EMAJ

Comrades, Brothers and Sisters:

Heidi Boghosian and I just returned from a very moving visit with Mumia. We visited yesterday, Thursday, February 2. This was Mumia’s second contact visit in over 30 years, since his transfer to General Population last Friday, Jan 27. His first contact visit was with his wife, Wadiya, on Monday, January 30.

Unlike our previous visits to Death Row at SCI Greene and to solitary confinement at SCI Mahanoy, our visit yesterday took place in a large visitor’s area, amidst numerous circles of families and spouses who were visiting other inmates. Compared to the intense and focused conversations we had had with Mumia in a small, isolated visiting cell on Death Row, behind sterile plexiglass, this exchange was more relaxed and informal and more unpredictably interactive with the people around us…it was more human. There were so many scenes of affection around us, of children jumping on top of and pulling at their fathers, of entire families talking intimately around small tables, of couples sitting and quietly holding each other, and of girlfriends and wives stealing a forbidden kiss from the men they were there to visit (kisses are only allowed at the start and at the end of visits). These scenes were touching and beautiful, and markedly different from the images of prisoners presented to us by those in power. Our collective work could benefit greatly from these humane, intimate images.

When we entered, we immediately saw Mumia standing across the room. We walked toward each other and he hugged both of us simultaneously. We were both stunned that he would embrace us so warmly and share his personal space so generously after so many years in isolation.

He looked young, and we told him as much. He responded, “Black don’t crack!” We laughed.

He talked to us about the newness of every step he has taken since his release to general population a week ago. So much of what we take for granted daily is new to him, from the microwave in the visiting room to the tremor he felt when, for the first time in 30 years, he kissed his wife. As he said in his own words, “the only thing more drastically different than what I’m experiencing now would be freedom.” He also noted that everyone in the room was watching him.

The experience of breaking bread with our friend and comrade was emotional. It was wonderful to be able to talk and share grilled cheese sandwiches, apple danishes, cookies and hot chocolate from the visiting room vending machines.

One of the highlights of the visit came with the opportunity to take a photo. This was one of the first such opportunities for Mumia in decades, and we had a ball! Primping the hair, making sure that we didn’t have food in our teeth, and nervously getting ready for the big photo moment was such a laugh! And Mumia was openly tickled by every second of it.

When the time came to leave, we all hugged and were promptly instructed to line up against the wall and walk out with the other visitors. As we were exiting the prison, one sister pulled us aside and told us that she couldn’t stop singing Kelly Clarkson’s line “some people wait a lifetime for a moment like this.” She shared that she and her parents had followed Mumia’s case since 1981 and that she was overjoyed that Mumia was alive and in general population despite Pennsylvania’s bloodthirsty pursuit of his execution. We told her that on April 24 we were going to launch the fight that would win Mumia’s release: that on that day we were going to Occupy the Justice Department in Washington DC. She told us that because she recently survived cancer she now believed in possibility, and that since Mumia was now in general population she could see how we could win. She sent us off with the line from Laverne and Shirley’s theme song – “never heard the word impossible!”- gave us her number, and asked us to sign her up for the fight.

We’re still taking it all in. The journey has been humbling and humanizing, and we are re-energized and re-inspired!!

In the words of City Lights editor, Greg Ruggiero:”

“Long Term Goal: End Mass Incarceration.

Short Term Goal: Free Mumia Abu-Jamal!”

–Johanna Fernandez

Facebook Link to Photo

http://www.facebook.com/pages/National-Lawyers-Guild/338038119888

AFTER DEATH ROW TRANSFER, NLG VP MUMIA ABU-JAMAL LANGUISHES IN SOLITARY – A LETTER TO THE PA DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS

[ EMAJ note: You can sign on to the letter below by SIGNING THE PETITION LETTER HERE.]

January 11, 2012

Mr. John Wetzel, Secretary, Department of Corrections
2520 Lisburn Road
P.O. Box 598
Camp Hill, PA 17001-0598
Fax: 717-703-2621

Dear Mr. Wetzel,

The National Lawyers Guild and the Human Rights Research Fund call on you to move Mumia Abu-Jamal from Administrative Custody (AC) in the Restrictive Housing Unit at SCI Mahanoy into general population. While we understand that capital inmates in Pennsylvania who have had sentence reductions may be transferred to and held in AC for a brief transition period, Mr. Abu-Jamal has now been in AC for four weeks.

Since Mr. Abu-Jamal’s transfer on December 7, 2011, he has been held in conditions far more restrictive than at SCI Greene. He is now shackled and handcuffed whenever outside his cell, his number of weekly visits has been reduced to one (for one hour), his phone call privileges have been reduced, the number of stamps and envelopes he can use is greatly limited, and his commissary privileges have been revoked. He is also barred from having a television, typewriter or radio in his cell, and access to personal possessions such as books is also severely limited. There is no ethical or rational basis justifying Mr. Abu-Jamal’s confinement in AC under conditions significantly harsher than those on death row. Once the District Attorney announced that its office would not seek a new sentencing trial, Mr. Abu-Jamal should have been transferred into general population. Such a transfer is not dependent on a judge’s formal resentencing to life imprisonment. Given that, and given his exemplary disciplinary record, we can only conclude that Mr. Abu-Jamal’s prolonged detainment in solitary confinement is in retaliation for his highly publicized and internationally-supported efforts to secure a new trial and intended to placate those who have been demanding his execution.

As you may know, for over a century, the United States Supreme Court has recognized the psychological harm caused by solitary confinement (In re Medley, 134 U.S. 160 (1890)). The Commission on Safety and Abuse in America in 2006 found that the increasing use of such segregation is counter-productive and frequently results in violence inside facilities while also contributing to post-release recidivism. The United Nations Special Rapporteur on Torture, Juan Mendez, recently called for a ban on solitary confinement longer than 15 days, reiterating that it can amount to torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment. The treatment currently afforded to Mr. Abu-Jamal violates the United States’ obligations under the Convention Against Torture.

We urge you to immediately transfer and assign Mr. Abu-Jamal to general population with full visitation, phone and commissary privileges and access to all programs and services.

Sincerely,

National Lawyers Guild, Heidi Boghosian, Executive Director

Human Rights Research Fund, Kathleen Cleaver, Co-Director

cc:
John Kerestes, Superintendent, SCI Mahanoy, Fax: 570-783-2008
Seth Williams, DA, Philadelphia, Fax: 215-686-8024

MUMIA IN SOLITARY CONFINEMENT – A LEGAL UPDATE

Mumia is still in Administrative Custody (AC)—the hole—at SCI Mahanoy. The confinement conditions in all the Restricted Housing Units (RHU) are degrading and tortuous.

Mumia is on a cellblock that houses AC as well as disciplinary custody inmates. He is in solitary confinement, with lights glaring 24/7, without adequate food, or the opportunity to buy food to supplement his diet. He is shackled and handcuffed whenever outside his solitary cell—including when he goes to shower. And he is isolated without regular phone calls, or access to his property, including legal materials, books and typewriter. His visiting hours are limited. In short, Mumia is being subjected to conditions in AC that are more onerous than those on death row.

There is no legal basis for Mumia to be confined in AC. At the point he was no longer under a death sentence, he should have been transferred into general population. This is not dependent on a court date for Mumia to be formally resentenced to life imprisonment.

On January 3 and January 6, 2012 I submitted demand letters on Mumia’s behalf to John Wetzel, Secretary for the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections (DOC), and to John Kerestes, Superintendent SCI Mahanoy, to immediately transfer and assign Mumia to general population with full visitation, phone and commissary privileges and access to all programs and services. The stated legal grounds are the following: The degrading, dehumanizing, tortuous conditions of Mumia Abu- Jamal’s confinement in administrative custody at SCI Mahanoy are an abuse of authority, counter to DOC regulations, punitive, discriminatory, in violation of his protected liberty interests and his civil rights, including First Amendment rights.

The DOC regulations allow only two permanent categories of imprisonment, death row and general population. AC is by law only a temporary placement. It must be based on defined grounds, justified and implemented subject to procedural due process. None of the grounds listed in the DOC regulations for placement in AC apply to Mumia. In fact, on December 8, 2011 the DOC transferred Mumia from death row at SCI Greene and onto a cellblock that does not house capital inmates. On December 14, the DOC ordered Mumia moved to a medium security facility, SCI Mahanoy, which by regulation cannot hold death row prisoners.

The response by the DOC via telephone by Chief Counsel Suzanne Hueston was that Mumia is in AC pending resentencing and further evaluations. These are bogus explanations. The December 2001 federal court ruling that Mumia’s death sentence is illegal has been upheld on appeal. The District Attorney has stated there will be no trial to obtain a new death sentence. Therefore Mumia should be in general population.

Nor is there a reason or basis for “further evaluation.” Mumia has been confined in Pennsylvania prisons for some thirty years. The DOC unquestionably knows his history, conduct and behavior. There is nothing in Mumia’s personal record to justify holding him in Administrative Custody.

The DOC’s treatment of Mumia is punishment for depriving the FOP and Philadelphia District Attorney of his execution. This is the latest attempt by this frame-up system to silence Mumia, an innocent man, and to subject him to tortuous, punitive conditions in the hole.

Rachel Wolkenstein, Attorney
January 7, 2012

Note from EMAJ Mark Taylor: The state’s repression of bodies and life, particularly in communities of color and for dissenters, extends from the Segregated Housing Units (SHU) and Restricted Housing Units (RHU) of U.S. prisons (which Mumia suffers now), to the city streets of this country. See “Jazz” Hayden’s video of a police stop and frisk in Harlem, a routine practice in communities of color. Now -

for Mumia:

1) Write, call, phone and email the Pennsylvania Secretary of Corrections

Tell them that Mumia must be immediately transferred to General Population.

John Wetzl, Secretary Department of Corrections
2520 Lisburn Road,
P.O. Box 598
Camp Hill, PA 17001-0598
717) 975-4928 Email: ra-contactdoc@pa.gov

2) Write, call, phone and email the Secretary of Corrections

John Kerestes, Superintendent
SCI Mahanoy
301 Morea Road
Frackville, PA 17932
(570) 773-2158
fax 570-783-2008

3) Write, call, phone and email the Philadelphia DA

Seth Williams, DA Philadelphia
Three South Penn Square
Philadelphia, PA 19107-3499
(215) 686-8000
Email: DA_Central@phila.gov

and finally, if you can, send Mumia a note or a card.

Write to Mumia at -

Mumia Abu-Jamal
AM 8335
SCI Mahanoy
301 Morea Road
Frackville, PA 17932

New Poem for Mumia by Alice Walker, Courtesy of Prison Radio

Occupying Mumia’s Cell   ©2011 by Alice Walker

I Sing of Mumia
brilliant and strong
and of the captivity
that
few black men escape
if they are as free
as he has become.

What a teacher he is for all of us.

Nearly thirty years in solitary
and still,
Himself.

He will die himself.
A black man;
whom many consider to be
a Muslim, though this is not
how he narrows down
the criss-crossing paths of
his soul’s journey.
Perhaps it is simpler
to call him
a lover of truth
who refuses
to be silenced.
Is anything more persecuted
in this land?

No boots will be allowed
of course
so he will not
die with them on;
but there will always be
boots
of the mind and spirit
and of the heart and soul.

His will be black and shining
(or maybe the color of rainbows)
and they will sprout wings.

Mumia
they have decided
finally
not to kill you
hoping no blood will
stain their hands
at the tribunal
of the people;
but to let you continue
to die slowly
creating and singing
your own songs
as you pace
alone, sometimes terrorized,
for decades of long nights
in your small cage
of a cell.

We lament our impotence: that we have failed
to get you out of there.

Your regal mane may have thinned
as our locks too, those flags of our self sovereignty, may even have
disappeared;
waiting out this unjust sentence,
until we, like you, have become old.
Still,
if you will: accept our gratitude
that you stand, even bootless,
on your feet. We see
that few of those around us,
well shod and walking, even owning, the streets
are freed.

Somehow you have been.

Enough to remind us
of freedom’s devout
internal and
ineradicable seed.

What a magnificent Lion
you have been all these
disastrous years
and still are,
indeed.

He should be freed
I find it “deeply frustrating” that PG columnist Tony Norman would blame Mumia Abu-Jamal for his conviction rather than police and prosecutorial misconduct and judicial bias, which infected his trial (“Abu-Jamal Deserves Prison, But Not Death,” Dec. 9). Unlike the three main prosecution “eyewitnesses,” Mr. Abu-Jamal was not a convicted felon at the time of his trial and, unlike the cab driver who testified against him, had no history of violence in his past.
Mr. Norman states that the bullet from Mr. Abu-Jamal’s registered gun was found in the officer’s brain. Not true! The prosecution never proved a connection. We have only the police version that his gun even made it out of his cab. Perhaps we should ask the police why they neglected to perform routine tests on Mr. Abu-Jamal’s hands and clothing. The police reportedly tested others, but “forgot” to test the defendant.
Ask the prosecutor why he neglected to inform the jury about the presence of Kenneth Freeman in the car with Mr. Abu-Jamal’s brother and the fact that Mr. Freeman had been picked out of a police line-up as the shooter by his star witness, Cynthia White — twice. Oh, right — that might have created reasonable doubt. Why let the facts get in the way of a win?
The above represents a fraction of the problems with this case and are perfect examples of the brokenness of the criminal justice system in Pennsylvania.
The burden is on the commonwealth to prove guilt; it is not on the defendant to prove innocence. If the state and federal courts are unwilling to subject this case to the scrutiny of a new guilt phase trial Mr. Abu-Jamal should be freed now. He has had 30 years in solitary confinement. He deserves neither additional prison time nor death. I agree with Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu that Mumia Abu-Jamal should be free now.
MARTHA CONLEY
East Liberty
The writer, a lawyer, is a member of the Pittsburgh Committee to Free Mumia.

Dear Friends:

I visited Mumia yesterday, December 15, in the new prison that houses him, SCI Mahanoy. Even though he has been released from death row, he remains in Administrative Custody while he awaits transfer to general population. Because he is still in Administrative Custody and not yet in general population, visits still take place behind the plexiglass barrier characteristic of the no-contact visits to prisoners on death row.

Mumia boarded a vehicle to SCI- Mahanoy in the early morning hours of December 14th at 4AM. Despite the dehumanizing character of the heavily armored vehicle that transported him from SCI Greene to SCI Mahanoy, Mumia delighted in the opportunity to see cows, horses, and Pennsylvania’s beautiful landscape during the 7 hour ride to Frackville, PA.

He described the last number of days as a “crazy whirlwind.” Last Friday alone, he spent 6 hours packing up books, letters, and other belongings in preparation for what he believed was a move into general population at SCI Greene. But the Department of Corrections had other plans in mind. As you know, that same day, December 9, his call came through at the National Constitution Center. At the prompting of Pam Africa, the last 30 seconds of that call turned into a rousing ovation to Mumia by the 1,100 people in attendance. This is was he wrote in a letter about his experience that very same night on December 9, “It’s been minutes since I’ve hung up the phone, and I’m still buzzing from the loving vibes zapping through the phone. It’s really electric!”

While in Administrative Custody at Mahanoy, Mumia is technically in “the hole.” This means that he has absolutely no human contact; absolutely no belongings in his cell other than a rubber pen, 8 sheets of paper and 8 envelopes (4 of which he has used to write letters to family and friends); he gets only one hour in the yard and one visitor a week; and at night the lights in his small cell are dimmed only slightly, and otherwise remain on all day.

Mumia noted that he missed the knock of his next door neighbor on the Row at SCI Greene, Sugarbear, who called for him through a knocked on the wall “at least 20 times a day.”

Mumia noted that as he was being escorted to his cell at Mahanoy, the majority of prisoners he saw in “the hole” were black and he immediately thought of Michelle Alexander’s evocative analysis and descriptions of mass black imprisonment nationwide.

Mumia is committed to remaining mindful of the challenges of this new period. He remains strong and hopeful about the possibilities of this next phase of struggle, both in his personal day-to-day life, and in the movement. He welcomes and is prepared for the change. Below please also note a special note he dictated to OWS.

Mumia reiterated that despite his isolation and the alienating character of his transfer to Mahanoy, he feels vibrations of love around him.

We await, impatiently, Mumia’s transfer to general population and call on the DA’s office to complete the transfer immediately. PLEASE NOTE: The DA’s number and address below.

Let us remind the DA that Mumia should have been in general population since 2001 when Judge Yohn overturned the death penalty in his case; but the DA’s office held him on death row for a decade while it filed losing appeals. By law, Mumia should be in general population, not in “the hole.” We demand his immediate transfer.

With love and solidarity,

Johanna Fernandez

SETH WILLIAMS, Philadelphia DA
Three South Penn Square
Corner of Juniper and South Penn Square
Philadelphia, PA 19107-3499
215-686-8000

http://www.phila.gov/districtattorney/contact.html

PRESS RELEASE
RESPONSE TO DA SETH WILLIAMS’ DECISION
ON THE MUMIA ABU-JAMAL CASE

For Interview Contact
Dr. Johanna Fernandez, 917.930.0804
Dr. Suzanne Ross, 917.584.2135
Dr. Mark Taylor, 609.638.0806

Archbishop Desmond Tutu Calls for Mumia Abu-Jamal’s Release

“Now that it is clear that Mumia should never have been on death row in the first place, justice will not be served by relegating him to prison for the rest of his life—yet another form of death sentence. Based on even a minimal following of international human rights standards, Mumia must now be released. I therefore join the call, and ask others to follow, asking District Attorney Seth Williams to rise to the challenge of reconciliation, human rights, and justice: drop this case now, and allow Mumia Abu-Jamal to be immediately released, with full time served.”

The news that the DA’s Office of Philadelphia is no longer seeking the death penalty for Mumia is no news to supporters of the nearly 30 year Pennsylvania Death Row prisoner. However, because Mumia has for thirty years been subjected to torture on death row and because he is innocent, justice for Mumia will not be served by life imprisonment, but by his release from prison.

Mumia’s case is like thousands of other cases in Philadelphia in which the prosecutor, the judge, and the police conspired to obtain a conviction. One of the most important and least known facts of this case is the existence of a fourth person at the crime scene, Kenneth Freeman. Within hours of the shooting, a driver’s license application found in Officer Faulkner’s shirt pocket led the police to Freeman, who was identified as the shooter in a line-up. Yet Freeman’s presence at the scene was concealed, first by Inspector Alfonso Giordano and later, at trial, by Prosecutor Joe McGill. Recently, the U.S. Department of Justice asserted that withholding evidence of innocence by the prosecutor warrants the overturning of a conviction.

The police investigation that led to Mumia’s conviction was also riddled with corruption and tampering with evidence. The recently discovered Polokoff photographs that were taken at the crime scene, reveal that officer James Forbes, who testified in court that he had properly handled the guns allegedly retrieved at the crime scene, appears holding the guns with his bare hands. The photos also discredit cabdriver Robert Chobert as a witness; his taxi, contrary to his testimony, is pictured facing away from the fallen officer’s car. This evidence hasn’t been reviewed by any court.

Our call to Seth Williams is that he honor DA Lynn Abraham’s 1995 promise to the city of Philadelphia that she would discard any cases where evidence surfaces that even one of the officers involved in an investigation lied in court or in written reports.

The D.A. may think that the case can be laid to rest by sending Mumia off to life in prison. But an aroused public, with the Supreme Court ruling the death sentence to be unconstitutional, is ready to challenge anew the entire trial. The same judge, jury, and DA that were involved in the unlawful sentencing process committed equally egregious violations in the conviction. This is not an ending, it is a new beginning for the movement supporting Abu-Jamal’s quest for release.

The December 9 forum at the National Constitutional Center, featuring Prof. Cornel West, will be preceded by an 11:30 a.m. Press Conference, at the American Friends Service Committee building, 1501 Cherry Street. Then the following day there will be a full-day of organizing and fundraising activities, Saturday December 10, at the Germantown Event Center, 5245 Germantown Avenue, beginning at 12

***MAPS *** DIRECTIONS *** PARKING ***

For additional maps and directions, see the website for the National Constitution Center, here.

Your special invitation to the December 9 event.

- SPECIAL NOTE ON PARKING FOR DECEMBER 9 GUESTS. Please note that you have two major options for garage parking: (A) Park directly under the National Constitution Center (between Race and Arch Streets), where you can take elevators up to the event without going outside. This is $9.00 for the whole evening. Or – (B) You can park just one block South of the National Constitution Center (easy walking distance), in the Independence Visitor Center (between Arch and Market Streets). This is $7.50 for the whole night if you bring your parking ticket to be stamped at the event.  You may also find parking on the street or in other garages, but this is not likely to be as convenient or economical.

Directions

By Bus or Car

National Constitution Center
525 Arch Street
Independence Mall
Philadelphia, PA 19106
(215) 409-6600

From the South: Take I-95 North to Exit 22 for “Central Phila/I-676″. Follow signs for Phila/Independence Hall/Callowhill Streets. Keep right at the fork in the ramp. Stay straight on Callowhill St. and turn left onto 8th Street. Take 8th Street to Race Street and turn left. Proceed through the light at 6th Street and turn right into the National Constitution Center bus arrival facility or parking garage.*

From the North: Take I-95 South to Exit 22 for “Central Phila/I-676″. Follow signs for Phila/Independence Hall/Callowhill Streets and make a right at the light at the bottom of the ramp. Stay straight on Callowhill St. and turn left onto 8th Street. Take 8th Street to Race Street and turn left. Proceed through the light at 6th Street and turn right into the National Constitution Center bus arrival facility or parking garage.*

From the West: Take I-76 (PA Turnpike) to Exit 326 for “Valley Forge”. Follow signs for Philadelphia I-76 East. Remain on I-76 East for about 25 miles until you see signs for Exit 344 “Central Phila” and take 676 East to the 8th Street exit. Make a right onto 8th Street and then a left onto Race Street. Proceed through the light at 6th Street and turn right into the National Constitution Center bus arrival facility or parking garage.*

From the East: Take the NJ Turnpike to Exit 4. Take Rt. 73 North to Rt. 38 West to US 30 and continue on US 30 West over the Ben Franklin Bridge (Rt. 676), crossing into Philadelphia. Stay in the left lane and go straight through the light following the sign for “8th Street South/Chinatown”. Take a left onto 8th Street, and another left onto Race Street. Proceed through the light at 6th Street and turn right into the National Constitution Center bus arrival facility or parking garage.*

* July 4-6, bus facility will be closed. July 4, public parking garage will be closed.

By Public Transportation

SEPTA – SEPTA offers a variety of options including subway, trolley and bus service throughout the city and area. The Market-Frankford subway line stops one block from the Center at 5th and Market Streets. Multiple bus routes run along Market Street as well. For additional information call the SEPTA Travel Information Center at (215) 580-7800 or visit www.septa.org.

PATCO SpeedlineThe Speedline is a quick way to travel from South Jersey into Center City Philadelphia. PATCO has 4 Center City stops, the closest being at 8th and Market Streets. For more information call (856) 772-6900 or visit www.drpa.org/patco.

By Train

Amtrak provides service to Philadelphia’s 30th Street Station at 30th and Market Streets. Save 20% off the best available rail fare on Amtrak travel to Philadelphia between June 27 and September 17, 2003. Blackouts: July 3-7, August 29-September 3, 2003. Request discount code V707 when you book online at www.amtrak.com or 800-USA-RAIL. This discount is valid for travel in the Northeast Corridor on unreserved Regional trains. Travel on reserved Regional Trains, Acela Express, and Metroliners is prohibited. Other restrictions may apply.

For any additional directions, or for maps of the Philadelphia region, please visit www.gophila.com.

Michelle Alexander, author of The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness, and Ohio State University law professor, INVITES US ALL TO PHILADELPHIA for the December 9th event there at the National Constitution Center. See her youTUBE video here:

Michelle Alexander\’s Video Invitation to Philadelphia for Mumia & Against Mass Incarceration

Read EMAJ’s Dr. Johanna Fernandez (History Department, Baruch College/CUNY) posting at the National Constitution Center’s special edition of Constitution Daily.

Register now, and reserve your ticket for pick-up at the door by 7:00 p.m. on December 9th at the National Constitution Center, by emailing Dr. Tameka Cage at december9maj@gmail.com .