Support the Sean Bell Arrestees--NYC Sentencing Hearing Oct. 8

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SUPPORT - Sean Bell Arrestees

Send a message of “NOT Guilty” to Judge Larry Stephen
Act NOW!

Your message will also go to the media so that they cannot ignore
continued police violence in NYC.

Click the link below to send a message directly to presiding Judge Larry
Stephen, Mayor Bloomberg, Gov Paterson, Senators Clinton and Schumer,
the New York State Legislature, and members of the media!
Sean Bell Arrestees Petition

Sentencing is 2:15pm - Wed, Oct 8, 2008
100 Center Street, 4th Floor, Jury 2 & C,
If you are in NYC make every effort to attend the sentencing.

Call for a “Not Guilty” verdict

It is outrageous that the police who killed Sean Bell with 50 bullets on
Nov 25, 2006 - the morning of his wedding and wounded Trent Benafield
and Joseph Guzman can be found “Not Guilty” of any charge in NYC
Criminal Courts. Yet those who responded to the verdict in wholly
justified protests may be found “Guilty”.

It is a crime that the NYC District Attorney’s office has continued with
this outrageous prosecution.

The arrestees do not deny that they took part in the May 7 well
organized, orderly and cohesive civil disobedience protests to raise an
urgent life and death issue. This is an issue of deep concern to
millions of people nationally who are outraged at unrestrained,
unpunished, continuing police violence.

A “Not Guilty” verdict is the only acceptable ending to these charges on
civil rights activists.

Many hundreds of people blocked evening rush hour traffic at bridges and
tunnels including the Triboro, Brooklyn, Queensboro and Manhattan
Bridges and the Holland and Midtown Tunnels. Many Thousands of others
surrounded them, supporting their justified action.

The organized protest followed the outrageous “Not Guilty” verdict for
the police who killed Sean Bell. Anger was enormous at the unchecked
racist police violence in Black and Latino communities of NYC.

More than 250 people were arrested at the May 7 protest. Charges were
quickly dropped on the overwhelming majority of arrestees.

However for 7 participants facing sentencing on Wednesday, October 8th,
charges were not dropped. Those facing sentencing include Rev Al
Sharpton - a key organizer of the May 7th civil disobedience action -
and a handful of others who have participated in civil disobedience
actions in the past. Once charged, these defendants refused to plead
‘guilty’ to any charges stemming from their justified protests while
police who commit murder with 50 bullets are found ‘not guilty’.

International Action Center activists took part in the Civil
Disobedience mass actions at several locations in Manhattan and Sara
Flounders, Co-Director of the International Action Center is also one of
the defendants due to be sentenced on Wednesday afternoon.

The other defendants are: Anthony Estes, formerly a victim of a brutal
police attack, James Patnaude, Donna Gould, Manijeh Saba and Felton
Davis.

At their trial of October 6th Attorneys Michael Hardy and Wylie Stecklow
attempted to raise an important political defense of “justified
necessity”. The actions against continuing police killings were
justified and necessary. In summary: the participants acted because
there were no adequate legal means to avoid this harm, and they acted to
avoid grave harm not of their own making and to avert an impending
danger of more police killings.

Judge Larry Stephen, formerly of the NYC District Attorney office,
refused to allow this defense of “justified necessity” to be introduced.
He limited the testimony to police descriptions of the street arrests.

Support these justified actions to protest a racist, violent police and
court system. Fill the NY Criminal Court 100 Center Street, Jury 2 & C
Wednesday at 2:15pm.
Sign the message to Judge Larry Stephen.
Sean Bell Arrestees Petition

The text of the online petition message follows:

PETITION TO JUDGE LARRY STEPHEN, with copies to Governor Paterson,
Senators Clinton and Schumer, Mayor Bloomberg, the New York Legislature
and members of the media:

Dear Judge Larry Stephen,

I am deeply concerned with the continuing police violence against
unarmed and defenseless people in NYC, especially in communities of
color.

I am even more concerned that this uncontrolled police violence has no
form of redress. Every parent worries for the safety of their children.
The danger is imminent and all pervasive, yet it is systematically
ignored.

The police must be held accountable to the community for their conduct.

Again and again in mass demonstrations, protests and gatherings
concerned people in New York City and nationally have voiced their
protests.

The well organized civil disobedience actions held on May 7, 2008 spoke
to the concerns of millions of people all across the U.S.

There seems to be no other forum left to address these justified
grievances.

I urge you to find the defendants before your court today ‘Not Guilty”
of the frivolous charges against them. They acted, with great
seriousness and commitment, to bring this emergency to national
attention.

They have the support of many tens of thousands of other concerned and
determined people.

It would be a grievous miscarriage of justice and a serious misuse of
the courts for these defendants to be found guilty of ANY charge while
NYC police are found “Not Guilty” of all charges.

We urge you to act in a way that sends a message to NYC that this
serious problem must be addressed

Sincerely,