Page 19 - Florida Sentinel 10-15-19

National
State Senator Wants White Judge Who
A White Student Spat On A Black
Sentenced Black Man To Jail For
Patron At The National Museum Of
Missing Jury Duty Taken Off The Bench
African American History And Culture
A Florida state senator wants the judge who sentenced a black man to 10 days in jail for missing jury duty stripped of his judicial powers.
Senator Bobby Powell blasted Palm Beach judge John S. Kastrenakes for sentencing 21-year-old Deandre Somerville to incarceration as well probation, community serv- ice and a monetary fine after the college student, who has no criminal record, confessed he overslept, then failed to notify the court he would not be avail- able to perform his civic duty.
"If he is not going to be fair as a judge, he does not need to be there,” Powell wrote in a com- plaint filed to the Florida Judi- cial Committee Wednesday, according to the South Florida Sun-Sentinel.
Deandre Somerville, 21, of West Palm Beach poses for a por- trait on Thursday, Oct. 3, 2019, in West Palm Beach, Fla. A judge sentenced Somerville to 10 days in prison, one year probation and 150 hours of community service for missing a jury service.
A white middle school stu- dent from Connecticut was re- cently kicked out of the National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington, D. C. after spitting on a black visitor.
The student and his class from Shelton Intermediate School in Connecticut were promptly ejected on Friday, Buzzfeed reports.
And now the school’s prin- cipal, who was on the trip, is saying the student’s actions were stupid, not racist.
“The incident at the African American Museum in- volved a student spitting over a balcony,” said Principal Dina Marks on Twitter. “It
allegedly hit a visitor, a person of color. It was an act of stu- pidity, disinterest, & immatu- rity, completely inappropriate, but I believe, not racially motivated against that person.”
In a community letter posted online Friday night, the school’s Superintendent said the unidentified student “embarrassed himself and his school.”
Powell said he’s known Somerville and his family for over a decade and has never seen the young man “so much as raise his voice or be angry.”
He summarized Judge Kas- trenakes’ sentencing as “exces- sive.”
I’m calling on the Judicial
Qualifications Commission to immediately investigate Judge Kastrenakes for violations of the Code of Judicial Conduct.
The judge acted in an un- precedented manner to unfairly punish Deandre Somerville for missing jury duty. He must be held accountable!
Real Estate Agent Fired After Ad About Election Of Montgomery's First Black Mayor
Craig Schaid Came Under Scrutiny After Offering To Help Montgomery Residents Sell Their Houses If They Were Unsatis- fied With The Election Results.
New York Times Writer Accuses Dallas Police Of ‘Cover-Up’ In Death Of Key Witness In Amber Guyger Case
As we reported, folks across social media believe the Dallas Police Department are either directly responsible for the death of a key witness in Amber Guyger’s murder trial — or they’re engaged in a cover-up.
A New York Times Opinion columnist seems to agree.
Joshua Brown was gunned down three days after testifying against killer cop Guyger, and he attempted to evade the courtroom drama by fleeing the state out of fear for his life.
Last week, a Dallas County jury sentenced Guyger to 10 years in prison after convicting her of murdering her unarmed neighbor Botham Jean in his apartment last year.
Lee Merritt, who repre- sents the Jean family, said Brown was concerned that testifying would put his life at risk.
Dallas police identified three suspects allegedly linked to the murder of 28-year-old Brown. According to the po- lice... Jacquerious
JOSHUA BROWN
Mitchell, 20, Michael Mitchell, 32, and Thad- deous Green, 22, traveled from Alexandria, Louisiana, to purchase marijuana from Brown. But the alleged drug deal went south, shots were fired and Brown was left for dead.
“We received numerous tips that led us to execute a search warrant for Mr. Brown’s apartment. We confiscated 12 lbs. of marijuana, 149 grams of THC cartridges and $4,157 in cash,” the Dallas PD wrote on Twitter.
But New York Times Opin- ion columnist Jamelle Bouie ain’t buying the fantastical
tale.
“[I]f you’re going to do a
cover-up you should at least make it sound more plausible than this,” Bouie wrote in a Tuesday tweet, pointing to confusing details of the case.
“[N]ot only am [I] sup- posed to believe that these dudes traveled [four and a half] hours for weed but [I]’m also supposed to believe they left behind 12 lbs of weed and 1000s in cash and [I]’m sup- posed to believe that neither the defense nor prosecution had any knowledge that he was a prolific dealer,” Bouie added.
In response to the criticism from Twitter users, activists and community leaders, the DPD followed up with another tweet, saying: “The rumors shared by community leaders that Mr. Brown’s death was related to the Amber Guyger trial and that DPD was respon- sible are false. We encourage those leaders to be mindful be- cause their words may jea- pordize the integrity of the city of Dallas and DPD.”
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