 on 2 brawl. And not just any witness from the crowd. A person who was close enough to see what happened and who participated.
Now, the other person who participated was ES.
ES – Jena 6 Incident 01
“Me and JH and Justin and KR were walking out of the gym. Me and JH were in front of them. It was a lot of black people standing in front of the gym and me and JH walked out by them. When I heard one of them black boys say that there’s that white mother f***er that was running his mouth. Then I turned around and I seen somebody hit him but I don’t know who hit him. Then he fell in between the concrete barrier by the gym door. And I seen Carwin Jones and Robert Bailey hitting him and kicking him. It was so many black boys standing around him I really couldn’t tell who else was hitting him. All I knew was that all of us …… before they hurt him worse. I know I got Carwin Jones and Robert off because I knocked them two off and I landed on them two. And when them two ran off, another black boy name RB stepped across him and stepped on his face and he smarted off something. And I pushed him away and then some boy grabbed me and then all the coaches were there. And we went to the office.”
Let’s review that statement:
- Somebody hits Barker
- Carwin Jones and Robert Bailey hit and kicked him.
- ES got Jones and Bailey off of him.
- Another boy, RB, who was not charged at all, “stepped on his face.”
Again, this is from a friend of Barker’s, who certainly would not take the side of the Jena 6 in any way. He was literally the first one to jump to Barker’s defense. These two statements are consistent both with each other and with Barker’s injuries. They describe a brawl. It was certainly not brutal beating people think of, nor was it 6 on 1. Reed Walters reported this complaint by a Jena 6 defender:
Their anger at me was summed up by a woman who said, “If you can figure out how to make a schoolyard fight into an attempted murder charge, I’m sure you can figure out how to make stringing nooses into a hate crime.”
I partially agree - I think that Reed got pretty creative when he reviewed those two statements and came up with 2nd degree attempted murder for a charge. I don’t think that the noose-hangers should have been charged with a hate crime, and if they had, it would not have provided justice. Justice doesn’t mean charge everybody. It means punishment appropriate to the crime. I think hate crime laws should be abolished. However, taking the incident seriously from the beginning - an apology, allowing the black parents to speak at the School Board meeting, an assembly announcing that those kinds of things will not be tolerated - would almost certainly have defused the entire situation. Instead, tensions built for the rest of the semester, climaxing in a number of crimes.
Early on I took reports about the Jena 6 at face value, and there are areas where I was simply wrong to do so. Upon reading the police reports for the Gotta Go and Fair Barn incidents, I now contend that they were NOT AT ALL the mirror incidents of the Justin Barker beating that I originally believed they were. Go read them for yourselves. Fair minded people can disagree, but I think most people who read those will conclude that those incidents are not an apples-to-apples comparison of what happened at the school on the following Monday. And I’d specifically like to note that I’m forced to conclude from those witness statements that Mychal Bell and Justin Barker’s other attackers were in fact looking for a fight that day. It wasn’t just a blowup after a trash talking session, although I also believe that trash talking session definitely occurred.
The choices are not to either “free the Jena Six!” or to put them under the jail. And just because Jena suffers from racism - as even it’s defenders have admitted - doesn’t mean that criminals should be excused from punishment. I have no idea how it all will work out. I wanted to get at the truth, and I think that the documents I received from my source, that Joe Carter and I posted on 9/27/07, did more to accomplish that than anything else could have. And I also think it’s worth noting that both the media and leftist organizations like Democracy Now had access to those papers as well. It took my source the time to go to the courthouse and get them, and I’m reimbursing him for $75 worth of copying fees. Amy Goodman from Democracy Now was in Jena many times, as was Mary Foster with the AP. If they had these papers, they never wrote a word about them. If they didn’t get them, why didn’t they? While I do feel that they prove my assertions that Reed Walters was way out of line, they also clearly indicate that the Jena 6 are not the innocent choirboys they were originally made out to be, and they definitely add weight to the conspiracy charges. In other words, they dilute the preferred narrative.
I’m glad that Bell is being charged as a juvenile. I’m aware of his criminal record, having posted on it as soon as I learned about it, but I still believe we as a society are far too quick to treat juveniles as adults. If we need to expand or rework the juvenile system, then why don’t we? There needs to be some middle ground for teenagers who are more morally culpable than, say, a twelve year old, but are still not adults. One student was considered a juvenile since the beginning, and the rest were 17 and so could legally be charged as adults - something I’m still on the fence about, how someone can be a juvenile in other respects but not for a crime. We may not learn the results of the juvenile cases. We’ll doubtless be hearing more about the other four, though. I’m not going to spend a lot of time blogging about it. What would justice look like, at this point? If there is a way to charge them with some form of misdemeanor battery, with a couple of months in jail, a long probation, community service and compensation for Justin Barker’s medical expenses, I think that would be fair.
Finally, I regret a number of times in the comments of various posts where I got quite frustrated and screechy toward several people including From Jena. I know that “a soft answer turns away wrath” and furthermore I know that in the eternal scheme of things, none of this really matters. Nevertheless, I allowed my emotions to carry me away and I was occasionally rude. There was a lot going on in the background, but other people’s bad behavior doesn’t excuse my own. It is too easy, in an emotional case, to lose sight of the fact that I would never have taken such an intemperate and hasty tone with a person I was speaking to face to face. And it is too easy to get entrenched in a position and want to defend the position, rather than keep sight of larger issues, like the fact that what I wanted to do was get to the truth, not to beat down an opponent. I did both and I do sincerely apologize.
One of three factors or a combination of them elevate simple battery to aggravated battery: (1) a deadly weapon is used, (2) severe injuries are inflicted, or (3) the victime was vulnerable (helpless or defenseless). To win its case, the prosecution only has to convince a jury that one of these factors apply to the beating of Justin Barker.
The prosecution may argue that shoes worn by members of the Jena Six are deadly weapons. Legal precedent for this argument exist. A court did ruled that shoes constituted deadly weapons in a case where the victim was kicked to death. Carol Swain, a professor of political science and law at Vanderbilt University, has posted the most insightful article (“Jena Six and the Deadly Sneaker”) on the sneaker controversy on the university’s official web site at
http://www.vanderbilt.edu/news/releases/2007/10/5/op-ed-jena-six-and-the-deadly-sneaker.
The prosecution will probably argue that Justin Barker suffered severe injuries. He appears to have been a Grade IV or V concussion. According to Wikipedia, there are five grades of concussion. (1) The mildest, grade I, involves only confusion. (2) Grade II involves amnesia that lasts less than five minutes as well as confusion. (3) Grade III involves the symptoms above, as well as retrograde amnesia and unconsciousness for less than five minutes. (4) Grade IV involves all of the above symptoms, as well as unconsciousness that lasts between 5 and 10 minutes. (5) Grade V is the same as grade IV, with unconsciousness lasting longer than ten minutes. According to Wikipedia, “The American Academy of Neurology (AAN) guidelines make it clear that permanent brain injury can occur with either Grade 2 or Grade 3 concussion. Thus, it is clear that subtle brain injury can have permanent consequences if the acute symptoms of the concussion continue for more than 15 minutes.” According to witness statements, Barker was knocked unconscious at the beginning of the assault. According to some reports, he was still unconscious when the ambulance reached the hospital. The case is likley to hinge on the testimony of doctors who treated Barker. However, Barker’s attorney estimaties his medical costs at $14,000 and growing. A jury might be persuaded that these costs and the fact that an amublance had to be called as indications that the injuries were severe. (It’s true that Barker attended a senior ring testimony the night of the beating, but his friends say he had to leave half way through due to pain and dizziness.)
The prosecution will argue that members of the Jena Six continued to kick Barker in the head as he lay unconscious, helpless and defenseless on the ground. (In a police statement, one wittness says Barker blood was running from his ears and that his hands were shaking spasmoidically as members of the Jena Six kicked him in the head. This spasmodic twitching is a classic symptom of a sever concussion.
Actually, the ambulance report shows Barker was conscious before the ambulance arrived. And in the medical reports, although blood is noted in his ears, no injury is listed to cause that bleeding, leading me to conclude that the blood dripped into his ears while he was prone. His CT scan was fine.
If any of you want to view the Chronological Order of Events regarding this case that was reported by the Jena Times, go here:
http://www.thejenatimes.net/Chronological_Order_of-Events.pdf
It is very detailed. I do think that the Jena Times has taken a more reactionary approach to all of the negative and biased media hype, I feel they have maintained their balance throughout the entire thing.
Just in case anyone didn’t hear the latest, Mychal Bell’s juvenile hearing was yesterday. Judging by what’s being said (the juvenile proceedings are closed off to the public, of course), he was sentenced to 18 months at a juvenile facility. I’m assuming that’s because this was his 4th parole violation. His father also cited a “drug charge” that they charged him with, but I don’t know how valid that is.
His father said he’s in “jail” but he is now a juvenile, so I’m assuming that the judge cannot send him to actual prison.
If you’ll read in the chronology of events chronology of events that the Jena Times released, it says that on the same day as the assembly, one of the Jena 6 took a swing at a police officer, but he wasn’t arrested nor were charges pressed. Of course, the school system is not allowed to disclose who this was, but I know people who just graduated from there and they’ve confirmed to me that it was Bell.
Not trying to drag the boy’s name in the dirt or anything, just thought that supplemental information may be useful. He’s headed down the same road his parents went down. I just wish our justice system had something for kids like him, instead of just tossing him in the slammer. He’s only 17.
And I hate to be contrary, but Bell’s dad says in the interview how he’s not sure how they are going to pay for all of this. He can start by selling his $60,000 Cadillac Escalade he bought a month or so ago. I’m sorry, it just makes me mad when people don’t know how to put their priorities in the right place.
First, Laura, thank you for posting all the documents. And your analysis of them.
I find it unlikely that Mychal Bell’s sudden and unexpected return to juvenile jail to be unrelated to the Jena 6. It has all the markings of being revenge, not the least of which, as has been reported nationally, this was supposed to be a routine hearing and all of a sudden the judge sentenced him to 18 months. Normally, attorneys for the accused are given some kind of notice of such events, so they can prepare. No, this is “Jena” justice, and frankly, I despise the DA, the judge, the town, and the town. I don’t know if this is ‘civil’, but it is how I feel.
FromJena, you have painted the blacks in this community with hearsay and innuendo from the start. If anything, your, and your ‘unbiased’ Jena Times just proves the community’s prejudice. “Not trying to drag the boy’s name in the dirt or anything…”. Why stop now? That’s all you’ve done.
But the poor, innocent white boys.
The poor white boys were just hanging nooses because of a football game (same as the white tree, next day after assembly, but that’s just a coincidence). The poor white boys carried riot shot guns around in their cars for deer hunting. Riot shot guns? The poor white man pulls a rifle on the blacks because he’s afraid of being beaten up, ignoring the fact that if they had threatened to do this, why didn’t they after they got his gun?
I’m sure it was only a coincidence that the DA talks about thank goodness that God, I’m assuming the nice white God, keeping ‘them people in line’, as if the mostly black protesters were animals, barely controlled.
Shelley:
First off, everyone must keep in mind that this was a juvenile proceeding and the only information WE are hearing is through Bell’s lawyer and father. It’s impossible to conduct a “fair & balanced” report on a juvenile case because the justice system is not allowed to elaborate or explain to the public their reasoning. In fact, the evening this juvenile proceeding took place, Bell’s FATHER said he had been put in prison for “an old drug charge”, when Bell’s lawyer said something TOTALLY different.
And Bell’s LAWYER and Bell HIMSELF have said that they “thought it was a routine hearing”. Just because they thought this doesn’t mean their perception of what the proceeding was supposed to be wasn’t flawed. They may have BEEN served with a notice and are not reporting it. And can you say with 100% certainty that a notice is required before the judge brings up past criminal actions?
Bell VIOLATED parole 3 times, if he was convicted of the Justin Barker beating, that would make FOUR. How often do juveniles get that many chances? I don’t know anymore than you do, but my logic says he was given ample opportunity to straighten his act up.
“frankly, I despise the DA, the judge, the town, and the town. I don’t know if this is ‘civil’, but it is how I feel”
Well it finally comes out, you’re stinging bias. I knew it existed, but thank you for the acknowledgement.
“you have painted the blacks in this community with hearsay and innuendo from the start”
I haven’t painted the “blacks” in my community ANY way!! I have painted the particular PEOPLE in question in this case the way I have SEEN. I have SEEN Marcus Jones driving around in a Cadillac Escalade, I’ve spoke DIRECTLY with people who know first hand some of the things that have happened. If anything, you have thrown in your bias of this case from the start, cementing your beliefs so firmly in the ground that NOTHING will sway you, even when valid information slaps you in the face. My stance HAS changed a little since I have finally been able to get valid information about this case, but it hasn’t changed all that much. You know why? THAT’S MY HOME TOWN. I see, hear, and experience things every day in Jena that you don’t. So until you’ve lived here, I WILL consider myself more informed of this situation than you, I’m sorry.
“your ‘unbiased’ Jena Times just proves the community’s prejudice”
When a town of 3,000 people is so harshly criticized by the entire country about something that the public has been allowed to know VERY LITTLE about, the local newspaper publication WILL go on the defensive, because NO ONE was reporting what was really going on until recently. Well ALL felt a need to defend ourselves, and the fact that they have taken a defensive position about it may affect their bias towards the situation, it is to be expected because of the horrible media coverage this case has received. But it DOES make their articles biased to a degree, I agree.
“The poor white boys were just hanging nooses because of a football game (same as the white tree, next day after assembly, but that’s just a coincidence). ”
I didn’t say I was convinced that those were their intentions, but I did say it is VERY fair to cast doubt on the theory that it was done purposefully to incite fear. And again, the “white tree” is not the white tree. Black students have sat under there in the past, and I will have pictures from past yearbooks soon to prove it.
“The poor white boys carried riot shot guns around in their cars for deer hunting. Riot shot guns?”
Do you hunt? Have you ever went hunting? Several people in other chats rooms have told you before, PEOPLE CAN HUNT with these types of shotguns.
“The poor white man pulls a rifle on the blacks because he’s afraid of being beaten up, ignoring the fact that if they had threatened to do this, why didn’t they after they got his gun?”
If you’ll read in the eye witness statement from the girl onlooker, she said when a man in a vehicle pulled up, they took off running. What would have happened next? Nobody knows.
“I’m sure it was only a coincidence that the DA talks about thank goodness that God, I’m assuming the nice white God, keeping ‘them people in line’, as if the mostly black protesters were animals, barely controlled.”
A mix of people were expected to be at that protest, including the KKK, the black panthers, black Americans, Hispanic Americans, *** Americans. You don’t think it was fair to be worried that an incident would occur with such a diverse mix of people descending on a small town such as ours?
My views will be inextricably tied to my home town; yours will be inextricably tied to your race or past personal experiences. Neither one of us are capable of complete bias in its truest form, so keep on preaching. I will preach back.
And keep in mind, you said in that post that you despise me, because I am from Jena.
To: shellyp
Rather than revenge, perhaps this was on the back burner because he had been held and on trial for the “parole violation”. From what we know, his prior offenses were of a violent nature, and I believe there are few that dispute Bell’s violent participation in this act. It would seem more out of line for him NOT to have been jailed (juvie).
I’ve heard that was his previous sentence, suspended or whatever provided he behaved himself until he turned 18. Well, he didn’t.
EXCUSING ONE ACTION BECAUSE OF A DIFFERENT ACTION IS NOT THE RIGHT WAY TO HANDLE THINGS. THAT IS THE BIGGEST DISSAPOINTMENT THROUGH ALL OF THIS. IF THE BLACK COMMUNITY IS OUTRAGED, BE OUT RAGED THAT THE WHITES WEREN’T PROSECUTED AND PUSH FOR THIER ARREST AND PROSECUTION…DONT USE THAT RAGE TO FREE A GROUP OF VIOLENT CRIMINALS AND MAKE THEM IMMUNE FROM THE LAW…THE BLACKS HATE THE WHITES BEING IMMUNE FROM THE LAW YET THEY TURN AROUND A EXPECT THE BLACK BOIS TO GET IMMUNITY FROM THE LAW TOO….2 WRONGS DONT MAKE A RIGHT…THERE IS A PROPER WAY TO FIGHT INJUSTICE IN AMERICA AND UNFORTUNATLY THE BLACK COMMUNITY TIME AND TIME AGAIN CHOOSES VIOLENCE AND IMPROPER AVENUES TO HANDLE INJUSTICE AND IN TURN…NOTHING EVER CHANGES…THEY MAY GET THESE HOODS OFF SCOTT FREE FROM A VIOLENT CRIME BUT THANK GOD THAT BLACK MALE YOUTH ARE NOTHING BUT CONSISTANT AND THEY WILL END UP IN PRISON ONE WAY OR ANOTHER…MAYBE SOMEONES RELATIVE WILL HAVE TO BE KILLED BEFORE IT HAPPENS…I ONLY HOPE ITS A RELATIVE OF THESE WHITES THAT SYMPATHIZE WITH THE BLACK CRIMINALS… THEN MAYBE THEY’LL THINK TWICE BEFORE FREEING A KNOWN VIOLENT CRIMINAL.
i cant believe that these boys are actually even touching jail!!!! Why didnt the white boys who jumped the black boy go to jail for attempted murder? the boys who hung then nooses should have been charged with a hate crime!!
kishar:
Everyone has their own idea of what a fair punishment is for the Jena 6. For them to not touch a jail is not fair to me. They gang assaulted someone while they laid unconscious on the ground. That calls for pretty strict punishment to me. Six months to 5 years in prison is a fair punishment in my eyes. Five years being that one has a very bad rap sheet, which I dont’ think any of them have one that warrants that.
Why didn’t the white boys who “jumped” the black boys go to jail? Because that incident was completely sensationalized in the media. There was never a white-on-black gang assault.
Go here. Thumb down to “Convenience Store Incident” and click on it. That’s a pdf file of every eye witness statement regarding the Gotta Go Incident (where 18 y.o. white guy pulled out gun). Robert Bailey wrote his eye witness statement to the police for both incidents, the Fair Barn Incident (the one we’re talking about) and the Gotta Go Incident. His original statement is Page 2. Do me a favor and read that. You tell me if, EVEN IN HIS OWN words written in his statement, that this was a bunch of “white boys jumping one black boy”. And notice he never mentions a beer bottle, and there was no hospital visit or medical record to back that claim.
The boys who hung the nooses should have been charged with a hate crime? Read those eye witness statements. A few of them mention Bell yelling something like “white mother f***er” before he sucker punches Barker. If we’re being totally unbiased here, wouldn’t THAT be considered a hate crime? Al Sharpton and some others argue that any racial slur thrown in the mix of a crime is a hate crime, right? Why wasn’t this black-on-white gang assault a hate crime?
Please look at this more objectively.
http://www.evangelicaloutpost.com/archives/003979.html
Sorry, here’s that link to read Bailey’s eye witness statement.
I was disappointed at Laura’s comments regarding the photo of Justin Barker, just as I was disappointed that there was a civil rights type march held in honor of the Jena 6 that might have confused some into thinking Martin Luther King Jr. would have anything at all to do with this mess.
1. There is no law justifying anyone’s assault on anybody for any reason other than self-defense. It is stupid to think that anybody at all has a right to commit any crime against anyone for hurting their feelings or otherwise. This is not rocket science, it’s kindergarten 101.
2. MLK marched for peaceful, law-abiding people — NOT FOR VIOLENT CRIMINALS. He ENSURED HIS MARCHES WERE PEACEFUL AND LAWFUL AND FOR REASONS THAT BRING ALL RACES TOGETHER, NOT PUSH THEM APART.
3. This new generation does not seem to believe in Dr. King’s dream that white people and black people get along, and they don’t even seem to understand that many white people support Dr. King’s legacy but cannot fathom why anyone would march or protest for violent criminals. If this new generation is so keen on freeing violent criminals and using Dr. King’s methods, why not hold a march for Charles Manson and Squeaky Frohme? Because the new generation is racist, perhaps because their parents didn’t teach them about Dr. King or perhaps because their parents didn’t really believe in his cause.
Violent criminals are prosecutable by law, whether for assault or for murder and the continuous talk about supposedly unfair bail (hardly) or setting free a confessed convicted murder (Mr. Abu-Jamal) is a terrifying reflection of what the new generation has become.
Dr. King believed in God, the Bible and the USA and his choice was to hold his marches in a peaceful manner for law-abiding citizens of every race. I believe the new generation has taken a wrong turn and hope they can move forward with respect for the law and their fellow citizens regardless of how anyone chooses to use their freedom of speech, offensively or otherwise.
God bless America.