ACLU to Holder: Zimmerman case is over
....................................................................................
by Lisa De Pasquale 21 Jul 2013
breitbart.com ^ | 7/21/2013 | Lisa De Pasquale
In a letter from the ACLU to Attorney General Eric Holder:
We are writing to clearly state the ACLU’s position on whether or not the Department of Justice (DOJ) should consider bringing federal civil rights or hate crimes charges as a result of the state court acquittal in the George Zimmerman case. Even though the Supreme Court permits a federal prosecution following a state prosecution, the ACLU believes the Double Jeopardy Clause of the Constitution protects someone from being prosecuted in another court for charges arising from the same transaction. A jury found Zimmerman not guilty, and that should be the end of the criminal case.
Read the rest here. There is some predictable ACLU language (such as reiterating the "racist cop" stereotype), but glad to see they're at least acknowledging the absurdity of charging Zimmerman with hate crimes or civil rights violations.
..............................................................................................................................................................
LAURA W. MURPHY, Director
WASHINGTON LEGISLATIVE OFFICE
915 15th Street, NW Washington, D.C. 20005
July 18, 2013
The Honorable Eric H. Holder, Jr.
United States Attorney General
Department of Justice
950 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W.
Washington, DC 20530
Dear Attorney General Holder,
We are writing to
clearly state
the ACLU’s position on whether or not the
Department of
Justice (DOJ) should consider bring
ing
federal civil rights or hate crimes charges as a result of
the
state court
acquittal in the George Zimmerman case.
Even though the Supreme Court permits
a federal prosecution following a state prosecutio
n, the ACLU believes the
Double Jeopardy
Clause of the
Constitution protects someone from being prosecuted in another court for charges
arising from the same transaction.
A jury found Zimmerman not guilty, and that should be the
end of the criminal case.
However, there
are
still
actions
the federal government
can take
to help communities
like
Sanford
,
Florida
to
ensure
traged
ies
similar to
Trayvon
Martin’s
unt
imely death do not happen
again
,
including
prevent
ing
widespread racial profiling.
Although the George Zimmerman case
did not involve a law enforcement officer, many other shootings of unarmed
Black
men around
the country have
.
In 1999,
22 year old
Guinea immigrant
Amadou Ahmed Diallo
was fatally
shot 41 times by white New York police officers.
Sean Bell
was a
23
-
year
-
old
African American
who
was shot 50 times and killed by New York
City
police when leaving his bachelor party
i
n
2003.
I
n 2005
,
New Orleans police officers shot six unarmed civilians, two of
whom died, near
the Danziger Bridge in the
days after Hurricane Katrina.
Mo
re
recently
,
22
-
year
-
old Oscar
Grant
, an
African American
,
was shot in the back and killed
by
Oakland
transit police
on New
Year’s morning
in
2009
after getting off the BART train
.
These cases are
painful
illustrations
of
the need for the
D
epartment
to
prioritize
issu
ing
strengthened guidance
to law enforcement
on
racial profiling and excessive force.
Furthermore, the Department
can also help provide training to
the
communit
y
to help end
the pervasiv
e practice of racial profiling.
In anticipation of the verdict in the Zimmerman case,
the Department’s Community Relations Service should be commended for quickly arriving in
Sanford
to ass
ist the community with the aftermath of the decision. Many wounds need to be
healed in Sanford and DOJ
should
continue to
assist
the community
by providing training
an
d
by
wor
king with the community to
close this
sad chapter in its history.
DOJ
should
also
commit
itself to providing training and technical assistance to state prosecutors involved in cases where
race is seen as a factor.
Finally,
Congress should immediately pass the End Racial Profiling Act.
We
realize that
the alleged conduct of private citizens like George Zimmerman is beyond
the scope of the End Racial Profiling Act and the Department of Justice Guidance Regarding the
Use of Race by Federal Law Enforcement Agencies
.
But
average citizens can b
e influenced by
the conduct of law enforcement
, and problematic practices by public officials can increase the
likelihood of bad judgment and actions
by private actors
.
Further
,
t
he killing of Trayvon Martin
has touch
ed
off a range of emotions
across the country and
is a
nother
harsh
reminder
that police
actions
can
be motivated by racial bias
.
If you have any additional questions about this issue, please feel free to
Jesselyn
McCurdy, Senior Legislative Counsel at jmccurdy@dcaclu.org or (202) 675
-
2307.
Respectfully submitted,
Laura W. Murphy
Jesselyn McCurdy,
Director
Senior Legislative Counsel
Washington Legislative Office
Washington Legislative Office
cc:
Charlotte Burrows
,
Associate
Deputy Attorney General
,
U.S. Department of Justice
Roy L. Austin, Jr., Deputy Assistant Attorney General
U.S.
Department of Justice,
Civil
Rights Division |
