Tuesday, January 14, 2014

A sad tale indeed
Is Orange County Proud Of Not Guilty Verdicts In Kelly Thomas Murder Trial? (NavelGazing; R. Scott Moxley)
     …Now, from what transpired inside Judge William R. Froeberg's 10th floor, Santa Ana courtroom, it isn't hyperbole to say that OC juries will let thug cops get away with murder--even when such attacks are captured on video surveillance cameras.
. . .
     The defense lawyers know the quickest way to Orange County jurors' hearts is to remind them, as Barnett continuously did, that the defendants patrolled the--don't laugh--"mean streets of Fullerton," kept the public safe from hoodlums and didn't deserve to be second-guessed on "split second decisions" made about using deadly force.
. . .
     Is it okay for six veteran cops to claim they couldn't figure out how to control the limbs of a smaller, weaker subject already on the ground and needed to kick, punch and stomp the unarmed man to death?....

Impacts of Thomas Case Go Beyond Jury's Verdict (Voice of OC)
     …In the Thomas case, District Attorney Tony Rackauckas had even better evidence -- both video and audio of the beating at the Fullerton bus depot on July 5, 2011. Included is video and audio of officer Manuel Ramos telling Thomas, a homeless man who was diagnosed with schizophrenia, that he was getting ready to "f*** you up."
     Based on this evidence and more, Rackauckas charged Ramos with second-degree murder and involuntary manslaughter; and charged officer Jay Cicinelli with involuntary manslaughter and excessive use of force.
     But, some experts say, more important than the evidence itself is where it was presented -- conservative Orange County, where juries want to support police.
. . .
     And like the in King case, the FBI’s Civil Rights division now will conduct its own investigation of what the officers did that night in the Fullerton bus depot parking lot….

Roy's obituary in LA Times and Register: "we were lucky to have you while we did"

  This ran in the Sunday December 24, 2023 edition of the Los Angeles Times and the Orange County Register : July 14, 1955 - November 20, 2...