Hello again, Justice for Jason supporters!
It has been a while since we updated our community network on the latest developments in Jason’s case. The simple reason for the delay is that little to no progress has been made in the courts since late April. And while the next hearing was expected on June 24, that has also been postponed to sometime in July. This is not the speedy resolution Jason and all of us have been awaiting.
Nevertheless, it might be helpful to clarify where Jason’s case stands now:
Going back to a February hearing, Judge Judd Carhart granted Jason’s lawyers (David Hoose, Luke Ryan, and Bill Newman) access to a substantial amount of classified files from the District Attorney’s office, which they had asked for in a motion called a Motion for Discovery. This discovery includes the past five years’ of all cases in Hampshire county involving interracial assaults and other violent hate crimes. It also included a request for case files regarding another example of selective prosecution that had odd similarities to Jason’s case. Judge Carhart’s decision to allow the discovery was based on the evidence contained in the ‘Motion to Dismiss’ filed by Jason’s lawyers in December 2008. Carhart stated that there was prima facie evidence of selective prosecution in Jason’s case. At the time, we considered Carhart’s decision a victory, because it validated Jason’s argument that his prosecution is based on his race (while DA Scheibel’s decision to not prosecute Jason’s attackers was based on their race).
The District Attorney (DA), perhaps fearing such exposure of her office’s history of selective prosecutions, appealed Judge Carhart’s decision. This appeal went to Justice Judith Cowin of the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court (SJC). Rather than give a ruling on the matter, Justice Cowin has insisted that all seven justices of the SJC hear the issue of whether or not to allow Jason’s defense access to these files. That hearing is tentatively expected for sometime in July and will most likely take place at the John Adams Courthouse in Boston. Right now it is unclear as to whether or not this hearing will be open to the public, but we are working on a strategy to ensure Justice for Jason’s presence at this event. We will of course keep you updated as this develops further.
The long and short of it is: this case will most certainly go into the fall and maybe even later than that. This is the tried and true strategy of District Attorneys nationwide: wait the case out to drain the energy of any and all public efforts to bring justice. We can’t let them win!
We as the organizers of the Justice for Jason campaign pledge to remain vigilant in keeping you up to date on the legal campaign to exonerate Jason of all of the unjust and racially motivated charges he faces. We hope that you can pledge in turn to remain plugged into the extensive network of support you have helped to create. We need to show up at Jason’s hearings and continue to build relationships and networks that can survive and grow stronger in this second year of the struggle against Jason’s racist prosecution. We need to send the DA letters, phone calls, and emails expressing what Jason’s prosecution means to us and our community. Most importantly, we need to continue letting people know that racism is still alive in our society and in this community, and that people are still willing to join together to fight it!
Many thanks for all the tremendous support you have displayed so far. Jason’s chances at getting justice are ever greater because of your help. We will continue to update you regularly with new developments.
Peace and Respect,
Committee for Justice for Jason
P.S. There is an additional update from DA Scheibel: she will not seek reelection to the DA post in 2010. Michael Cahillane, a current Assistant District Attorney under Scheibel, and Dave Sullivan, who has supported Justice for Jason in the past, are currently the two candidates for the position. Both are Democrats. This provides our campaign with ample opportunities to put more pressure on Scheibel to drop the charges against Jason.
(for more on this story, see http://www.masslive.com/news/index.ssf/2009/06/northwestern_district_attorney_5.html?category=Franklin%20County&category=Northampton&category=Politics)
If you would like to get involved in the Justice for Jason Campaign’s summer organizing, please contact: MobilizingforJason@gmail.com
