Page 4 - aruba-today-20221031

A4 U.S. NEWS
Monday 31 october 2022
Lying officers unpunished in 2018 inmate death

By John O’Connor tractual agreement and
Associated Press the accompanying boosts
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP) — in retirement benefits.
Three former Illinois prison Phone numbers associ-
guards face life behind ated with the officers are
bars after the 2018 fatal not connected, or mes-
beating of a 65-year-old in- sages weren’t returned.
mate in a case marked by None has responded to a
the unpunished lies of other request through the Cor-
correctional officers who rections Department to
continue to get pay raises, speak to them. Corrections
records obtained by The spokeswoman Naomi Puz-
Associated Press and court zello said an internal review
documents show. of the Earvin incident has
Juries convicted Depart- been postponed until the
ment of Corrections Officer federal probe is complete.
Alex Banta in April and Lt. She promised that Correc-
Todd Sheffler in August of tions will take “all appropri-
federal civil rights violations ate steps” to punish miscon-
owing largely to the coop- duct. But it has no authority
eration of the third, Sgt. Wil- “to take past wages from
lie Hedden. Hedden hopes an employee or impair a
for a reduced sentence pension,” she said.
even though he admitted Banta and Sheffler are in
lying about his involvement Former Illinois Correctional Lt. Todd Sheffler returns to federal court in Springfield, Ill., on April 21, federal custody, awaiting
until entering a guilty plea 2022. (AP Photo/John O’Connor, File) sentencing Banta on Tues-
18 months ago. Like Hedden, all admitted to an autopsy reports. Officer Richard Waterstraat day and Sheffler on Jan. 6.
But Hedden’s account of under oath that initially, Documents obtained by have flourished three have Hedden’s sentencing has
what happened to Western they lied to authorities in- The AP under the Illinois been promoted, one has not been scheduled.
Illinois Correctional Center vestigating Earvin’s death, Freedom of Information Act been on paid leave, and Hedden testified in April
inmate Larry Earvin on May including to the Illinois indicate that none of the on average, they’ve seen that he ascribed to “the
17, 2018, is not unique. Simi- State Police and the FBI. guards has been punished salary hikes of nearly 30% culture at Western” which
lar testimony was offered They covered up the brutal for the coverup. Despite and increases in pension called for roughing up trou-
by six other correctional of- beatings that took place admitting their indiscre- benefits. blemakers while escorting
ficers who still work at the and led to Earvin’s death tions, Lts. Matthew Lindsey Even if fired from their jobs them to the segregation
lockup in Mount Sterling, six weeks later from blunt- and Blake Haubrich, Sgts. now, they’d keep the ex- unit used to discipline in-
249 miles (400 kilometers) force trauma to the chest Derek Hasten, Brett Hen- tra money from salary hikes mates who break rules or
southwest of Chicago. and abdomen, according dricks and Shawn Volk and tied to promotions or con- threaten prison safety.q

Black church tradition survives Georgia’s voting changes

By Sudhin Thanawala and pandemic-driven expan- ter to voters in line. it as an attack on Black role in the fight for justice
Gary Fields sion of ballot drop boxes, Republicans said Georgia’s voters, who helped Demo- and freedom in the U.S.,
Associated Press reduced early voting be- new law was necessary to crats win the presidential said W. Franklyn Richard-
ATLANTA (AP) — Black fore runoff elections and restore confidence in the contest in Georgia in 2020 son, chairman of the board
church leaders in Georgia prohibited groups from state’s election system. for the first time since 1992 of trustees of the Confer-
organized rallies Sunday handing out food and wa- Civil rights advocates saw and later take the state’s ence of National Black
in a push to get their con- two U.S. Senate seats. They Churches.
gregants to vote a long- are pushing back by re- Richardson said efforts like
standing tradition known doubling efforts to turn out it are particularly critical this
as “souls to the polls” that Black voters. election cycle.
is taking on greater mean- Sunday’s scheduled “souls “It’s the cumulative ac-
ing this year amid new ob- to the polls” events include complishment of our
stacles to casting a ballot in a caravan organized by people that is being chal-
the midterm elections. church leaders and civil lenged and threatened
State lawmakers nearly did rights groups to take con- that makes this such an ur-
away with Sunday voting gregants from Rainbow gent election,” he said.
under a bill signed into law Park Baptist Church in the The idea for “souls to the
last year. The Republican- Atlanta area to a mall polls” goes back to the civil
sponsored legislation fol- where they can vote early. rights movement.
lowed former President U.S. Sen. Raphael Warnock, The Rev. George Lee, a
Donald Trump’s false claims the pastor of Ebenezer Black Mississippi entrepre-
that voter fraud cost him Baptist Church in Atlanta, neur, was assassinated by
reelection in 2020. Pastor Carl Johnson from the 93rd Street Community Baptist also planned to hold a rally white supremacists in 1955
Though lawmakers backed Church prays with a large group of people before the march to get church members to after he helped nearly
off the Sunday voting ban, during the Souls to the Polls on the last day of early voting as part vote on the last Sunday of 100 Black residents regis-
the bill shortened the time of one of many events prior to the general elections outside the the early voting period. ter to vote in the town of
to request a mail ballot, African Heritage Cultural Arts Center on Sunday, Nov. 1, 2020, “Souls to the polls” reflects Belzoni.q
in Miami
rolled back the COVID-19 (David Santiago/Miami Herald via AP) the Black church’s central