23-Year-Old Justin Elmore, the latest victim of a capitalist police force tasked with holding us down.
The SUV Justin Elmore was in, note the bullet-holes on both sides of the vehicle, and the huge missing portion on the driver’s side window.
A young black man is murdered by the cops in the projects and the lines are drawn. One one side we have the apologists for the police state and police brutality. They are quick to drag the victim’s (23-year-old Justin Elmore’s) name through the mud with vicious character assassinations. They note his criminal record and trying to degrade him to the point that he is portrayed as a life-long criminal who needed to be eliminated one way or another (prison or murder). First they said that the SUV Elmore was driving was stolen, then they admitted it wasn’t. Now they are centering in on the allegation that Elmore tried to ram the police officer with his SUV, which doesn’t square with the fact that Elmore was never arrested for a violent offense and the comments from residents that Justin was shot through the side of his vehicle.
On the other side we have a community filled with angry residents, tired of being brutalized by the police. Here’s a description of the community’s response:
…deputies dealt with another night of violence in Augusta’s Cherry Tree Crossing housing project. On Monday night, a deputy’s patrol car was hit with a bullet. The incident appeared isolated, however, and police said the area has been generally quiet since Sunday when an angry crowd of as many as 200 lobbed rocks and bottles at police following the shooting of a 23-year-old fleeing drug suspect.
According to sheriff’s reports, Cpl. Charles Benson was patrolling in the 1600 block of McCauley Street at 11:30 p.m. when he heard five or six gunshots. The deputy then heard a thump in the rear of his vehicle where a bullet struck the license plate, the report said.
And again, a few days later:
Many living in the Sunset area gathered Tuesday to remember Justin Elmore at this make-shift memorial. But the calm scene turned into chaos—after some people took to the streets. Those residents say they are angry about the shootings and feel it was not called for. The riot team was in full gear and tried to get some of the crowd under control as objects were being thrown in the air and at authorities.
At least three people were arrested for disruptive conduct. At one point traffic along 15th street and Carver Drive was backed up and had to be controlled by deputies. A nearby convenience store also had to be secure by authorities. It took police about 30 minutes to calm everything down.
Clearly the community is fed up with police brutality. But in between the community and the apologists are the prominent local and national leaders who are trying to maintain the peace and steer dissent into the ‘proper’ channels (i.e. police internal investigation and the Democratic Party).
But let’s talk about Justin Elmore’s supposed criminal record that is giving these apologists so much ammunition to slander Elmore’s character. But before we even post his record and discuss it, let Malcolm-Che go on the record here and now as saying that it doesn’t matter what type of record this individual had, no one deserves to be killed in the streets like this. We’re posting his record to discuss how it is a great example to show the harrassment that people deal with at the hands of the police.
An image from a local TV station, which is being used to portray the VICTIM – Justin Elmore – as a vicious criminal.
ELMORE’S YEARS OF TROUBLE WITH THE LAW:
Justin L. Elmore’s criminal history from age 17 to 23:
NOV. 26, 2002: Arrest on misdemeanor obstruction charge for running from officer
DEC. 3, 2002: Charged with giving a false name
JUNE 25, 2003: Charged with obstruction for running from drug agent
OCT. 22, 2003: Charged with possession of marijuana, obstruction and giving a false name after struggling with a deputy while trying to hide a marijuana cigarette in his mouth
DEC. 29, 2003: Charged with theft by receiving, speeding, driving without a license and disorderly conduct after being stopped for speeding; theft charge dismissed in 2004
SEPT. 3, 2004: Charged with speeding and driving without a license
JAN. 27, 2005: Charged with being a minor in possession of alcohol and violating open container law; he was passenger in car stopped for speeding
DEC. 19, 2005: Charged with possession of cocaine with intent to resell and theft by receiving a stolen 9 mm handgun
APRIL 27, 2006: Traffic stop for improper windshield tint and driving without a license
JUNE 30, 2006: Arrested for driving without a valid license, misdemeanor possession of marijuana and possession of Ecstasy
AUG. 4, 2006: Arrested for possession of cocaine; released on bond
SEPT. 5, 2006: Bench warrant issued for his arrest after he doesn’t appear for arraignment
OCT. 4, 2006: Pleads guilty to three pending felony cases. Judge J. Carlisle Overstreet sentences him to five years’ probation under the First Offender Act and sets fine and surcharges at $5,550
JUNE 28, 2007: Probation officer files revocation petition because Mr. Elmore had not reported since January or paid on his fines and fees
AUG. 8, 2007: Arrested for speeding and driving without a license
AUG. 15, 2007: Judge signs order to release Mr. Elmore from jail; payment on his fine is made and he is returned to probation
SEPT. 11, 2007: Charged with driving without a license
OCT. 19, 2007: Probation officer files petition asking judge to revoke the First Offender sentence because of arrest on traffic offenses and because he didn’t report to probation, do community service or stay employed
NOV. 11, 2007: Judge returns him to probation, increasing the supervision to “intensive” probation
JAN. 29: Charged with seat belt violation and driving without a license
MARCH 26: Driving movement violation, failure to stop after an accident, driving without insurance and without a driver’s license
APRIL 21: Traffic ticket because of speedometer not working
AUG. 24: Arrested on charges of possession of cocaine with intent to resell and misdemeanor offenses of possession of marijuana and obstruction
AUG. 27: Judge signs order releasing him from jail; probation officer concurs.
OCT. 29: Judge Overstreet revokes First Offender status. No hearing date is set to determine whether the probation sentence should be changed to a prison sentence.
Source: Richmond County state and superior court records
On message boards all over the internet, this rap sheet is sending shockwaves through more privileged circles. “How could he not go to jail?!?!” Instead of looking at all these bullshit charges for what they are, they only see the length of his rap sheet and cry out “send him away!!”
So Justin Elmore had a few possession charges from either trying to get high or trying to make ends meet, and a whole slew of bullshit harassment charges stemming from being impoverished and black. After looking at these charges it would make sense that Elmore might try to get away from the police, after all… he was facing some time. What we don’t see in any of these charges is any type of violent crime, aside from struggling with a cop as he tried to eat his marijuana joint (which we don’t consider violent anyways). Not even a domestic charge with a family member. To portray Elmore as some time of violent criminal or even a life-long criminal is totally off the mark and very slanderous. To infer, from this record, that Justin Elmore is the type of person who would run down a police office with his car is ridiculous. The dude never got even one assault charge in his life, now he’s just going to murder a cop? All we see from this rap sheet is a portrait of an oppressed person under constant harassment. How many times did he get pulled over and harassed by cops?!
But while the community was angered by the police repression and resistance flared up a couple of times as a result of that anger, there were typical local reformist leaders that came out to blame the victim. Consider Example A, Macedonia baptist Church Pastor Gregor M. Fuller (who delivered Justin Elmore’s eulogy):
Here is journalist Johnny Edwards’ account:
Macedonia Baptist Church Pastor Gregory M. Fuller delivered a moving eulogy. He said God can bring good from his death, and he called for young people to honor his memory by getting educations and ridding themselves of “the welfare mentality.”
At one point during the service the Rev. Fuller asked a Tubman Middle School student named Carlos to stand up.
“That’s one brother that ain’t gonna’ be lost in the street,” he said. “We can save our young people, so they don’t end up messed up.”
THE WELFARE MENTALITY?!?!? Is this really the time to be speaking on the “welfare mentality”?!?! Well speaking of honoring the memory of Justin Elmore why don’t we start by not blurring the issues and playing into the right-wing’s hands. What the hell does a welfare mentality have to do with being murdered in cold-blood by a police officer? And by saying that ‘Carlos’ won’t end up “messed up” the pastor was basically saying that Elmore was “messed up.” Like as if he was some unfixable automon that could never be straightened out. A community is outraged by police violence and the pastor comes over talking about messed up youths and welfare mentalities. How much more bankrupt can you get? Well, here Fuller is again:
Dr. Gregory Fuller, Pastor, Macedonia Baptist Church: “There’s nothing to be mad about until the investigation is complete. We want to make sure that justice prevails.”
It is the unified message going out to the city of Augusta.
Dr. Fuller: “As leaders of this community, we join together in calling for calm. Again I say, we are calling for calm as we await the outcome of the ongoing investigation by the GBI.”
You must be joking Dr. Fuller!! There’s nothing to be mad about until the investigation is complete?!?!?! See, this is the role of a reformist community leader such as Dr. Fuller. He comes out and tells the angry and emboldened communtiy members to stop taking to the streets, to be “calm” and wait for the police to tell us if the police did anything wrong. How can we trust the police to tell us what is REALLY going on?!
And of course Al Sharpton showed up as well. As a former Democratic presidential candidate (i.e. a reformist) he did what he usually does, talks a good one and then goes back home. The only group that kept it real – it seems – is the Augusta chapter of the New Black Panther Party:
Leader of the Augusta, Georgia NBPP Bobby Price.. expressed frustration with the Rev. Sharpton, accusing him of kowtowing to city and church leaders. Mr. Price said he was trying to give residents of Cherry Tree Crossing an outlet to vent their frustrations.
“We’re trying to be an influence in a positive way. We’ve got to get people talking, debating the issues,” he said. “It’s giving a voice to the voiceless.”
That’s what Malcolm-Che is talking about!! We have been critical towards the NBPP in the past, but it seems that the Augusta leader Bobby Price is right on with his politics, on display here:
Mr. Price said he wants to embolden poor blacks to emerge from the shadow of slavery and Jim Crow, and he doesn’t see where insulting whites and Jewish people fits into that.
“I’m about opposing racism, and if I take flack from those who think that’s too soft, I’m OK with that,” Mr. Price said.
To him, black supremacy doesn’t mean blacks are superior to other races, he said. It’s about teaching young blacks that their history goes back further than their ancestors’ arrival in slave ships, that black people founded the first human civilizations. He said he’s not anti-Jewish, but anti-Zionist because he believes in Palestine’s right to exist.
Monday’s protest wasn’t about race, Mr. Price said. One of the deputies involved in the shooting is black. Mr. Price said he opposes anyone who oppresses black people.
“It’s not about the color of the person’s skin,” he said. “We see it as a police brutality issue.”
No doubt, comrade! This is a police brutality issue. At least someone was there to clarify and didn’t sell out.
Here are a bunch of articles and links to info around this case, including ones that I quoted:
——————————————————————–
Suspect whose shooting provoked Sunday outbreak dies
http://chronicle.augusta.com/stories/latest/lat_500169.shtml
The man shot by police Sunday at a local public housing complex died tonight.
Justin Leonard Elmore was taken off life support by his family, according to a cousin who was at Medical College of Georgia Hospital when he passed away. Brenda Givens said the family made the decision after doctors determined he was brain dead.
“Everybody is having a hard time with it,” she said between sobs during a phone call from the hospital.
Ms. Givens said the family continues to believe the shooting was uncalled for.
“It ain’t right,” she said. “This was some wrong stuff that happened.”
News of Mr. Elmore’s death spread quickly and a candlelight vigil was organized at the site of Sunday’s altercation near the Cherry Tree Crossing housing complex.
Police said Mr. Elmore was shot Sunday afternoon when he tried to drive his SUV over deputies attempting to stop him on suspected drug charges. The incident at Carver Drive and 15th Street brought up to 200 people into the street, and many began throwing rocks and bottles at police and setting trash in dumpsters afire.
The Georgia Bureau of Investigation said Tuesday it has a police car video of the incident but won’t make it public until it concludes its investigation into the shooting.
GBI Special Agent Gary Nicholson said the video is considered evidence in the investigation of the deputies to determine if they were justified in shooting Mr. Elmore.
“We have looked at them in detail,” Agent Nicholson said. “We cannot release them but they have been entered as evidence in this case and as such they are not available for public record at this point in the investigation.”
On Monday, Richmond County Sheriff Ronnie Strength said the video appears to show that his officers, Jose Rivera Ortiz and Michael Hodge, acted appropriately in shooting a man who tried to ram Deputy Ortiz with his SUV. Agent Nicholson said he has watched video from both deputies’ patrol cars and that they “accurately show what happened.”
This comes as deputies dealt with another night of violence in Augusta’s Cherry Tree Crossing housing project. On Monday night, a deputy’s patrol car was hit with a bullet. The incident appeared isolated, however, and police said the area has been generally quiet since Sunday when an angry crowd of as many as 200 lobbed rocks and bottles at police following the shooting of a 23-year-old fleeing drug suspect.
According to sheriff’s reports, Cpl. Charles Benson was patrolling in the 1600 block of McCauley Street at 11:30 p.m. when he heard five or six gunshots. The deputy then heard a thump in the rear of his vehicle where a bullet struck the license plate, the report said.
The Sheriff’s Office along with Georgia State Patrol troopers, increased their presence in the area
The two deputies have been placed on administrative duty pending a GBI review of the case.
Anyone with who witnessed the incident is asked to call the GBI at (706) 595-2575.
Questions remain about Cherry Tree Crossing
http://metrospirit.com/index.php?cat=1992409084010404&act=post&pid=12352912083021031
What happened at Cherry Tree Crossing? The sheriff’s department got a call that a stolen dark SUV in the neighborhood was carrying drugs and weapons. The description of the vehicle presumably didn’t include a tag number. Three deputies attempted to pull over Justin Elmore in his not-stolen SUV. In the words of Sheriff Ronnie Strength:
“There was one patrol car in front of the suspect vehicle and another behind it. The deputy in front of the SUV exited his patrol car and was approaching the SUV when the subject backed into the patrol car in the rear and then drove forward in the direction of the deputy. The officer fired his weapon into the direction of the suspect’s vehicle striking the front windshield and into the front passenger window as the suspect passed next to the deputy.”
The sheriff tells the press that there is video and that “the video will tell the complete story on exactly what happened. We will not release it. I’m gonna leave that up to the GBI. The video is evidence and it will be up to them at what time they will release it.”
The GBI has since announced that they will not release the video. Don’t we pay for those dashcams? Why can’t we see the video? Wouldn’t it be helpful for people who fear the police to see that this shooting was justified? Wouldn’t it be good to clear the shooting deputies’ names by showing the video? Does the GBI think the video is just too gruesome for our innocent eyes? We need the protection of the GBI, but is shielding us from unpleasantness the protection we need?
Augusta, GA—Reverend Al Sharpton, President, National Action Network: “No one wants to bury their children, but we also want to make it clear we are going to stand with this family.“
In a display of calm and a call for unity, Reverend Al Sharpton offered words of support and comfort to the hundreds who paid their respects to Justin Elmore. Many are angry and saddened over his death.
Rev. Sharpton: “If anything good is going to come out of this situation, we in the community have to understand it ain’t going to be easy.“
Rev. Sharpton says he has met with Elmore’s family, clergy, and elected officials to make sure justice is served.
Rev. Sharpton: “There has been a call for peace and calm and I join that, but there must be an equal call for justice…to call for peace without justice is just to call for quiet…amen. We need real peace and peace is when all of us are respected the same way.“
Elmore’s shooting and news of his death sparked outrage and led to tension between residents of Cherry Tree Crossing and police. Neighbors in Cherry Tree Crossing took to the streets, throwing rocks and bottles at police. Officers in riot gear worked to control the crowd.
Monday, Rev. Sharpton says there has to be mutual respect on the part of the community and police in the aftermath of the shooting death.
Rev. Sharpton: “I appeal to those in Augusta to understand that these are our children, some of them, make mistakes, sometimes they may even break the law. That’s why they have courts, but don’t expect us to sit silently while you take target practice on our children…“
Elmore had an extensive arrest record and police suspected he had drugs and weapons in his vehicle, the night of the shooting. Rev. Sharpton told the standing room only crowd that the investigation should be done fairly and that Augusta’s leaders should make sure it happens that way.
Rev. Sharpton: “Criminals are wrong if they’re in blue jeans, or in blue uniform. There must be one law for everybody. We respect police. We need them, but we need them to respect the law.“
The GBI is heading up the investigation. The agency says it will not release dash cam video of the shooting. Its findings from the investigation will be turned over to the District Attorney’s office.
The Rev. Al Sharpton will be in Augusta on Monday speaking at the funeral of a 23-year-old black man whose fatal shooting by sheriff’s deputies has sparked racial tensions between the police and the community.
Authorities say Justin Elmore was shot last Tuesday after he allegedly tried to run over the officers during a traffic stop after he was pulled over for driving a suspected stolen vehicle. He died after his family took him off of life support later the same day.
Some outraged over the shooting have thrown rocks and bottles in protest.
Elmore’s funeral is scheduled for 11 a.m. at Macedonia Baptist Church.
Civil Rights Group Demands Answers After Cherry Tree Crossing Shooting
http://www.wjbf.com/jbf/news/state_regional/georgia/
article/civil_rights_group_demands_answers_after_shooting/9549/
Augusta) – Members of the Southern Conference Leadership Conference are demanding answers after two officers shot and killed alleged drug dealer Justin Elmore in the Cherry Tree Crossing community.
James Ivery is president of the local chapter of the SCLC.
Ivery: “If there is an illegal killing in Cherry Tree Crossing by the Richmond County Sheriff’s Department. The SCLC, The National Action Network, the NAACP we will address this problem.”
The Sheriff says deputies shot Elmore when he refused to stop. Officers say he used his SUV as a weapon to try to run over them.
Yusuf Shahid lived in Cherry Tree Crossing, and knew Elmore.
Yusuf Shahid: “If the officer’s lives were in jeopardy, why did they not shoot the tires out? What’s the protocol for this type of incident? We’re asking all people, regardless of your nationality, your religion, or whatever, to come and support this issue to stop this madness.”
A candlelight vigil was held in Elmore’s memory, Tuesday, after news of his death. But a short time later, unrest once again descended on the neighborhood.
State troopers and the SWAT team worked to restore order.
Wednesday, Ivery called for calm from residents and asked them to let the SCLC and other civil rights groups work to get answers.
Ivery: “We cannot do anything angry. We cannot solve anything by burning down dumpsters. We cannot do anything by throwing rocks and bottles at the police.”
Shahid and Ivery want to know why they haven’t seen other elected officials.
Shahid: “Deke Copenhaver came prior to him being elected and drank with us at the Sunset reunion, but has not sent anyone with us to talk to us.
Ivery: “The Mayor should have been here when it first happened, but he’s not. Where is the Mayor?“
FBI gets malfunctioning video; four in custody identified
http://chronicle.augusta.com/stories/latest/lat_500171.shtml
The Georgia Bureau of Investigation said this afternoon that it has sent a malfunctioning dash camera video tape from Sunday’s police shooting of Justin Elmore to the Augusta Office of the FBI.
The videotape will be forwarded to the FBI Crime Lab in Washington for repair and video recovery, according to a statement from Gary Nicholson, special GBI agent in charge of the regional office.
Two other video cameras also captured the incident, but authorities have refused to make their images public, although Sheriff Ronnie Strength says he has seen them and they support the action taken by his men.
Mr. Elmore was shot Sunday during a confrontation with Richmond County sheriff’s deputies, an incident that has produced demonstrations and protests around the Cherry Tree Crossing public housing complex for the past three nights.
Four were arrested Tuesday night and charged with disorderly conduct. They were identified today as:
* Dexter Barnett, 21, of the 1500 block of Wooten Street.
* Rodriquez McFadden, 17, of the 1600 block of McCauley Street.
* Michael Harry Riley, 52, of the 1500 block of Bleakley Street.
* Bartrell Griffin, 17, of the 2800 block of Rocky Creek Road.
Sgt. Ken Rogers said none of the men have been accused of assaulting a police officer.
Also today, state Rep. Wayne Howard said he plans to meet with the residents of Cherry Tree Crossing.
After a breakfast meeting between legislators and the Richmond County school board, Mr. Howard said no meeting is scheduled for the residents of the community, but one will be held.
His state House district includes the public housing community where Mr. Elmore was shot. He died Tuesday after being taken off life-support systems.
Ministers Meet With Local Leaders About Cherry Tree Crossing
http://www.wjbf.com/jbf/news/state_regional/georgia/
article/ministers_meet_with_local_leaders_about_cherry_tree_crossing/9584/
Augusta, GA—Community leaders say enough is enough, and they’re stepping up, hoping to put an end to the violence. They’re trying to find a new way to move forward, peacefully, especially, while the investigation is ongoing.
Thursday, a closed-door meeting was held at the Good Shepherd Baptist Church. More than 20 community leaders were there, including some local ministers…all of them with the same agenda.
Dr. Gregory Fuller, Pastor, Macedonia Baptist Church: “There’s nothing to be mad about until the investigation is complete. We want to make sure that justice prevails.”
It is the unified message going out to the city of Augusta.
Dr. Fuller: “As leaders of this community, we join together in calling for calm. Again I say, we are calling for calm as we await the outcome of the ongoing investigation by the GBI.”
Thursday, more than 20 community leaders, including the Mayor, Sheriff Strength, and area ministers, joined forces, trying to find a way to restore peace in the Cherry Tree neighborhood.
Mayor Deke Copenhaver, Augusta: “We are a strong community, we can come together, we can get through these things, and I saw that this morning.”
During a taping of WJBF News Channel 6’s, ‘The Means Report,’ Mayor Copenhaver and Commissioner Alvin Mason talked about restoring trust back into Cherry Tree Crossing.
Mayor Copenhaver: “The Commission has banded together, we’re doing a good job. I can’t say to anybody, ‘well you need to trust this person or that person,‘ we as a city government, though, are focused on returning the public trust to this entity.”
Alvin Mason, Commissioner: “I think it would be premature for someone to make a statement about how someone feels or does not feel in reference to the Sheriff’s Department, so my focus and our focus as leaders is to restore the calm.”
And restoring calm, is exactly what these leaders have set out to do.
Dr. Fuller: “We’re going to preach it, we’re going to go into the streets, we’re going to talk to the residents of the neighborhood, we’re going to be out there.”
You can catch more of what Commissioner Mason and Mayor Copenhaver had to say by watching ‘The Means Report.’ It airs this Sunday afternoon at 12:30 p.m. on our secondary digital station, RTN. That is channel 246 for most cable subscribers.
Shooting is lesson to stop for police
http://chronicle.augusta.com/stories/2008/12/27/let_505471.shtml
If her children were playing in the yard and Justin Elmore, while fleeing from the officers, veered off the road and ran them over, would she still think the officers should have just “jumped or ran out of his way” and let him go?
What if, in the ensuing chase, he crashed into a family and killed them? Would she still believe it is a good idea to let this career criminal, with a history of fleeing from the police, just go? Or would she prefer the police just let all criminals run away and never be caught or punished for their crimes?
The officer who fired on Elmore was on foot. He was walking toward Elmore’s car. He did not have the protection of his squad car around him. After seeing Elmore ramming another officer’s car and steering toward him, he had no doubt Elmore would have no problem running him over. He was faced with a 3,500-pound weapon aimed directly at him, and he did what he had to do to stop the threat.
It is always tragic when someone loses their life, but police officers put their lives on the line for us every single time they go to work. Sometimes they have to make split-second, life-and-death decisions — decisions none of us would ever want to make.
Elmore was not some innocent bystander gunned down; he was a career criminal trying to flee from police. He was wrong for not stopping. He was wrong for aiming his car at a police officer, and sadly he paid the ultimate price. Let this be a lesson to all of us: When the police say stop, stop !
Man’s minor crimes added up over years
http://chronicle.augusta.com/stories/2008/12/21/met_504850.shtml
In his short adult life, Justin Elmore was in and out of court more often than some lawyers.
Though police never charged Mr. Elmore with a violent crime, the 23-year-old fatally shot by deputies last week appeared to be constantly on their radar.
In addition to three felony drug cases, Mr. Elmore had 12 different misdemeanor cases.
He spent time in jail, but never for very long. That’s not a surprise to people familiar with the criminal justice system. Only so many people can fit in overcrowded jails and prisons, and judges prefer to use those spots for criminals who commit violent and major crimes, attorneys said.
Mr. Elmore’s offenses mostly dealt with drug possession and traffic violations.
Veteran criminal defense attorney Pete Theodocion said Mr. Elmore’s number of arrests might shock some people, but it is probably more reflective of his socioeconomic circumstances.
People in poor neighborhoods have more contact with police, he said. If someone has a proclivity to act out, he is going to be in court a lot, Mr. Theodocion said.
The reality is a college student who uses marijuana constantly is less likely to be arrested than a user in public housing.
“It is what it is,” he said.
Still, a dozen arrests is an extreme number, said Augusta attorney Scott Connell, who has practiced law as a prosecutor and a defense attorney.
Once a person is known to the police, he can expect more encounters, and if he is hanging out in areas where police know drugs are bought and sold, the chances of being stopped and questioned increase even more, Mr. Connell said.
He agrees with Mr. Theodocion that the police presence is greater in poor neighborhoods. It’s also where police are needed more, Mr. Connell said.
But the perceptions residents there have of police are often negative. People in middle- and upper-class areas see a police presence as a comfort, not intimidation, Mr. Connell said.
Richmond County State Court Judge David Watkins sees a lot of repeat misdemeanor offenders. Augusta isn’t a very big city, and once a person is on the radar of law enforcement, he tends to remain there, the judge said.
Mr. Elmore owed more than $5,000 in fines on his felony drug convictions and thousands more from his misdemeanor cases. The probation department filed violation warrants numerous times because, for one reason, Mr. Elmore wasn’t paying on his fines.
Judge Watkins said he and other judges are willing to convert fines into community service or waive fines if defendants follow the probation rules.
“It’s not locked in that someone is set up to fail,” he said. “But sometimes it’s almost that the system is trying harder to help them than they are willing to help themselves.”
SUV in shooting wasn’t stolen
http://chronicle.augusta.com/stories/2008/12/20/met_504789.shtml
The SUV driven by a man fatally wounded by police Sunday was not stolen, the GBI said Friday, addressing controversy surrounding ownership of the vehicle.
However, Special Agent Gary Nicholson of the Georgia Bureau of Investigation wouldn’t release information about who does own the Chevrolet Tahoe driven by Justin Elmore.
Mr. Elmore, 23, was shot by sheriff’s deputies who said he was trying to run them over after they had stopped him near Augusta’s Cherry Tree Crossing housing project.
Richmond County Sheriff Ronnie Strength said Thursday that some confusion about the SUV’s ownership likely stems from calls to police about a similar vehicle reported stolen Sunday night.
“Never was I ever told that the SUV was stolen,” he said. “He was in his SUV. It was about the drugs and the gun.”
Augusta Commissioner Corey Johnson also said Sunday night that he was told deputies got a tip that a stolen black SUV in the area carried drugs and guns.
Deputies Jose Ortiz and Michael Hodge were responding to such a tip, according to authorities. The deputies say that when they boxed in Mr. Elmore’s SUV, he put his car in reverse, rammed into Deputy Hodge’s patrol car and then tried to hit Deputy Ortiz, who approached on foot from the front.
Sheriff Strength said he believes Deputy Ortiz fired two shots at the front windshield, then shot through the front passenger side window as the SUV passed him. He said Deputy Hodge also fired his gun, but he was not sure where those shots went.
The two deputies both had .40-caliber semiautomatic Glocks with 13-bullet clips, Sheriff Strength said. He said he didn’t know how many shots were fired.
Mr. Elmore died Tuesday night after being taken off life support at Medical College of Georgia Hospital.
Both deputies have been placed on administrative duties pending the outcome of an ongoing investigation, Agent Nicholson said.
A third deputy trailed behind the two officers but did not fire shots, Sheriff Strength said. The dash camera from that deputy’s car malfunctioned and will be sent to the FBI Crime Lab in Washington to try to recover any images. The recording won’t show details of the shooting because the camera was facing toward an apartment at Cherry Tree Crossing, Agent Nicholson said.
“In order to be thorough, we wanted to still check the tape,” he said.
The two other police cars recorded the incident, but authorities have not made the recordings public.
New Black Panther Party denies charges of racism
http://www.independentpoliticalreport.com/2008/12/new-black-panther-party-denies-charges-of-racism/
Before marching through Cherry Tree Crossing with armed members of the New Black Panther Party – as an observing journalist, of course – I knew very little about the group.
My covering the protest Monday happened spur of the moment. The day started with an assignment to cover the funeral of Justin Elmore, killed in a police shooting Dec. 14. There were about a half dozen men at the church in black uniforms. Later in the day, I got word of a press conference at the site of the shooting, which turned out to be a march of about 200 people led by those uniformed men.
They had no permit and they hadn’t notified the city in advance. They marched carrying shotguns and assault rifles, alarming Cherry Tree Crossing residents and raising the ire of Richmond County Sheriff Ronnie Strength. The sheriff dispatched deputies in riot gear, and Panthers Augusta chapter Chairman Bobby Price, wanting to avoid a confrontation, had his people put away their guns and quickly wrapped up the demonstration.
Back at the office that evening, under deadline pressure, a cursory Internet check of the New Black Panthers revealed they’re not part of the late Huey P. Newton’s leftist civil rights organization of the 1960s and 1970s. I called Mr. Price and confirmed that, even though his business card spells Panthers with an s, his group is part of the New Black Panther Party for Self-Defense, a militant black supremacist group that formed in Dallas, Texas, in the late 1980s.
More research the following day turned up some disturbing stuff. I found accounts of New Black Panther leaders spewing anti-Semitic, racist vitriol and inciting confrontations. These were the guys who attacked reporters outside former U.S. Congresswoman Cynthia McKinney’s campaign headquarters after she lost in a 2006 runoff. Late National Chairman Khalid Abdul Muhammad called for genocide of whites and Jews. Both the Southern Poverty Law Center and the Anti-Defamation League consider the New Black Panthers a hate group, and the Huey P. Newton Foundation has called it illegitimate and denounced its hatred of whites.
I interacted with Mr. Price a good deal on Monday and didn’t get a racist vibe from him. I called him again and asked more questions about the party. I read him a quote from Mr. Muhammad: “There are no good crackers, and if you find one, kill him before he changes.”
“I don’t personally feel that,” Mr. Price said. “I understand that some offensive things have been said about whites and others, but that doesn’t define who we are.”
Mr. Price said he wants to embolden poor blacks to emerge from the shadow of slavery and Jim Crow, and he doesn’t see where insulting whites and Jewish people fits into that.
“I’m about opposing racism, and if I take flack from those who think that’s too soft, I’m OK with that,” Mr. Price said.
To him, black supremacy doesn’t mean blacks are superior to other races, he said. It’s about teaching young blacks that their history goes back further than their ancestors’ arrival in slave ships, that black people founded the first human civilizations. He said he’s not anti-Jewish, but anti-Zionist because he believes in Palestine’s right to exist.
Monday’s protest wasn’t about race, Mr. Price said. One of the deputies involved in the shooting is black. Mr. Price said he opposes anyone who oppresses black people.
“It’s not about the color of the person’s skin,” he said. “We see it as a police brutality issue.”
Mr. Price said he’s been chairman of the Augusta chapter for about five years. It has seven members including him, all of whom took part in the march.
New Black Panther groups often carry weapons in public appearances. The organization has staged protests over the dragging death of James Byrd in Jasper, Texas; in Jena, La., over the Jena Six controversy; and outside Duke University, where they demanded justice for a stripper who – it turned out – falsely accused three lacrosse players of rape.
The Rev. Al Sharpton has been peripherally involved, speaking at the party’s Million Youth March and arranging for Mr. Muhammad, who died of a brain aneurysm in 2001, to speak to street gangs. After Mr. Elmore’s funeral Monday at Macedonia Baptist Church, the Rev. Sharpton exited through the front door, then reentered the church through a lower-level side door where the Augusta Panthers had gathered in a hallway. A church official wouldn’t let me in.
Hours later, as Mr. Price readied for the march, he expressed frustration with the Rev. Sharpton, accusing him of kowtowing to city and church leaders. Mr. Price said he was trying to give residents of Cherry Tree Crossing an outlet to vent their frustrations.
“We’re trying to be an influence in a positive way. We’ve got to get people talking, debating the issues,” he said. “It’s giving a voice to the voiceless.”
