Guiliani's Cops Prepare for Massive Clampdown Via NY Transfer News Collective * All the News that Doesn't Fit The Daily Challenge NYC's only Black owned Daily http://www.challengegroup.com Monday, June 7, 1999 ALERT! By Nayaba Arinde As the Abner Louima civil rights violation trial draws to a close, Police Commissioner Howard Safir is preparing to unleash hundreds or thousands of cops into presumably Black neighborhoods in the event of an acquittal of the remaining four white cops on trial in the Abner Louima case. On Friday, the same day that Safir promoted all members of the controversial Street Crime Unit to detective and gave them a $2000 per year raise, it was announced that he has put his troops on alert and instigated a plan to counter any demonstration following a possible acquittal of the cops on trial in the Louima case. Apparently the plan includes drafting hundreds of cops into areas he has decided may hold protests if there is an acquittal. Atty. Roger Wareham told the Daily Challenge that Safir - and ultimately Mayor Rudolph Giulianis action, smacks of barely concealed fascism. "They are attempting to crimanilze an act of protest even before it has happened," Wareham said. "Giuliani is trying to make what is legitimate - illegal." Judge Eugene Nickerson charged the jury on Friday and they spent the rest of the day pouring over testimony in the controversial case, that once again highlighted the issue of police brutality in America. So, this past weekend four white cops; Charles Schwarz, Thomas Wiese, Thomas Bruder and Sgt. Michael Bellomo - spent their time contemplating the possibility of serving some serious time for the role each is alleged to have played in participating in or conspiring to cover up the August, 1997, beating and sexual assault on Abner Louima. In a surprise move, two weeks ago fellow defendant, Justin Volpe, pled guilty to beating and sodomizing the Haitian immigrant. While stating that any outcome is possible in the Louima case, Wareham said that the move to put hundreds or thousands of cops on alert was merely an extension of policies that was moving the city towards the erosion of basic constitutional rights. "This is an attack on the First Amendment," said the activist attorney. "If there is a not guilty verdict in the Abner Louima case and people protest, they are saying that the demonstration would be criminal as opposed to an exercising of their First Amendment rights. Giuliani has been coming after amendment rights for a long while. "You can trace it back to the bail reform act of 1984. The No Bail act effectively cut out the 8th Amendment, which is the right to be guaranteed bail. Originally they said it was to combat the Mafia, but the first people it was applied to was the members of the New York 8. We were the first people held under the act, which sets the grounds for complete denial of bail." Ultimately beating all charges in 1985 in the federal district court that was then under Giuliani, activists; Wareham, Viola Plummer, Robert Taylor, Omowale Clay, Lateefah Carter, Jackie Bernard, Collete Pean and Coltrane Chimurenga were charged with 67 counts of conspiracy, including planning to free Sekou Odinga and Kwesi Balagun from prison. Wareham said that act of deploying cops to so-called potential "hot spots" and informing the community ahead of time, was all in order to acclimatize the people so that when they saw battle-suited police in their neighborhoods, it would not surprise them and they would not react. "Its like when they give you Novocain so you dont see all the blood running out. They are trying to accustom people to an increased police presence in the city." A key member of the Brooklyn-based December 12th Movement, Wareham said that such police action was one of the reasons why the group are continuing the public meetings discussing the organization of a Peoples Militia. "The response of the people is very strong across the city. They are fed up with the obvious increasing consolidation of Fascism and a police state under Giuliani," said Wareham. "People should not take this proposal as routine. They should call and make their elected officials state their position and take a position against what is happening and to uphold the First Amendment." Wareham added, "Safir should define the hot spots hes targeting. If they are intending to go into mainly Black and/or Latino neighborhoods then that is racial profiling. They did something similar during the (1987) verdict in the Eleanor Bumpers trial. The Bronx Grand Concourse was an armed camp with police officers on the roof and all around the court. But, there wasnt any announced increased police presence in the community." Eleanor Bumpers was a 66 year old grandmother who was shot to death in October 1984 by Officer Stephen Sullivan. Although eventually charged with second degree manslaughter, Justice Fred W. Eggert found him not guilty and Police Commissioner Benjamin Ward promoted the Emergency Service Unit cop to a position in the Chief of Detectives office. Some observers noted that perhaps the commissioner - dubbed Hollywood Howard, after his under-investigation freebie trip to the Oscars prior to a city council hearing on police brutality, is purporting to learn a lesson from the LA uprising following the Rodney King/police beating verdict. Now a convicted felon, former co-defendant/alleged co-conspirator Justin Volpe, now awaiting sentencing in the Metropolitan Correctional Center, apparently in a cell next to Latin King head, Antonio King Tone Fernandez. Two weeks ago, as former colleagues testimony and evidence threatened to engulf Volpe, he threw in the towel and admitted that he beat and tortured Louima by shoving a stick in his rectum at Brooklyn's 70th Precinct on August 9,1997 - and threatened to kill him if he told anybody. He also admitted beating Patrick Antoine,. Meanwhile Thomas Bruder, who was hammered last week for what the prosecution painted as a flagrant I have a Black girlfriend ploy, stands accused of taking part in the beating of Louima - along with Charles Schwarz and Thomas Wiese. They are also charged with violating the young fathers civil rights. Sgt. Michael Bellomo, their supervisor, is charged with trying to cover up the assault. Schwarz is accused of holding down Louima in the stationhouse bathroom assault. Receiving the case at about 11a.m. on Friday, the jury in the Louima case deliberated for about six hours, asking for the read-back of testimony from Louima and other key witnesses. A verdict could come as soon as today. Wareham urged community vigilance in the wake of a potential "armed camp face-off." He stated, "This is political. They dont usually announce what they are going to do ahead of time. But, they always use such situations as an excuse to come down on the people and they always target political dissidents." This morning Wareham is the attorney in another "political trial," as jury selection begins in the case against two attendees of last Septembers Million Youth March. The peaceful march brought thousands of young people and their families to Harlems Malcolm X Blvd., on September 5th, 1998. Hailed as successful even in traditionally hostile circles, the grassroots march was brought to a dramatic end when a number of the 6,000 riot-geared and heavily armed cops Giuliani placed on duty, rushed the stage and attempted to disperse the crowd. March organizer Min. Khallid Muhammad urged the crowd to stand their ground and defend themselves if subjected to an unprovoked attack by police. Heavily criticized, even by usually police-and-mayor-friendly press, Giuliani announced that a grand jury had been convened to indict former Nation of Islam Supreme Captain Min. Khallid Muhammad for inciting a riot - even though the people eventually left the area without incident or any arrests. There was talk of arresting Muhammad on sight. This never happened. However, as vitriolic editorials continued, an embattled Giuliani and Safir declared that they were looking for six individuals who had supposedly thrown objects at cops from the stage. Eventually police arrested James Washington and Patrece Petersen on misdemeanor charges. "These are politically charged indictments. A grand jury does not usually indict on such misdemeanor charges," Wareham said. "This grand jury was convened to indict Khallid Muhammad of riot, but they could not. So, James Washington has been indicted on attempted misdemeanor assault, which is a B-class charge and Patrece Peterson has been indicted on attempted assault, which is an E-class felony. Both indictments are the lowest charges. The trial begins today, with jury selection through to Thursday, when we will begin opening arguments. Both this case and Safirs actions are a part of the same attack on peoples right to assemble and express their political opinion." The Million Youth March case will be held in the courtroom of Judge Obus, Part 51, 100 Center Street, Manhattan. For more information call (718) 398 1766. Where on the Web will you hear the actual voice of Marcus Garvey? Http://www.theMarcusGarveyBBS.com, naturally. ================================================================= NY Transfer News Collective * A Service of Blythe Systems Since 1985 - Information for the Rest of Us 339 Lafayette St., New York, NY 10012 http://www.blythe.org e-mail: nyt@blythe.org ================================================================= nytrc-06.10.99-01:20:46-10703