Socialist Action /October 1999
Mumia Responds to Denial of his Appeal by Supreme Court
It was not unexpected that the Supreme Court would deny my appeal. The
Supreme Court hears only a tiny percent of the cases that are brought before
it, roughly 75 out of 7000 in one semester or a term of the Court. I entertained
no expectations that mine would be granted.
We have to remember that we are working with a conservative court that
has worked assiduously in the Bush and Reagan administrations and now in
the Clinton administration to narrow the chances of anyone having had their
case heard, not just a prisoner on death row.
Even the most charitable observer must agree that by virtue of the court
taking such a small fraction of the important cases that are filed before
it, it is impossible to ignore the fact that many grave injustices are going
unresolved. Given the tone and tenor of recent Supreme Court opinions, there
is even a sense of relief that they didn't grant my third appeal.
And the trend is increasingly in favor of the State; the trend is increasingly
to disfavor the defendant and the accused. Certainly, there are exceptions,
but that's the undeniable trend, the expansion of state power and police
power in the retractions of prisoners' rights.
The struggle continues, the same old forces are still at work. Look what
happened when I called into [Pacifica radio] WBAI. I was literally pulled
off the air a few weeks ago. The recent Phillip Block debacle reflects too
how desperate the state is, and their desperation is really an acknowledgement
that none of them believed Phil's "confession" story to begin
with.
Still, we can't forget the old saying that the truth shall set you free.
I still believe that. I'd be a fool not to.
From Death Row, Mumia Abu-Jamal,
Oct. 4, 1999
Socialist Action /October 1999 |