This story proves once again that those who choose to "get their hands dirty" as they do something active in response to a clear and present danger risk injury after the fact while those who sit back and pontificate while doing nothing can take pride that their gloves remain lily white!
Mayor Frank Melton of Jackson Mississippi presided over a city that was infested with CRACK! After observing the damaging impact of this scorage he took action. He demolished a known crack house. This was more of a symbolic action meant to send a message.
Unfortunately the pronosticators of "justice" saw the mayor's actions as illegal and they are now hunting after him.
Mayor Frank Melton of Jackson, Miss., was indicted Wednesday on federal civil rights charges related to the unannounced demolition of a duplex that he said was a crack house.
In August 2006, Mr. Melton and his two police bodyguards, Michael Recio and Marcus Wright, ordered the occupants out of the house at gunpoint and directed a group of youths to attack the house with sledgehammers, the indictment said. The mayor, who ran for office on an anti-crime platform, himself broke out the windows with a large stick, the indictment said.
In April 2007, Mr. Melton and his bodyguards were acquitted on state felony charges, including burglary and malicious mischief, related to the same event. At the trial, the defendants acknowledged damaging the house but denied any criminal intent. No drugs were found in the house, which was in one of the state capital’s impoverished neighborhoods where the mayor spends much of his time patrolling the streets.
The federal indictment charges the defendants with conspiracy to deprive the duplex owner, Jennifer Sutton, and her tenant, Evans Welch, who is mentally ill, of their right to be free from unlawful search and seizure, as well as charges of official misconduct and the use of firearms in the commission of a violent crime.
While I understand the thin line that is present where "government officials" should not deprive private property owners of their residences in such an unorthadox manner - as with President Lincoln and his habeas corpus - during a war you need to do what you need to do to protect the whole of the entity. To have the entity destroyed while you brag about your clean hands is not an option.
If there was ever a time for JURY NULLIFICATION - this would be it.
2 comments:
He demolished a "known crack house?" No drugs were found inside.
Ever consider that he might have had the WRONG ADDRESS? Didn't the owner of the property, or the tenant, have any rights? Like just maybe the right to own their property until it was legally forfeited?
This guy acted outside the law. It used to be that government had to act within the law. Now, we have mayors taking the law into their own hands, along with their police bodyguards and a gang of young hooligans.
I remember words to the extent of "those who would sacrifice essential liberty for the sake of a little temporary security shall soon have neither." Was that Franklin or Jefferson? In any event, the residents of Melton's town will soon have neither liberty nor security nor a mayor, as he learns what life looks like from inside the cage he would put others in without due process.
Not only do he and his hooligan gang and his cop bodyguards belong in prison, but the taxpayers will bear the expense of his crime.
I agree with a portion of your sentiments. "Vigilante Justice" is problematic - especially if the wrong target is chosen.
Where as ultimately the act was symbolic - the fact remains SYMBOLISM is an essential element of the Black political experience.
Anonymous (I'll assume that you are Black) - let's contrast your view which is "clean hands" intellectualism with the FACTS of the situation. The city is being over run by drugs and violence. With the cancer threatening to kill the patient - you can pride yourself as having remained within the law - against those who DON'T GIVE A DAMN ABOUT THE LAW!!!
I would like to put this back upon YOU. Since you have limited your response to rational and legal reactions AND you are a self contained city where "boiling the ocean" as you tell us that the GREATER AMERICAN SOCIETY CREATED THIS and thus it is AMERICA who must change for change to come to this party of Mississippi - please detail for me what you would do to resolve this drug problem?
Post a Comment