Evelyn Williams: STATEMENT OF FACTS IN THE NJ TRIAL OF ASSATA SHAKUR

[Jahness]

*STATEMENT OF FACTS IN THE NEW JERSEY TRIAL OF ASSATA SHAKUR:*
Written by Evelyn A. Williams
June 25, 2005
www.assatashakur.org/appeal_case_facts_2005.htm
Spanish Version

As a member of Assata's New Jersey trial legal defense team, and her
appeal lawyer, I think a correct statement of the circumstances of New
Jersey Trooper Werner Foerster's death as established by exhibits, trial
testimony and forensic evidence and that conclusively repudiate the
revisionist lies now being advanced by the State of New Jersey as "fact",
need to be repeated.

It is to be remembered that the only surviving eyewitnesses to the NJ
Turnpike shoot-out were (1) Sundiata Acoli, (2) Trooper Harper, (3)
Assata and (4) the driver of a car traveling along the NJ Turnpike at the
time of the incident. Zayd Malik Shakur, a passenger, was killed during
the shootout.

1. Sundiata did not testify at trial, nor did he make any pre-trial
statements.

2. Harper's testimony and actions are contained in the following
documents (admitted into evidence)

a. The three official investigative reports prepared by Harper, in
which he wrote that after he stopped the Pontiac, he ordered Sundiata to
the back of the car to show his driver's license to Trooper Foerster who
had arrived at the scene. That Sundiata complied without incident. That
as he looked into the inside door of the Pontiac to check the
registration, Foerster yelled at him and held up an ammunition clip. He stated
that at the same time Assata reached into a red pocketbook, removed a
gun from it and fired at him. That he immediately ran to the rear of his
car and fired at Assata, who had emerged from the car, and was firing
at him from a prostrate position alongside of the Pontiac. And it was at
this point that he shot her. (admitted into evidence)

b. His Grand Jury testimony where he swore under oath to the truth of
the statements he had made in his 3 official reports. (admitted into
evidence)

*c. Trial transcripts of his testimony at both Sundiata's and Assata's
trials where he admitted, under cross-examination, that he had lied in
all three of his official reports and in his Grand Jury testimony. That
the truth was that Foerster had never shown him an ammunition clip;
that Foerster had not yelled to him; that he had not seen a gun in
Assata's hand while she was seated in the car; that Assata did not shoot him
from the car; and that he had not seen a red pocketbook.*

d. Audio tapes of the official recorded NJ Turnpike radio
communications between all NJ State Trooper cars traveling the Turnpike near the
scene of the shoot-out, dated May 2, 1973, which revealed that two
additional turnpike patrol cars, those driven by Trooper Robert Palenchar and
Trooper Woerner Foerster, had been ordered to aid Harper at the stop
prior to the shoot-out. (admitted into evidence)

e. The verbatim, hand-written record of what transpired inside the NJ
Turnpike Administration Building when Harper entered it at or about 1AM
on May 2, 1973, to report the shoot-out to Sergeant Chester Baginski
who was in charge of maintaining the official record of turnpike
occurrences on that (referred to as the Station Bible). Harper reported that he
had just been involved in a shoot-out after he had stopped a Pontiac
containing three Black people, two men and a woman, that he had been
wounded, and that the Pontiac was proceeding South on the turnpike. He gave
the license plate number, but did not mention that Trooper Foerster had
arrived at the scene. (admitted into evidence)

f. Audio tapes of the investigation conducted by Detective Sgt. First
Class Richard H. Kelly in the Administration Building at 7:37AM that
morning to determine why over an hour elapsed from the time Harper entered
the Administration Building that night and the discovery of Foerster's
body. Statements by each of the troopers present when Harper came into
the Administration Building revealed that Harper had not reported
Foerster's presence at the scene and that no one was aware of the fact that
Foerster lay on the road beside his car in front of the Administration
building for over an hour, when his body was accidentally discovered by
Trooper O'Rourke who had left the Administration building to
investigate the scene of the shoot-out, less than 200 yards away. (admitted into
evidence)

3. Assata testified that Harper stopped the car without any known
reason, shot her with her arms raised at his demand, and then shot her in
the back as she was turning to avoid his bullets. Almost mortally
wounded, and semi-conscious, she climbed into the backseat of the Pontiac to
avoid further bullets. Sundiata drove the car five miles down the road
and parked it, where she remained until State Troopers dragged her onto
the road.

4. A driver traveling north along the turnpike at the time of the
incident testified at trial that he had seen a State Trooper struggling with
a Black man between a parked white vehicle and a State Trooper car
whose overhead revolving lights lit up the area. He was unable to identify
the Black man, and further stated that he saw no one else on the road
or at the scene. He immediately reported what he had seen to New Jersey
Police Headquarters.

It therefore remained only forensic evidence to help determine the
facts of that night as much as they could be determined. The forensic
evidence examined by both the New Jersey crime laboratory in Trenton, New
Jersey and FBI crime laboratories in Washington, D.C. established the
following:

1. The finger print analyses of every gun and every piece of ammunition
found at the scene showed there were no fingerprints of Assata found on
any of them. (The official analyses were admitted into evidence)

2. Neutron Activation Analysis taken immediately after Assata was taken
to the hospital that night showed there was no gun power residue on her
hands. Effectively refuting the possibility that she had fired a gun.
(The official analyses were admitted into evidence)

3. As a result of the bullet Harper shot under her armpit, while her
arms were raised in, her median nerve was severed, immediately paralyzing
her entire right arm, shattering her clavicle, and lodging in her chest
so close to her heart that an operation to remove it was not feasible.
A neurologist testified to that fact at the trial.

4. A pathologist testified that "There is no conceivable way that the
bullet could have traveled over to the clavicle if her arm was down.
That trajectory is impossible."

5. A surgeon testified that "it was anatomically necessary that both
arms be in the air for Ms. Chesimard to have received the wounds she
did."

The state offered no expert witnesses to refute this medical testimony.

6. Photographs depicting the gunshot entry wound under her armpit and
the entry wound of the bullet Harper shot into her back were admitted
into evidence during the trial.

Therefore, since no evidence existed that proved Assata fired the
bullet that killed Trooper Foerster, why was she found guilty of his murder?
There are several explanations:

The first is that the climate of hatred, prejudice and racism that had
so contaminated the Middlesex County jury pool in 1973 that a change of
venue was ordered, continued to exist in 1977. The unanimous opinion of
the 1973 jury pool was "If she's Black, she's guilty." After three
defense motions for change of venue, Judge Leon Gerofsky granted the
motion, stating, "It was almost impossible to obtain a jury here comprised of
people willing to accept the responsibility of impartiality so that
defendants will be protected from transitory passion and prejudice." The
trial was then moved to Morris County where Assata's trial was severed
from Sundiata's because of her pregnancy.

In 1977 Assata began trial for the second time in this same Middlesex
County, and this time jury nullification was insured: The jurors chosen
to determine Assata's guilt or innocence consisted of five jurors who
were either relatives or close personal friends of state troopers or of
state law enforcement officers.

However, Assata was not convicted of firing the shot that killed
Trooper Foerster. She was convicted as an accomplice to his murder under New
Jersey's "aiding and abetting" statute. Under New Jersey law, if a
person's presence at the scene of a crime can be construed as "aiding and
abetting" the crime, that person can be convicted of the substantive
crime itself. Judge Theodore Appleby charged the jury that they were
permitted to speculate that Assata's "mere presence" at a scene of violence,
with weapons in the vehicle, was sufficient to sustain a conviction of
the murder of Trooper Foerster. She was also convicted of possession of
weapons – none of which could be identified as having been handled by
her and of the attempted murder of Trooper Harper, who had sustained a
flesh wound at the time of the shootout.

Now, 32 years after her conviction, a new, fabricated version of
Foerster's death has emerged:

There is absolutely no evidence to support statements made by Col.
Joseph R. Fuentes, superintendent of the New Jersey State Police, who said
that "It was later determined that Werner Foerster's service weapon was
ripped from his holster as he lay wounded on the pavement, and he was
executed with two shots to the head from his own service weapon."

But his motivation for making those statements is clear:

1. To justify Assata being placed on the domestic terror watch list
along with Osama bin Ladin. He said, "Anyone with a mindset that would
execute a police officer once they were on the ground is dangerous enough
to be considered a domestic terrorism threat." But Assata is the only
person convicted of a single domestic crime who has been classified a
terrorist and put on the terrorism watch list, thereby nullifying the
very definition of "terrorism"

2. To justify the $1 million dollar bounty to be paid from tax payers
money. He said, "The reward money should make Chesimard a much more
attractive quarry for professional bounty hunters."

New Jersey State Assembly Speaker, Albio Sires, a longtime member of
CANF (Cuban American National Foundation, representing Cuban exiles),
said: "If Cuba's citizenry could be informed of the $1 million bounty and
the real story of Chesimard's crimes, there is an increased likelihood
of her being brought to Justice…. We want the Cuban people to know the
real story about Joanne Chesimard and not the deceptive representation
advanced by the Castro regime. We want people to realize that she is
not a hero and she is really a violent criminal who is wanted for killing
a State Trooper and escaping justice."

By falsely asserting that Assata shot Foerster in the head while he lay
helplessly on the ground, killing him "execution style", the US Justice
Department hopes to strip Assata of any of the sympathy and political
support she now receives in the United States and from the citizens of
Cuba. By labeling her a cold-blooded cop killer, the hope is that the
real circumstances of the NJ Turnpike as well as all the years prior to
that event during which time Assata was relentlessly hunted with the
stated purpose of killing her on sight for having committed crimes of
which the government knew she was innocent, will be forgotten.

But even as official lies are now being manufactured to convert Assata
into a terrorist, so that Cuba can be accused of "harboring a
terrorist" and to justify kidnapping her, there are, in fact, two well-known and
admitted, convicted terrorists who are now being given safe harbor in
the United States.

The US government has refused to extradite admitted terrorist, Luis
Posada Carriles, (charged with the shoot down of a Cuban airliner in 1976,
killing 73 civilians and convicted of other terrorist acts including
the Bay of Pigs). The US government has also refused to extradite
Posada's convicted fellow terrorist, Orlando Bosch, who escaped from Venezuela
and came to Miami in 1987 with the assistance of the CANF, Jeb Bush and
his father, the then US Attorney, Gonzalez, who personally approved the
bounty, also approved prisoner torture at Abu Ghreb. Or that the
approval came after New Jersey resident, Michael Chertoff, was named
Secretary of the Department of Homeland Defense.

/There are the facts. Let us not forget them. /

/- Evelyn A. Williams/

PLEASE REDISTRIBUTE WIDELY

[IfasehunReincarnated]

I know no one else might not mention, but THIS site has the honor of being the first public source to distribute this document. This is a BIG revolutionary "scoop" for us.

Thanks to Sister Evelyn for trusting us to get the word out.

[Billy1944]

Peace !
Woe be upon the "professional bounty hunter" foolish enough to think his capturing the "Black Revolutionary Queen" will gain him fame and fortune.
Liberation is not a peaceful or nonviolent struggle!
This is a case where the hunter MUST be captured by the game to send a message loud and clear!

Originally Posted by Jahness

Evelyn Williams: STATEMENT OF FACTS IN THE NJ TRIAL OF ASSATA SHAKUR

*STATEMENT OF FACTS IN THE NEW JERSEY TRIAL OF ASSATA SHAKUR:*
Written by Evelyn A. Williams
June 25, 20005
www.assatashakur.org/appeal_case_facts_2005.htm

As a member of Assata's New Jersey trial legal defense team, and her
appeal lawyer, I think a correct statement of the circumstances of New
Jersey Trooper Werner Foerster's death as established by exhibits, trial
testimony and forensic evidence and that conclusively repudiate the
revisionist lies now being advanced by the State of New Jersey as "fact",
need to be repeated.

It is to be remembered that the only surviving eyewitnesses to the NJ
Turnpike shoot-out were (1) Sundiata Acoli, (2) Trooper Harper, (3)
Assata and (4) the driver of a car traveling along the NJ Turnpike at the
time of the incident. Zayd Malik Shakur, a passenger, was killed during
the shootout.

1. Sundiata did not testify at trial, nor did he make any pre-trial
statements.

2. Harper's testimony and actions are contained in the following
documents (admitted into evidence)

a. The three official investigative reports prepared by Harper, in
which he wrote that after he stopped the Pontiac, he ordered Sundiata to
the back of the car to show his driver's license to Trooper Foerster who
had arrived at the scene. That Sundiata complied without incident. That
as he looked into the inside door of the Pontiac to check the
registration, Foerster yelled at him and held up an ammunition clip. He stated
that at the same time Assata reached into a red pocketbook, removed a
gun from it and fired at him. That he immediately ran to the rear of his
car and fired at Assata, who had emerged from the car, and was firing
at him from a prostrate position alongside of the Pontiac. And it was at
this point that he shot her. (admitted into evidence)

b. His Grand Jury testimony where he swore under oath to the truth of
the statements he had made in his 3 official reports. (admitted into
evidence)

*c. Trial transcripts of his testimony at both Sundiata's and Assata's
trials where he admitted, under cross-examination, that he had lied in
all three of his official reports and in his Grand Jury testimony. That
the truth was that Foerster had never shown him an ammunition clip;
that Foerster had not yelled to him; that he had not seen a gun in
Assata's hand while she was seated in the car; that Assata did not shoot him
from the car; and that he had not seen a red pocketbook.*

d. Audio tapes of the official recorded NJ Turnpike radio
communications between all NJ State Trooper cars traveling the Turnpike near the
scene of the shoot-out, dated May 2, 1973, which revealed that two
additional turnpike patrol cars, those driven by Trooper Robert Palenchar and
Trooper Woerner Foerster, had been ordered to aid Harper at the stop
prior to the shoot-out. (admitted into evidence)

e. The verbatim, hand-written record of what transpired inside the NJ
Turnpike Administration Building when Harper entered it at or about 1AM
on May 2, 1973, to report the shoot-out to Sergeant Chester Baginski
who was in charge of maintaining the official record of turnpike
occurrences on that (referred to as the Station Bible). Harper reported that he
had just been involved in a shoot-out after he had stopped a Pontiac
containing three Black people, two men and a woman, that he had been
wounded, and that the Pontiac was proceeding South on the turnpike. He gave
the license plate number, but did not mention that Trooper Foerster had
arrived at the scene. (admitted into evidence)

f. Audio tapes of the investigation conducted by Detective Sgt. First
Class Richard H. Kelly in the Administration Building at 7:37AM that
morning to determine why over an hour elapsed from the time Harper entered
the Administration Building that night and the discovery of Foerster's
body. Statements by each of the troopers present when Harper came into
the Administration Building revealed that Harper had not reported
Foerster's presence at the scene and that no one was aware of the fact that
Foerster lay on the road beside his car in front of the Administration
building for over an hour, when his body was accidentally discovered by
Trooper O'Rourke who had left the Administration building to
investigate the scene of the shoot-out, less than 200 yards away. (admitted into
evidence)

3. Assata testified that Harper stopped the car without any known
reason, shot her with her arms raised at his demand, and then shot her in
the back as she was turning to avoid his bullets. Almost mortally
wounded, and semi-conscious, she climbed into the backseat of the Pontiac to
avoid further bullets. Sundiata drove the car five miles down the road
and parked it, where she remained until State Troopers dragged her onto
the road.

4. A driver traveling north along the turnpike at the time of the
incident testified at trial that he had seen a State Trooper struggling with
a Black man between a parked white vehicle and a State Trooper car
whose overhead revolving lights lit up the area. He was unable to identify
the Black man, and further stated that he saw no one else on the road
or at the scene. He immediately reported what he had seen to New Jersey
Police Headquarters.

It therefore remained only forensic evidence to help determine the
facts of that night as much as they could be determined. The forensic
evidence examined by both the New Jersey crime laboratory in Trenton, New
Jersey and FBI crime laboratories in Washington, D.C. established the
following:

1. The finger print analyses of every gun and every piece of ammunition
found at the scene showed there were no fingerprints of Assata found on
any of them. (The official analyses were admitted into evidence)

2. Neutron Activation Analysis taken immediately after Assata was taken
to the hospital that night showed there was no gun power residue on her
hands. Effectively refuting the possibility that she had fired a gun.
(The official analyses were admitted into evidence)

3. As a result of the bullet Harper shot under her armpit, while her
arms were raised in, her median nerve was severed, immediately paralyzing
her entire right arm, shattering her clavicle, and lodging in her chest
so close to her heart that an operation to remove it was not feasible.
A neurologist testified to that fact at the trial.

4. A pathologist testified that "There is no conceivable way that the
bullet could have traveled over to the clavicle if her arm was down.
That trajectory is impossible."

5. A surgeon testified that "it was anatomically necessary that both
arms be in the air for Ms. Chesimard to have received the wounds she
did."

The state offered no expert witnesses to refute this medical testimony.

6. Photographs depicting the gunshot entry wound under her armpit and
the entry wound of the bullet Harper shot into her back were admitted
into evidence during the trial.

Therefore, since no evidence existed that proved Assata fired the
bullet that killed Trooper Foerster, why was she found guilty of his murder?
There are several explanations:

The first is that the climate of hatred, prejudice and racism that had
so contaminated the Middlesex County jury pool in 1973 that a change of
venue was ordered, continued to exist in 1977. The unanimous opinion of
the 1973 jury pool was "If she's Black, she's guilty." After three
defense motions for change of venue, Judge Leon Gerofsky granted the
motion, stating, "It was almost impossible to obtain a jury here comprised of
people willing to accept the responsibility of impartiality so that
defendants will be protected from transitory passion and prejudice." The
trial was then moved to Morris County where Assata's trial was severed
from Sundiata's because of her pregnancy.

In 1977 Assata began trial for the second time in this same Middlesex
County, and this time jury nullification was insured: The jurors chosen
to determine Assata's guilt or innocence consisted of five jurors who
were either relatives or close personal friends of state troopers or of
state law enforcement officers.

However, Assata was not convicted of firing the shot that killed
Trooper Foerster. She was convicted as an accomplice to his murder under New
Jersey's "aiding and abetting" statute. Under New Jersey law, if a
person's presence at the scene of a crime can be construed as "aiding and
abetting" the crime, that person can be convicted of the substantive
crime itself. Judge Theodore Appleby charged the jury that they were
permitted to speculate that Assata's "mere presence" at a scene of violence,
with weapons in the vehicle, was sufficient to sustain a conviction of
the murder of Trooper Foerster. She was also convicted of possession of
weapons – none of which could be identified as having been handled by
her and of the attempted murder of Trooper Harper, who had sustained a
flesh wound at the time of the shootout.

Now, 32 years after her conviction, a new, fabricated version of
Foerster's death has emerged:

There is absolutely no evidence to support statements made by Col.
Joseph R. Fuentes, superintendent of the New Jersey State Police, who said
that "It was later determined that Werner Foerster's service weapon was
ripped from his holster as he lay wounded on the pavement, and he was
executed with two shots to the head from his own service weapon."

But his motivation for making those statements is clear:

1. To justify Assata being placed on the domestic terror watch list
along with Osama bin Ladin. He said, "Anyone with a mindset that would
execute a police officer once they were on the ground is dangerous enough
to be considered a domestic terrorism threat." But Assata is the only
person convicted of a single domestic crime who has been classified a
terrorist and put on the terrorism watch list, thereby nullifying the
very definition of "terrorism"

2. To justify the $1 million dollar bounty to be paid from tax payers
money. He said, "The reward money should make Chesimard a much more
attractive quarry for professional bounty hunters."

New Jersey State Assembly Speaker, Albio Sires, a longtime member of
CANF (Cuban American National Foundation, representing Cuban exiles),
said: "If Cuba's citizenry could be informed of the $1 million bounty and
the real story of Chesimard's crimes, there is an increased likelihood
of her being brought to Justice…. We want the Cuban people to know the
real story about Joanne Chesimard and not the deceptive representation
advanced by the Castro regime. We want people to realize that she is
not a hero and she is really a violent criminal who is wanted for killing
a State Trooper and escaping justice."

By falsely asserting that Assata shot Foerster in the head while he lay
helplessly on the ground, killing him "execution style", the US Justice
Department hopes to strip Assata of any of the sympathy and political
support she now receives in the United States and from the citizens of
Cuba. By labeling her a cold-blooded cop killer, the hope is that the
real circumstances of the NJ Turnpike as well as all the years prior to
that event during which time Assata was relentlessly hunted with the
stated purpose of killing her on sight for having committed crimes of
which the government knew she was innocent, will be forgotten.

But even as official lies are now being manufactured to convert Assata
into a terrorist, so that Cuba can be accused of "harboring a
terrorist" and to justify kidnapping her, there are, in fact, two well-known and
admitted, convicted terrorists who are now being given safe harbor in
the United States.

The US government has refused to extradite admitted terrorist, Luis
Posada Carriles, (charged with the shoot down of a Cuban airliner in 1976,
killing 73 civilians and convicted of other terrorist acts including
the Bay of Pigs). The US government has also refused to extradite
Posada's convicted fellow terrorist, Orlando Bosch, who escaped from Venezuela
and came to Miami in 1987 with the assistance of the CANF, Jeb Bush and
his father, the then US Attorney, Gonzalez, who personally approved the
bounty, also approved prisoner torture at Abu Ghreb. Or that the
approval came after New Jersey resident, Michael Chertoff, was named
Secretary of the Department of Homeland Defense.

/There are the facts. Let us not forget them. /

/- Evelyn A. Williams/

PLEASE REDISTRIBUTE WIDELY

[Im The Truth]

For those who were unsure about what really happen, check out the facts.

Uhuru!!!

[nattyreb]

The most important thing is THE FREE FLOW OF INFORMATION, regardless of who does what when. Asante sana to the hard workers at this site for typing alla that up, it saved many activists LOTS of work (including me)! Great job!

[Jahness]

Greetings Ifasehun, billy1944, Im The Truth, and nattyreb!

Welcome to the discussion everyone. This ststement speaks for itself. We as a team here at the forum, simply have to make sure we distribute this piece of vital information, so that the masses of our Afrikan people stays informed.

That is our mission which I know we all will accept with honor and a responsibility knowing that we are at war and that our sister, warrior
queen, and comrade Assata Shakur need all our support.

We have to make sure that while she is alive and well that we make sure her name is spoken with honor. That her story is told so that our people knows the truth. We have to remember a lot of the information that the masses has in reference to this case is what the oppressor has put out there. None of us should be without this statement on a flyer distributing them as we travel and move about in our daily lives.

The mission is urgent, and we have to get the facts out. Our sisters life is in danger every minute of every second of every day. Until she can be free to live her life as she sees fit then our job is not done. Those bounty hunters cares nothing about comrade Assata's life or that of her family. They are in it for the money and fame to say the the least.

We cannot allow this to happen. We must not allow this to happen. We cannot fail our sister in this time when she needs us so much. We are her strength. We have to do for her what she is unable to do for herself. As a matter of fact simply put we owe her. She almost lost her life defending us and our freedom, we have to do the same for her without apologies. We must continue to pray and work towards sister Assata's path staying blessed and guided.

Much thanks to you all for all the hard work everyone here at the forum does. All contributions are valued, and respected. Continue to fight for freedom and liberation. The oppressor will not win this fight.

Peace & blessings to everyone.

[Im The Truth]

Be sure warriors that this information is out there to the mass as it shows in Our People getting email about the Statement of Facts from people other than us. As after of fact if a person was to search for this information it can be found on multiple sites already. We promote the free flow of information, our sites are proud to be the information source for Our People. We don't have to worry about getting our props, the stats show that Our People are in touch so there is no need to hide or hold information from Our People.

P.S.
And from what I understand new "statement of fact" flyers english and spanish will be available for the streets soon.


Afrika For The Afrikans!!
Afrika Must Unite!!
Uhuru!!
Forward Ever!!

[IfasehunReincarnated]

Real Facts Flier in English is DONE Get it HERE:
www.assatashakur.org/extradite2.htm#info

[Im The Truth]

bump this up

[nattyreb]

We need to use this info on any right-wing talk radio or tv show that's dealing with any issue that could be steered towards discussing Assata's plight. We should be at the ready to call into these shows, armed with the magnificent info that Sis. Evelyn has so painstakingly prepared for our use. If anyone hears of anything upcoming where the topic is specifically dealing with our Sista (right or left wing for that matter), please post so we can encourage folks to call-in. We can also use this info as a response to "letters to the editor" in NJ and other mainstream newsrags, so please post those too!

Never EVER underestimate the power of call-ins and Op Ed pages in disseminating information via their mainstream media, it is a CRUCIAL activity that we have to grab onto whenever we are campaigning for MAXIMUM exposure!

[OsunkoyaIfayomi]

Detroit City Council supports exiled revolutionary

Published Aug 16, 2005 8:48 PM

The Detroit City Council unanimously passed a resolution
declaring July 17, “International Hands Off Assata Day� in
support of the African American freedom fighter, Assata
Shakur. July 17 is Shakur's birthday.

The resolution included a brief synopsis of Shakur's
political history, including her being a target of the FBI's
racist Counter Intelligence Program (Cointelpro) during the
1960s and 1970s. The resolution denounced the $1 million
bounty put on Shakur's head by the U.S. government May 2 to
encourage her being kidnapped from Cuba. She has been living
in exile there since her escape from prison in the United
States in 1979.

To read the resolution in its entirety, go to
http://www.workers.org/2005/us/resol...825/index.html


Detroit resolution supports freedom fighter Assata Shakur

Published Aug 16, 2005 9:19 PM

The following resolution was unanimously passed by the
Detroit City Council on July 27, 2005. The resolution was
submitted by Council Member Joann Watson

WHEREAS, Pervasive and unrelenting police terrorism directed
at communities of color during the 1960s made necessary the
formation of the Black Panther Party for Self-Defense; and

WHEREAS, Numerous dedicated and courageous young people of
African ancestry enlisted in the ranks of the Black Panther
Party to monitor and deter police violence, and to staff
community service programs aimed at providing food, health
care, legal assistance, transportation and other services to
Black and other poor people living in poverty; and

WHEREAS, One of the committed individuals who joined the
Black Panther Party was Assata Shakur; and

WHEREAS, J. Edgar Hoover, then-Director of the FBI,
proclaimed that the Black Panther Party was “the greatest
threat to the internal security’ of the United States; and

WHEREAS, The FBI commenced an illegal campaign of terror
against the Black Panther Party that came to be known
as “COINTELPRO’ (CounterIntelligence Program); and

WHEREAS, In the face of increasing government violence
directed at the Black Panther Party and other activists,
Assata Shakur became one of many targets of government
surveillance, harassment and intimidation; and

WHEREAS, On May 2, 1973, Shakur and others in a vehicle in
which she was traveling became the victims of racial
profiling when they were stopped on the New Jersey Turnpike,
allegedly because of a broken tail-light; and

WHEREAS, Shakur reported that, during the stop, she was shot
twice after she had complied with the New Jersey State
Troopers´ demand that she raise her hands; and

WHEREAS, During the stop, fatal gunshot wounds were sustained
by a State Trooper and one of Shakur's companions; and

WHEREAS, Shakur was later charged with both deaths and then
tried before an all-white jury; and

WHEREAS, Notwithstanding the fact that defense lawyers
presented objective medical and other evidence that
substantiated Shakur´s contention that her hands were raised
when she was shot, she was nevertheless convicted and
sentenced to life imprisonment plus 33 years; and

WHEREAS, Shakur reported that she endured torture and
continuing threats of violence while in the custody of police
and prison officials; and

WHEREAS, Shakur escaped from Clinton Correctional Institution
in 1979 after she concluded that her life was in danger and
that she had no hope of receiving justice; and

WHEREAS, Even though Shakur was ultimately granted political
asylum in Cuba, New Jersey and Federal officials have pursued
her relentlessly since her escape; and

WHEREAS, No extradition treaty exists between the United
States and Cuba, and consequently there are no legal grounds
for demanding Shakur´s return to U.S. shores; and

WHEREAS, On May 2, 2005, the U.S. Justice Department
announced that it is offering an extraordinary $1 million
bounty for Shakur´s capture, notwithstanding the fact that
supporters contend that she has been repeatedly denied the
following and other human rights recognized under
international law: freedom from arbitrary arrest, detention
and exile; freedom from torture, and cruel and inhuman or
degrading treatment; a presumption of innocence at trial; and
the right to seek and to enjoy in other countries asylum from
persecution; and

WHEREAS, The bounty is likely to encourage illegal and
unjustifiable kidnapping attempts that will place Shakur´s
life in jeopardy; and

WHEREAS, Shakur´s supporters have proclaimed Sunday, July 17,
2005 as “International Hands Off Assata Day’; NOW, THEREFORE
BE IT

RESOLVED, That the City Council for the City of Detroit calls
upon the U.S. Justice Department to demonstrate respect for
U.S. and international law by immediately withdrawing the
offer to pay a $1 million bounty for the capture of Assata
Shakur; AND BE IT FURTHER

RESOLVED, That the City Council for the City of Detroit
proclaims its support for "lnternational Hands Off Assata
Day’ on Sunday, July 17, 2005.

---Monica Moorehead

This article is copyright under a Creative Commons License.
Workers World, 55 W. 17 St., NY, NY 10011
Email: ww@workers.org
Page printed from:
http://www.workers.org/2005/us/shakur-0825/

[Elisa Keisha]

here u got the statement of facts translated to spanish. Pass it out if u know of any spanish speakin person or resident in a spanish-speakin country.

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DECLARACIÓN DE HECHOS EN EL JUICIO DE NJ DE ASSATA SHAKUR
por Evelyn A. Williams a 25 de junio de 20005

www.assatashakur.org/appeal_case_facts_2005.htm

Como miembro del equipo de la defensa legal del juicio de Nueva Jersey de Assata Shakur, y su abogado defensor, creo que es necesaria la repetición de una declaración correcta de las circunstancias de la muerte del agente de NJ, Werner Foerster, como fueron establecidas por los objetos expuestos, el testimonio del juicio y la evidencia forense, que niega concluyentemente las mentiras revisionistas que ahora son expuestas por el Estado de Nueva Jersey como "hechos".

Debemos recordar que los únicos testigos presenciales que sobrevivieron al tiroteo en la autopista de NJ fueron (1) Sundiata Acoli, (2) el agente Harper, (3) Assata y (4) el conductor de un coche que viajaba a lo largo de la autopista de NJ a la hora del incidente. Zayd Malik Shakur, pasajero, fue asesinado durante el tiroteo.

1. Sundiata no declaró en el juicio, ni tampoco hizo ninguna declaración pre-juicio.
2. El testimonio y las acciones de Harper se exponen en los documentos siguientes (admitidos como evidencia):

a. Los tres informes de investigación oficiales preparados por Harper, en los que escribió que, después de parar el Pontiac, ordenó a Sundiata que se dirigiera a la parte posterior del coche para mostrar su licencia de conductor al agente Foerster, que habÃ*a llegado a la escena. Que esto ocurrió sin incidentes. Que cuando él miraba hacia la puerta interior del Pontiac para comprobar el registro, Foerster le gritó y alzó un cartucho de munición. Indicó que al mismo tiempo Assata alcanzó un bolso rojo, saco de él un arma y le disparó. Que él inmediatamente corrió hacia la parte trasera de su coche y disparó hacia Assata, que habÃ*a salido del coche y le disparaba en posición postrada desde un lado del Pontiac. Y fue en este punto en el que él la disparó (admitido como evidencia)

b. Su testimonio ante el Gran Jurado, donde sostuvo bajo juramento las declaraciones que habÃ*a hecho en sus 3 informes oficiales (admitido como evidencia)

c. * transcripciones durante el juicio de su testimonio en los juicios de Sundiata y de Assata donde él admite, bajo interrogatorio, que habÃ*a mentido en los tres informes oficiales y en su testimonio ante el Gran Jurado. Que la verdad era que Foerster nunca le habÃ*a mostrado un cartucho de munición; que Foerster no le habÃ*a gritado; que no habÃ*a visto un arma en la mano de Assata mientras estaba en el coche; que Assata no disparó dentro del coche; y que no habÃ*a visto ningún bolso rojo. *


d. Las cintas de audio de la grabación oficial de las comunicaciones de radio entre todos los coches de agentes del estado de NJ que viajaban por la autopista, cerca de donde se produjo el tiroteo, con fecha del 2 de Mayo de 1973, revelan que se ordenó a dos coches patrulla adicionales de la autopista, conducidos por el agente Robert Palenchar y el agente Woerner Foerster, para ir a ayudar a Harper en el alto previo al tiroteo. (admitido como evidencia)

e. El expediente manuscrito, palabra por palabra, de lo que ocurrió dentro del edificio de la administración de la autopista de NJ cuando Harper entró en él, a la 1AM del 2 de Mayo de 1973, para informar sobre el tiroteo al Sargento Chester Baginski, que estaba al cargo de llevar el informe oficial de lo que ocurrÃ*a en la autopista (referido como "la Biblia" de la estación). Harper informó de que acababa de verse envuelto en un tiroteo tras dar el alto a un Pontiac en el que iban tres personas negras, dos hombres y una mujer; que estaba herido, y que el Pontiac habÃ*a ido hacia el sur por la autopista. Dio el número de la matrÃ*cula, pero no mencionó que el agente Foerster habÃ*a llegado a la escena (admitido como evidencia)


f. Cintas de audio de la investigación conducida por el Detective Sgt. de Primera clase Richard H. Kelly en el edificio de la administración a las 7:37AM aquella mañana, para determinar por qué transcurrió una hora desde que Harper entró en el edificio hasta que el cuerpo de Foerster fue encontrado. Las afirmaciones de cada uno de los agentes presentes cuando Harper entró en el edificio de la administración revelan que Harper no habÃ*a informado de la presencia de Foerster en la escena y que, durante una hora, nadie supo que Foerster yacÃ*a sobre la carretera al lado de su coche, frente al edificio de la administración; su cuerpo fue accidentalmente descubierto por el agente O’Rourke, que habÃ*a abandonado el edificio para investigar la escena del tiroteo, a menos de 200 yardas. (admitido como evidencia)


3. Assata testificó que Harper paró el coche sin ninguna razón conocida, la disparó cuando tenÃ*a los brazos en alto a sus ordendes y, después, la volvió a disparar por la espalda cuando ella se volvió para evitar las balas. Herida casi mortalmente y semi-consciente, ascendió al interior del Pontiac para evitar futuros disparos. Sundiata condujo el coche 5 millas por la carretera y lo aparcó; allÃ* permaneció ella hasta que los agentes del estado la arrastraron a la carretera.

4. Un conductor que viajaba dirección norte por la autopista en el momento del incidente testificó en el juicio que habÃ*a visto a un agente del estado forcejeando con un hombre negro entre un coche blanco aparcado y un coche de policÃ*a, cuyas luces iluminaban el área. Fue incapaz de identificar al hombre negro, y más tarde afirmó que no vio a nadie más en la carretera o en la escena. Inmediatamente informó de lo que habÃ*a visto en el Departamento de PolicÃ*a de Nueva Jersey.


Por lo tanto seguÃ*a siendo solamente la evidencia forense lo que podÃ*a ayudar a determinar los hechos ocurridos aquella noche tanto como estos pudiesen ser determinados. La evidencia forense examinada tanto por el laboratorio de criminologÃ*a de Nueva Jersey en Trenton, como por los laboratorios del FBI en Washington, D.C., establecieron lo siguiente:


1. Los análisis de huellas de cada pistola y cada pieza de munición encontradas en la escena mostraron que no habÃ*a huellas de Assata en ninguna de ellas (Los análisis oficiales fueron admitidos como evidencia)

2. Los análisis de Activación de Neutrón hechos inmediatamente después de que Assata fuera llevada al hospital aquella noche mostraron que no habÃ*a residuos de pólvora en sus manos. Refutando efectivamente la posibilidad de que ella hubiese disparado una pistola. (Los análisis oficiales fueron admitidos como evidencia)

3. Como resultado de la bala que Harper disparó bajo su axila, mientras sus brazos estaban alzados, su nervio medio fue dañado, paralizando inmediatamente todo su brazo derecho, su clavÃ*cula resultó rota y la bala se alojó tan cerca de su corazón que una operación para sacarla no era factible. Un neurólogo testificó esto en el juicio.

4. Un patólogo testificó que “no existe ninguna manera concebible de que una bala pudiese haber hecho ese trayecto hacia la clavÃ*cula si su brazo no hubiese estado alzado. La trayectoria es imposible.â€�


5. Un cirujano testificó que “era anatómicamente necesario que ambos brazos estuvieran alzados en el aire para que Chesimard recibiese esas heridas.�


El estado no ofreció ningún testigo experto que refutase este testimonio médico.

6. Las fotografÃ*as que mostraban la herida de la entrada de la bala bajo su axila y la herida de entrada de la bala que Harper disparó en su espalda fueron admitidas como prueba durante el juicio.

Por consiguiente, ya que no existÃ*a ninguna evidencia que probase que Assata habÃ*a disparado la bala que mató al agente Foerster, ¿por qué fue encontrada culpable de su asesinato? Hay varias explicaciones:

La primera es que el clima de odio, prejuicio y racismo que contaminaba tanto al jurado del Condado de Middlesex en 1973 que fue ordenado un cambio de lugar, seguÃ*a existiendo en 1977. La opinión unánime del jurado de 1973 era “si es negra, es culpableâ€�. Tras tres mociones de la defensa por un cambio de lugar, el juez León Gerofsky concedió la moción, afirmando, “era casi imposible obtener aquÃ* un jurado de gente dispuesta a aceptar la responsabilidad de imparcialidad para que los acusados estén protegidos de la pasión transitoria y el prejuicioâ€� El juicio de Assata fue entonces trasladado al Condado de Morris donde fue separado del de Sundiata debido a su embarazo.

En 1977 el juicio comenzó por segunda vez en el mismo Condado de Middlesex, y esta vez la invalidación del jurado fue asegurada. El jurado elegido para determinar la culpabilidad o inocencia de Assata consistÃ*a en 5 personas que eran, o bien parientes, o bien amigos cercanos de agentes del estado, u oficiales de la aplicación de la ley estatal.

Aun asÃ*, Assata no fue declarada culpable de disparar la bala que mató al agente Foerster. Fue declarada culpable como cómplice de su asesinato bajo el estatuto de “ayudar y alentarâ€� de Nueva Jersey: si la presencia de una persona en la escena del crimen puede ser interpretada como “ayuda o alientoâ€� del crimen, esa persona puede ser acusada del mismo crimen. El juez Theodore Appleby instruyó al jurado de que les estaba permitido especular que la mera presencia de Assata en la escena de violencia, con armas en el vehÃ*culo, era suficiente motivo para considerarla culpable del asesinato del agente Foerster. También fue acusada culpable de posesión de armas – de las cuales ninguna pudo ser identificada por haber estado en las manos de Assata, ni del intento de asesinato del agente Harper, que habÃ*a sufrido una herida durante el tiroteo.

Ahora, 32 años después de su condena, una nueva y fabricada versión de la muerte de Foerster ha emergido:

No habÃ*a absolutamente ninguna prueba que apoyase las afirmaciones hechas por el Col. Joseph R. Fuentes, superintendente de la PolicÃ*a del Estado de Nueva Jersey, quien dijo que “fue más tarde determinado que el arma de servicio de Werner Foerster fue arrancada de su pistolera mientras permanecÃ*a herido y tumbado en el pavimento, y fue ejecutado con dos disparos en la cabeza con su propia arma de servicioâ€�

Pero sus motivos para hacer esta afirmación son claros:

1. Para justificar que Assata halla sido añadida a la lista de terroristas domésticos junto con Osama bin Ladin. Fuentes dijo, “Cualquiera con una mente capaz de ejecutar a un oficial de policÃ*a una vez que yace en el suelo es suficientemente peligroso para ser considerado una amenaza de terrorismo doméstico.â€� Pero Assata es la única persona acusada de un único crimen doméstico que ha sido clasificada como terrorista y puesta en la lista de búsqueda de terrorismo, anulando de este modo la propia definición de “terrorismoâ€�.

2.- Para justificar la recompensa de 1 millón de dólares que serÃ*a pagada del dinero de los impuestos. Fuentes afirmó, “la recompensa deberá hacer a Chesimard una presa mucho más atractiva para los cazadores de recompensas profesionales.â€�

El portavoz de la Asamblea del Estado de Nueva Jersey, Albio Sires, viejo miembro de la CANF (Fundación Nacional Cubano-Americana, representante de los exiliados cubanos), dijo: “si la ciudadanÃ*a cubana pudiese ser informada de la recompensa de 1 millón de dólares y de la historia real de los crÃ*menes de Chesimard, crecerÃ*a la posibilidad de que fuese llevada ante la Justicia… Queremos que los cubanos sepan la historia real de Joanne Chesimard y no la engañosa representación dada por el régimen de Castro. Queremos que la gente se de cuenta que ella no es una heroÃ*na, que en realidad es una violenta criminal buscada por el asesinato de una agente estatal y por escapar de la justiciaâ€�

Al afirmar falsamente que Assata disparó a Foerster en la cabeza mientras yacÃ*a indefenso en el suelo, matándole al estilo ejecución, el Departamento de Justicia de los EE.UU. espera evitar que Assata obtenga la simpatÃ*a y el apoyo polÃ*tico que en este momento recibe de los EEUU y de los ciudadanos de Cuba. Al clasificarla como una asesina de policÃ*as a sangre frÃ*a, se espera que se olviden las circunstancias reales que tuvieron lugar en la autopista de NJ, asÃ* como todos los años previos a este acontecimiento, durante los cuales Assata fue constantemente acosada y perseguida con el declarado propósito de asesinarla, por haber cometido crÃ*menes de los cuales el gobierno sabe que es inocente.


Pero incluso mientras se fabrican mentiras oficiales para convertir a Assata en una terrorista, para que Cuba pueda ser acusada de “proteger a una terrorista� y para justificar su secuestro, dos bien conocidos, admitidos y condenados terroristas están actualmente bajo la protección de los EE.UU.

El gobierno de los EE.UU se ha negado a extraditar al terrorista Luis Posada Carriles (acusado de derribar un avión cubano en 1976, matando a 73 civiles y condenado por otros actos terroristas, incluido el de la BahÃ*a de Cochinos). El gobierno de los EE.UU. también se ha negado a extraditar al terrorista convicto, compañero de Posada, Orlando Bosch, que escapó de Venezuela y fue a Miami en 1987 con la asistencia de la CANF, Jeb Bush y su padre, el entonces abogado de los EE.UU, González, que personalmente aprobó la recompensa por Assata, y que también aprobó la tortura de los prisioneros en Abu Ghreb. La aprobación vino después de que el residente de Nueva Jersey, Michael Chertoff, fuese nombrado Secretario del Departamento de Defensa Interna.

AquÃ* están los hechos. No dejemos que sean olvidados.


/ Evelyn A. Williams/

POR FAVOR DISTRIBUIR EXTENSAMENTE

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[Im The Truth]

Gracias senorita Elisha Kiesha

[Jacuma]

Asante sana to all for gettting this out for our Sister Queen Assata Shakur!!!

[RecoveringAA]

Originally Posted by Jacuma

Asante sana to all for gettting this out for our Sister Queen Assata Shakur!!!

Well...Come Black Brother Jacuma!!
I was bout to put a post or call out as to your whereabouts and safety....Has been a good minute since i seen you last.

Glad to hear from you!



p.s i was thrilled as well to read this article and to hear of Sister Evelyn's continued work.....I wonder still, who is hearing this and who is responding.....for sure it does not seem to be our 'political leaders'.....so much still to be done....i trust Mama Assata would want for as many of US possible to get out the belly of this beast so that's where and how i will continue to focus my efforts .....

Asante sana for this site