| SUPPLEMENT
No.
35September 19, 2020
United
States Resistance Continues Unabated Demands
for Justice, Equality, Defunding and Control of Police Persist Against
Ongoing Police Violence 
Actions continue in Los
Angeles, September 9, 2020, demanding justice for yet another act of
police brutality and impunity in the killing of Dijon Kizzee, August
31, 2020. Kizzee was shot more than 15 times by county sheriffs after
he was stopped for a bicycle violation.
• Military
Police Considered Using "Heat Ray" Weapon
Against
Protesters in Washington, DC
• Government Misconduct and Convicting
the Innocent: The Role of Prosecutors, Police and Other Law Enforcement
(Excerpt) -
National Registry of Exonerations - • University of Illinois at Chicago
Workers on Strike
for Safe and Healthy Working Conditions
• Continuing Actions Across the U.S.
United
States Resistance Continues Unabated
Working
people and activists in the U.S. continue to organize, demanding
control over policing and defending rights, expressing their drive for
political empowerment. Cities like Portland, Oregon; Detroit, Michigan;
and Louisville, Kentucky have now seen 100 days of actions despite
brutal police attacks using tear gas, batons and thousands of arrests.
United actions in Minneapolis, Minnesota; Missouri; Chicago, Illinois;
Jacksonville, Florida and elsewhere are taking place September 19, as
police racism and impunity continue.  In city
after city police continue to escalate situations and resort to
violence, including the use of deadly force despite the requirements of
the situation. Everywhere people are responding by speaking out in
their own name and persisting in their demands.
These
demands include full funding for social programs, such as for housing,
safe schools and free universal health care, with greater assistance
for those with mental illnesses. The need to defund the police and
military and end militarization of the cities with their massive police
presence, federal forces, tanks, fences around public buildings and
more, has been demonstrated over and over again. The call for control
over safety and security in the communities as well as over budgetary
matters illustrate that the people have solutions and want the power to
decide these matters. As work
goes forward, the decisive factor remains the people themselves, who
are tirelessly working to hold police to account and who are affirming
their right to govern and decide, so that new arrangements that favour
the people can be brought into being. Protests
at Pretrial Hearing for George Floyd Killing Demand Justice
Organizers
in Minneapolis have persisted in demands that racist police killings be
ended and all involved be held to account. The killing of George Floyd
is one example and the drive is to change the way safety and security
are organized in communities so that the people themselves have more of
a say and control. The four
police involved in killing Floyd, all fired, are now being brought to
trial. Actions to demand justice continue as convictions of police are
very rare -- part of the government's long-standing impunity for such
crimes. Derek
Chauvin, who had his knee on Floyd's neck for almost nine minutes, is
facing trial on charges of second-degree murder, third-degree murder,
and second-degree manslaughter. He remains in custody. The other three
officers involved in Floyd's death are charged with aiding and abetting
second-degree murder, as well as aiding and abetting second-degree
manslaughter. Independent
media organization Unicorn Riot reports: "The pretrial hearings for the
officers charged in the murder of George Floyd [killed by Minneapolis
police on May 25] began on the morning of Friday, September 11.
Hundreds of protesters gathered outside the courthouse and chanted for
hours as several motions were heard in court." Protesters
withstood a number of efforts to provoke them. These included hecklers
and having police co-defendants Thomas Lane and J. Alexander Kueng
walked through the demonstration after leaving the courthouse. This
appeared to be a ploy to create an incident that would justify moving
the case outside the city. This has been a common manoeuvre when police
are involved done to make protest more difficult and to secure a jury
more favourable to police. Such a tactic is less likely to work today
given that millions are supporting the demands for justice and
recognizing police brutality as a crime. Unicorn
Riot continues: "Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman and three others
from the attorney's office were disqualified from the case by District
Judge Peter Cahill. A response statement released by the Hennepin
County Attorney's Office (HCAO) called Cahill's move 'meaningless' and
stated a reconsideration has been granted." Freeman is widely opposed
by the people for his handling of this case and refusal to charge
police in previous cases. "A lawyer
who watched the incident in person spoke anonymously to Unicorn Riot
about what he thought had happened: 'That was a ploy played by the
defence to agitate the crowd to prompt an incident that would allow for
the case to be moved.'" The
Unicorn Riot report adds: "A rundown of the decisions made in the
pretrial hearing are as follows (all decisions made are subject to
change by the courts): - no
ruling on motions to dismiss charges,
- no ruling on separate
trials,
- trial will likely be held in Hennepin County and
not moved,
- possible jury sequestration for deliberations,
- jury names will be released after trial,
- disqualification
of Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman, Senior Hennepin County,
Attorney Amy Sweasy, and Assistant Hennepin County Attorney Patrick
Lofton (they've been granted a reconsideration),
- arrest of
George Floyd in 2004 not allowed for evidence,
- decision of
allowing a 2019 traffic stop of Floyd will be revisited at trial, and
- Judge Cahill plans two weeks for jury selection and four weeks for
trial. "The
defendants' motion to dismiss their charges is under advisement by
District Judge Peter Cahill who stated the court will likely have
decisions made on or before October 15, 2020. [...]"
 
Developments in Killing of Breonna
Taylor
Mural in Louisville,
Kentucky honouring Breonna Taylor and others killed by police.
Louisville is one of the cities where demonstrations have
persisted without let up since May. Demonstrators are demanding
criminal charges, an end to no-knock warrants, which entail police
invasions of homes, and city accountability and restitution to the
family for the killing of Breonna Taylor. Breonna was a 26-year-old
African-American emergency medical technician who hoped to be a nurse
one day. She was killed by Louisville police executing a
no-knock warrant on March 13. On
September 15, the City of Louisville agreed to pay a settlement of $12
million to Breonna Taylor's family and institute some police reforms.
Taylor's family continues to demand criminal charges against all those
involved in her killing. The warrant approved for Taylor's apartment
should not have been issued, as the person being sought by police was
already in custody when police invaded her apartment and killed her in
a hail of bullets.
 "It's time to
move forward with the criminal charges, because she deserves that and
much more," Taylor's mother Tamika Palmer said.
The rights organization Until Freedom, which has been involved
in organizing events demanding justice for Taylor, released the
following statement in response to the settlement: "No
amount of money will bring back Breonna Taylor. We see this settlement
as the bare minimum one can give a grieving mother. Tamika Palmer,
Breonna's mom, is a warrior. She is still fighting, as are we. The city
isn't doing Ms. Palmer any favours. True justice is not served with
cash settlements. We need those involved in her murder to be fired,
arrested and charged. We need accountability. We need justice."
Largely as a result of the determined resistance, on September
9, Kentucky's Attorney General empaneled a grand jury to investigate
Taylor's killing and determine if criminal charges are warranted.
Murder charges require intent. Inability to prove intent is a
common reason police get away with killings. Despite
the settlement, the city is refusing to admit wrongdoing and none of
the officers involved in the raid has been charged in Taylor's killing.
The city has agreed to establish a housing credit program as an
incentive for officers to live in the areas they serve; to use social
workers to provide support on certain police runs; and to require
commanders to review and approve search warrants before judicial
approval is sought, among other changes.
Beating of Rideshare Passenger by Sheriff's Deputy
in
Clayton County, Georgia On
September 11, 26-year-old African-American Roderick Walker was beaten
and arrested by Clayton County Sherriff's deputies. Walker and his
girlfriend were passengers in a Rideshare vehicle that was stopped on a
taillight violation. The driver did not have his licence on his person.
The deputies then asked to see Walker's driver's licence even though he
was not the one behind the wheel. "Our client was asked for his ID and
he responded that he did not have it and didn't need it since he was
not driving," Walker's attorney said. "He inquired why he was
being asked for his ID. That response obviously did not sit well with
the officer." Video taken by a bystander shows one officer holding
Walker down while another officer has him in a chokehold. Another video
shows one of the officers punching Walker in the stomach. At one point,
Walker can be heard saying, "I'm gonna die, I'm gonna die. I can't
breathe," but the officer continued to strike him until he was
unconscious. Video shows blood streaming down his face. Walker was
taken into police custody. News reports indicate
that as of September 14, the deputy said to have beaten Walker has been
fired. Jail records show Walker faces two counts each of battery and
obstruction, though the sheriff's office has not said specifically what
he is accused of doing. Autistic Youth
Shot by Police in Salt Lake City, Utah Thirteen-year
old Linden Cameron was shot several times and seriously injured by Salt
Lake City police on September 4. He was shot in his home in the
Glendale neighborhood after his mother called police to ask for
assistance from a Crisis Intervention Team (CIT). These teams are
supposed to be trained in de-escalation tactics and dealing with people
with mental illness. But in conditions where widespread police violence
is given greater impunity, escalation commonly occurs, as numerous
cases of police killings show. Local news
station KUTV reported, "[Golda Barton] said her son, who has
Asperger's, was having a mental breakdown. They report Barton said,
"'This is how to deal with people with mental health issues. So, you
call them [CIT], and they're supposed to come out and be able to
de-escalate a situation using the most minimal force possible.'"
The
report continues, "She explained to the CIT that her son was having a
mental breakdown and needed to be transported to the hospital for
treatment. [...] On the phone with officers, Barton told officers the
best way to approach her son: "'I said,
he's unarmed, he doesn't have anything, he just gets mad and he starts
yelling and screaming. He's a kid, he's trying to get attention, he
doesn't know how to regulate.' "She said
she was to stay while the two officers went through the front door of
the home [...] She said in less than five minutes, she heard 'get down
on the ground' and several gunshots were heard."
Linden's
injuries include damage to his shoulder, ankles, intestines, bladder
and colon, as well as nerve damage, Barton told CNN. The mother is
demanding to know why two trained men dealing with an unarmed boy did
not just tackle him or otherwise restrain him. Shooting him was
completely unnecessary. 
The brutal June 1 attacks on demonstrators in Washington, DC's
Lafayette Square by local, federal and military police, backed up by
National Guard, was widely publicized. Alongside
their massive, highly armed presence, was the use of tear gas,
flashbang and "stinger ball" grenades, which all disperse over a wide
area serving to disorient and temporarily deafen and blind anyone they
impact. The military police also considered using the military's "heat
ray" device, known as the Active Denial System (ADS). According
to the military, the "heat ray" can direct a beam toward a group
providing "a sensation of intense heat on the surface of the skin. The
effect is overwhelming, causing an immediate repel response by the
targeted individual." According to Major Adam DeMarco, in charge of the
DC National Guard, the Provost Marshal of the Military Police asked for
the device. Speaking as though on the battlefield and not at a peaceful
demonstration, the Provost wrote, "ADS can provide our troops a
capability they currently do not have, the ability to reach out and
engage potential adversaries at distances well beyond small arms range,
and in a safe, effective, and non-lethal manner." Demonstrators,
journalists and bystanders, including children, at actions across the
country have been seriously injured by tear gas, rubber bullets and the
various grenades -- all also called "safe" weapons. Demonstrators have
called for all to be banned and point out that teargas is banned in
warfare as a chemical weapon. Major DeMarco
testified before Congress on July 28, confirming the use of tear gas
and excessive use of force by the police and military on June 1. As an
active-duty officer, he is being targeted and is seeking whistle-blower
protection. The ADS has also been considered for
use by border officials to attack immigrants. There are no reports of
its use, but that it is considered for use both at demonstrations and
at the U.S.-Mexico border is an indication of the level of
militarization now taking place. This includes seeing people committing
no crime and posing no threat as "adversaries" to "dominate."
According to U.S. Park Police involved in the June 1 attacks,
a sound cannon (Long Range Acoustic Device (LRAD)) was also used at the
demonstration. Supposedly it is to be used to provide a loud warning to
disperse. More commonly it is used as a weapon to disorient anyone
within range, which is several blocks, and can be frightening as it
emits a loud piercing noise that can drop a person to the ground. This
is followed by more deafening noise and often accompanied by tear gas.
Then, perhaps, another blast of sound with a warning of some kind
occurs.
A main demand of on-going
demonstrations is to ban any use of military and federal forces and
equipment against them and to also demilitarize the local police who,
thanks to the Pentagon, have use of these military tanks and weapons.
-
National Registry of Exonerations - Posted
below is the preface to a study released September 1 by the National
Registry of Exonerations. This study contributes to a broader picture
of the injustices perpetrated against African Americans and national
minorities by the U.S. legal system, beyond the ongoing incidents of
police brutality. This is a report about
the role of official misconduct in the conviction of innocent people.
We discuss cases that are listed in the National Registry of
Exonerations, an ongoing online archive that includes all known
exonerations in the United States since 1989, 2,663 as of this writing.
This Report describes official misconduct in the first 2,400
exonerations in the Registry, those posted by February 27, 2019.
In general, we classify a case as an "exoneration" if a person
who was convicted of a crime is officially and completely cleared based
on new evidence of innocence. [...] The Report is
limited to misconduct by government officials that contributed
to the false convictions of defendants
who were later exonerated -- misconduct that distorts the evidence used
to determine guilt or innocence. Concretely, that means misconduct that
produces unreliable, misleading or false evidence of guilt, or that
conceals, distorts or undercuts true evidence of innocence. Three
years ago, the Registry released a report on Race and
Wrongful Convictions in the United States. We found, among
other patterns, that Black people who were convicted of murder were
about 50 per cent more likely to be innocent than other convicted
murderers, and that innocent Black people were about 12 times more
likely to be convicted of drug crimes than innocent white people. Some
of those disparities are caused by the type of misconduct we study here
and some are not. Misconduct in obtaining and
presenting evidence contributes substantially to the racial disparity
in murder exonerations, as we will see. On the other hand, the huge
disparity in drug exonerations primarily reflects a type of misconduct
we don't cover in this Report -- racial discrimination in choosing
which people to stop or search for drugs, what is commonly called
"racial profiling." The Report describes many
varieties of misconduct in investigations and prosecutions. Some are
always deliberate, some are rarely or never deliberate, and some may or
may not be deliberate. The Report organizes the
myriad of types of misconduct into five general categories, roughly in
the chronological order of a criminal case, from initial investigation
to conviction: Witness Tampering; Misconduct in Interrogations of
Suspects; Fabricating Evidence; Concealing Exculpatory Evidence;
Misconduct at Trial. Most of the misconduct we
discuss was committed by police officers and by prosecutors. We also
report misconduct by forensic analysts in a minority of cases, mostly
rapes and sexual assaults, and by child welfare workers in about a
quarter of child sex abuse cases. Some major
patterns we observed: -
Official misconduct contributed to the false convictions of 54 per cent
of defendants who were later exonerated. In general, the rate of
misconduct is higher in more severe crimes. - Concealing exculpatory evidence
-- the most common type of misconduct-occurred in 44 per cent of
exonerations. -
Black exonerees were slightly more likely than whites to have been
victims of misconduct (57% to 52%), but this gap is much larger among
exonerations for murder (78% to 64%) -- especially those with death
sentences (87% to 68%) -- and for drug crimes (47% to 22%). - Police officers committed
misconduct in 35 per cent of cases. They were responsible for most of
the witness tampering, misconduct in interrogation, and fabricating
evidence -- and a great deal of concealing exculpatory evidence and
perjury at trial. -
Prosecutors committed misconduct in 30 per cent of the cases.
Prosecutors were responsible for most of the concealing of exculpatory
evidence and misconduct at trial, and a substantial amount of witness
tampering. - In
state court cases, prosecutors and police committed misconduct at about
the same rates, but in federal exonerations, prosecutors committed
misconduct more than twice as often as police. In federal exonerations
for white-collar crimes, prosecutors committed misconduct seven times
as often as police. We also examined disciplinary
actions against officials who committed misconduct. These were uncommon
for all types of officials, and especially so for prosecutors.
We tried to determine whether official misconduct that
contributes to false convictions has become more or less frequent over
the past 15 to 20 years. For most types of misconduct, we won't know
for years to come, but we already see strong evidence that a few kinds
of misconduct have become less common: violence and other misconduct in
interrogations; abusive questioning of children in child sex abuse
cases; and fraud in presenting forensic evidence. On the other hand,
the number of federal white-collar exonerations with misconduct by
prosecutors has been increasing. In the last
section we consider what led officials to commit misconduct. We
conclude that the main causes are pervasive practices that permit or
reward bad behaviour, lack of resources to conduct high quality
investigations and prosecutions, and ineffective leadership by those in
command. We discuss a range of possible remedies, from specific rules
to changes in culture, in cities, counties, states and the nation as a
whole. [...] To read the entire report, click
here.
Over 4,000
University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) workers from SEIU Local 73 and
800 nurses, members of the Illinois Nurses Association (INA), have
walked off the job demanding that administrators "respect us, protect
us and pay us." Nurses initially walked out September 12 and were
joined by thousands of Local 73 workers on September 14. All are
demanding safe working conditions, including sufficient personal
protective equipment (PPE) with increased staffing and a living wage.
Large rallies and lively picket lines have marked the past week as
workers have continued to press their demands. Nurses, clerical,
professional, technical, service and maintenance workers are all
involved. They work at the main campus in Chicago, at UIC's Specialized
Care for Children, and the University of Illinois Hospital and Health
and Sciences System, which also includes Peoria, Rockford, and
Champaign. On September 18, about 1,000 workers poured into downtown
Chicago for a demonstration to further gain support for their
struggle.  The UIC calls
these workers on the frontlines of the pandemic "essential" but pays
them poverty wages with unsafe staffing levels and inadequate PPE. The
workers point out that throughout the pandemic, they have gone to
extraordinary lengths, often risking their own health without the PPE
they need, to care for patients and serve students. A September 14
press release from SEIU states that "Workers are striking for increased
health and safety measures, higher wages and economic security so on
the other side of the health crisis they can thrive. UIC clerical,
technical workers and building and maintenance workers -- those who are
keeping UIC's hospital, clinics and campuses running -- are joining
together so every worker can care for their family, have their voices
heard and rights respected."
In voting 94 per cent
in favour of strike action on September 3, the workers pointed out that
"UIC administration has failed to respond with meaningful proposals
around issues that matter most to workers including safe working
conditions, adequate staffing, and pay increases. SEIU Local 73 has
filed unfair labor practices over UIC's conduct during negotiations.
There has been no resolution to the claims and the union has moved
forward with the intention to strike in its efforts to resolve the
unfair labour practice charges and other worker concerns." On
September 12, Local 73 leaders discovered that UIC is bringing in
strike breakers from out of state, with callous disregard for public
health and safety. The workers pointed out, "These out-of-state workers
are coming from Texas, Tennessee, Nevada, and Mississippi, all of which
are currently listed on the City of Chicago's COVID Emergency Travel
Order. This action calls into question UIC's commitment to a fair
contract, as it goes directly against one of the main bargaining
issues, universal COVID-19 protections. At the moment, SEIU Local 73
does not know whether any of these out-of-state workers were tested for
the virus, let alone conducted the mandatory quarantine period for
states reflected on the travel order. Building
Service Worker Monica Jones stated, "This is making me and my coworkers
upset. You're telling me you don't have the money for us? But you have
$1,200-$3,000 per week to bring in others from another state that's
considered a hot spot? That's a slap in the face. Even with the money
aside, I can't spend it if I'm dead. You call us essential workers, but
you're putting our lives at risk by not giving us universal testing and
protections and bringing in potentially infected people."  
 
 
 
Anchorage, Alaska
  
March
on September 7, 2020, commemorates the 57th anniversary of the March on
Washington. It was planned for August but delayed due to COVID-19
restrictions on gatherings.
Seattle,
Washington 
Labour Day protest
action, September 7, 2020
September 6, 2020
Portland, Oregon
Labour Day demonstration
in Portland, September 7, 2020. In the face of devastating wildfires in
the western U.S. states, protestors have put actions on hold and set up
mutual aid groups to assist with food delivery, transportation, medical
support and more.
 
Portland marks the 100th consecutive day of protests
September 6, 2020.
   
San Francisco, California
 
 
Los Angeles, California
September 14, 2020
 
Demonstration demanding justice for Dijon Kizzee; memorial
and ghost bike installation September 9, 2020,
at the site of his killing on August 31, 2020.
Reno, Nevada
 
St. Louis, Missouri
Milwaukee, Wisconsin
 
Chicago,
Illinois 
 
Vigil
and march September 5, 2020 for Miguel Vega, who was shot and
killed by Chicago police on August 31, 2020.
Detroit, Michigan
 
September
6, 2020 action marks the 100th consecutive day of protests in Detroit
that started after the police killing of George Floyd.
Angola, Indiana
Columbus, Ohio
 
Memorial march, September 5, 2020, for Julius Tate, a 16-year-old youth
shot by police in 2018.
Nashville, Tennessee
 
Barricades around the Tennessee Capitol Building are removed September
14, 2020, following hundreds of arrests of protesters during the spring
and summer.
Rochester,
New York
In Rochester, New York,
protests continue to demand the officers involved in Daniel Prude's
death be fired; September 13 (top) and September 8, 2020.
New York City, New York
September 18, 2020
 
Housing
rights organizations win a temporary freeze preventing people being
lodged in a hotel from being displaced to a homeless shelter,
September 14, 2020.
Safe Schools rally,
September 14, 2020.
September 8, 2020
Protest on September 5,
2020, demanding justice for Kawaski Trawick, who was killed in his
apartment by New York police on April 14, 2019.
Lancaster, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Washington, DC
Posters and graphics once again fill the fence in front of the White
House.
 
Art
installation on the National Mall, September 6, 2020.
Raleigh, North Carolina
 
Protest September 8, 2020 outside Alamance County Detention Center near
Raleigh, a facility being used by Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
There is an outbreak of COVID-19 at the centre.
Durham, North Carolina
 
Tallahassee, Florida
(To
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