Page 18 - Florida Sentinel 2-23-16 Edition

National
Hero, 5, Saves Her Blind
Last ‘Angola 3’ Inmate Released After 43 Years In Solitary
Albert Woodfox on his 69th birthday was release from An- gola prison.Woodfox speaks after 43 years in solitary con- finement: 'I would not let them drive me insane'.
ANGOLA, LA --- Albert Woodfox, the longest-standing solitary confinement prisoner in the US, held in isolation in a six- by-nine-foot cell almost contin- uously for 43 years, has been released from a Louisiana jail.
Woodfox, who was kept in solitary following the 1972 mur- der of a prison guard for which he has always professed his in- nocence, marked his 69th birth- day on Friday by being released from West Feliciana parish de- tention center.
For the duration of that time, Woodfox was held in the cell for 23 hours a day. In the single remaining hour, he was allowed out of the cell to go to the “exer- cise yard” – a small area of fenced concrete – but was shackled and kept alone there as well.
Last November James Den- nis, a judge with the federal fifth circuit appeals court, de- scribed the conditions of Woodfox’s confinement. “For the vast majority of his life, Woodfox has spent nearly every waking hour in a cramped cell in crushing solitude without a valid conviction,” he said.
The prisoner’s release came after the state of Louisiana agreed to drop its threat to sub- ject him to a third trial for the 1972 killing. Woodfox in turn pleaded no contest to lesser charges of manslaughter and aggravated burglary.
The “no contest” plea is not an admission of guilt, and Woodfox continues to be not guilty of the main murder charge. He said that “although I was looking forward to proving my innocence at a new trial, concerns about my health and my age have caused me to re- solve this case now and obtain my release with this no-contest plea to lesser charges.”
Woodfox was one of the so- called “Angola 3”: three prison- ers initially held in Louisiana’s notorious Angola prison, and who subscribed to the Black Panther movement and cam- paigned against segregation within the institution in the 1970s. His supporters contend that he was framed for the 1972 killing of the prison guard Brent Miller as revenge for his political activities.
Traffic Stop Reveals Mom Riding Around With Dead Son In Trunk For 10 Years
Tonya Slaton and the last photograph of her son, Quincy Davis.
Grandmother From Burning House
KENNER, LA -- Cloe Woods, a 5-year-old from Kenner, La., is being hailed a hero after she led her blind Grandmother to safety when the stove in her home caught fire early Wednesday morning.
Cloe’s Mother, Shone Arceneaux, said the child quickly got out of bed and ran to her blind grandmother’s room.
“She told my mom to hold her shoulder and that they had to get out of the house,” Arce- neaux said.
Cloe’s know-how of exactly what to do in such a situation came after she attended a class at the Kenner Fire Department to learn about fire safety. John
CLOE WOODS
Hellmers, Kenner Fire De- partment Chief, has praised Cloe’s brave actions.
“She saved her grandmoth- ers’ life and saved her own life,” Hellmers said.
VIRGINIA BEACH, VA -- A seemingly normal vehicle stop by Virginia police turned into a very weird cause for arrest as a woman was found driving with the remains of her dead son in the trunk of her car.
According to People, Tonya Slaton was indicted for mur- der earlier this month after au- thorities made the discovery after pulling her over for ex- pired tags on her car in June 2015. As he started impound- ing the vehicle, the officer who pulled Slaton over detected a strong smell of rotting flesh coming from the trunk.
Upon opening the trunk, the officer discovered a heavily sealed trash bag covered by clothing. When asked what was in the bag, Slaton told the offi-
cer it was just clothes. A look inside the bag proved other- wise as the officer found the de- caying remains of Slaton’s son, Quincy Jamar Davis, who was last seen 10 years ago.
In addition to being charged with second-degree murder for her son’s death, Slaton was also charged with concealment of a dead body.
A medical examiner revealed that Davis was just 14 or 15 at the time of his death. The ex- aminer has yet to determine a cause of death for Davis, Peo- ple noted, adding that Davis lived a life filled with years of abuse at the hands of his mother. During his life, Davis was a seventh grader at Vir- ginia Beach Middle School.
Video Goes Viral Of 7-Year-Old’s
Meltdown After Learning
President Obama Is Leaving Office
Possibly inspired by the adorable viral hashtag #Oba- maAndKids this weekend, it appears that President Obama caught wind of a pop- ular video showing a little girl crying when she learned he was leaving office next January.
The Facebook page, belong- ing to the little girl’s grand- mother, Caprina D. Harris, shows a video of her totally dis- traught “dranbaby” snot-crying and saying, “I’m not ready” to let the president go, as her grandmother patiently explains that a president can only serve two terms.
The message attached to the video read, “On Saturday morning just before Gymnas- tics, My Granbaby found out that our President Barack Obama was no longer going to be our President!!! He has been her President all of her life and Yes her birthday is also on AU-
CAPRINA D. HARRIS,
GUST 4!!!! My poor baby!!!” The president then re- sponded by posting a message in the comments section of the post saying, “Caprina, tell her to dry her tears, because I'm not going anywhere. Once I leave the White House, I'll still be a citizen just like her. And when she grows up, she can get involved right alongside me. In the meantime, I'll keep an eye out for her letter, and we'll al- ways get to celebrate our birth-
days together!”
Police Seek Suspect In Shooting Of
Gunman Who Allegedly Shot
MIAMI -- Police are seeking suspects in the shooting death of a 6-year-old boy who wanted to grow up to be a police officer.
The boy was shot and killed outside his Miami apartment complex on Saturday in what police say was likely a fight be- tween young men.
Witnesses told law enforce- ment a black four-door sedan rolled up in the parking lot of the Northwest Miami-Dade apartment complex and two unknown males got out and began shooting. Three suspects may have been in the car when it sped from the apartment complex, the Miami Herald re- ported.
The boy, King Carter, a first-grader at Van E. Blanton Elementary School, was play- ing with friends outside his apartment when gunfire erupted.
A police officer performed CPR on the child before he was airlifted to the trauma center at Jackson Ryder Memorial Cen- ter. It is not clear who was the intended target, ABC 6South- Florida reported.
"I was in the house when I heard gunfire. When I came outside I saw my friend's son on the ground on his side," said Xavier Robert, who has lived in an upstairs apartment for
Two 2 NYPD Cops Lost Control
After Divorce, Says Ex-Wife
NEW YORK- The gunman who allegedly took aim at NYPD cops in Brooklyn after a wild chase regressed to his rowdy, drug-fueled ways after a divorce, his stunned ex-wife said Sunday.
Authorities added attempted murder, assaulting a police of- ficer, criminal possession of a weapon, menacing and reck- less endangerment charges to Frederick (Jamal) Funes’ 20-year-long rap sheet span- ning three states.
The two cops he allegedly shot remained at Kings County Hospital with non-life threat- ening injuries.
His 26-year-old ex-wife, who did not want to be named, said Funes, 34, had struggled with anger issues since he was a child growing up in foster homes on Chicago’s South Side.
Frederick Funes struggled with anger issues since his childhood, but his condition got worse after his divorce in 2014, said his ex-wife.
“He had mental problems,” said the woman, who lives in Atlantic County, outside of At- lantic City, N.J. “I said, ‘Jamal you really need to get some help, you’re out of control.’”
King Carter, 6, was killed in a Miami-area shooting Satur- day. Police are looking for the shooters.
about three years and used to toss footballs with King. "This shooting needs to stop. Kids can't even play outside. This in- nocent child won't get to enjoy a full life. I am sad, mad, hurt."
Miami-Dade Police Director Juan Perez said the shooting was one of dozens that has oc- curred since last fall, all the re- sult of young men gun-fighting.
"It's another tragic event in- volving young males and gun fights for really senseless acts," he said. "We are not going to stand idle. It's all hands on deck ... We are tired of this.''
Perez said police need the public's help.
6-Year-Old Miami Boy
PAGE 18 FLORIDA SENTINEL BULLETIN PUBLISHED EVERY TUESDAY AND FRIDAY TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 23, 2016