The Mumia Case: What Is True Justice?

December 8, 2007

By Mary Shaw, OpEdNews

With the December 9th anniversary of the 1981 murder of Philadelphia police
officer Daniel Faulkner, emotions are running high here in the Philadelphia
area and beyond. And Mumia Abu-Jamal continues to sit in prison for the
crime, which he maintains that he did not commit.

In 2001, a U.S. District Court judge upheld Abu-Jamal's conviction but
questioned the original death sentence and ordered resentencing. The case is
currently under appeal.

Abu-Jamal's supporters insist that he is innocent, that he was set up, and
that racial bias and witness coercion had played a big part in an unfair
trial. They also point out that Faulkner was killed with a .44 caliber gun,
while the gun that Abu-Jamal was licensed to carry as a nighttime taxi
driver was a .38 caliber.

On the other side of the fence, supporters for the prosecution assert that
Abu-Jamal is guilty without a doubt, and many continue to call for his
execution. An eye for an eye. Pay for death with more death.

I don't know whether Abu-Jamal is guilty or not. But the best way to find
out for certain is to ensure that the defendant receives a fair trial. And,
given all the doubts about the fairness of Abu-Jamal's 1982 trial, I believe
that a new trial is not too much to ask. After all, another life hangs in
the balance here.

Human rights watchdog Amnesty International agrees. Back in 2000, after an
extensive investigation of the case, the organization issued a report that
concluded the following:

"Amnesty International has determined that numerous aspects of this case
clearly failed to meet minimum international standards safeguarding the
fairness of legal proceedings. Amnesty International therefore believes that
the interests of justice would best be served by the granting of a new trial
to Mumia Abu-Jamal. The trial should fully comply with international
standards of justice and should not allow for the reimposition of the death
penalty. The organization is also recommending that the retrial take place
in a neutral venue, where the case has not polarized the public as it has in
Philadelphia. Finally, the authorities should permit prominent jurists from
outside the USA to observe the proceedings, to ensure that the retrial
complies in all respects with universally-recognized human rights
safeguards."

In the report, Amnesty International expressed concerns about judicial bias
and hostility, police misconduct, and the apparent withholding of evidence
from the jury.

My heart goes out to Officer Faulkner's family. It is always difficult, if
not impossible, to find closure after losing a loved one, especially when
that loved one was the victim of a violent death. But true closure cannot be
gained simply by executing Abu-Jamal. That would be reckless revenge, not
justice.

As long as the outstanding questions remain unanswered, there will continue
to be reasonable doubt as to Abu-Jamal's guilt.

As long as the outstanding questions remain unanswered, there is still a
chance that Faulkner's real killer is still at large.

As long as the outstanding questions remain unanswered, justice has not been
served.

And, unfortunately, as long as the outstanding questions remain unanswered,
true closure remains an impossible dream.

---

Source : OpEdNews (Authors Bio: Mary Shaw is a Philadelphia-based writer and
activist, with a focus on politics, human rights, and social justice. She is
a former Philadelphia Area Coordinator for the Nobel-Prize-winning human
rights group Amnesty International, and her views appear regularly in a
variety of newspapers, magazines, and websites -- Authors Website:
http://www.maryshawonline.com)

http://www.opednews.com/maxwrite/print_friendly.php?p=opedne_mary_sha_071208
_the_mumia_case_3a_what.htm