Forwarded message: > From [EMAIL PROTECTED] Thu Jun 8 12:11:13 1995 > Message-Id: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > Date: Thu, 8 Jun 1995 13:49:14 -0400 > Reply-To: PNEWS Progressive News and Views Distribution List > <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > Sender: PNEWS Progressive News and Views Distribution List > <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > From: PNEWS <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > Subject: Mumia Abu-Jamal: Interview with Lawyer Len Weinglass > > [*********PNEWS CONFERENCES************] > > > From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > (From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] (by way of [EMAIL PROTECTED]) > Subject: Mumia Abu-Jamal: Interview with Lawyer Len Weinglass > > ----------------------------Original message---------------------------- > Interview with Len Weinglass, attorney for Mumia Abu-Jamal,4/6/95 > > Let me ask you the first question. What exactly are you doing now, after > Mumia's death warrant has been signed ? > > Len Weinglass/LW: On Monday, June 5th, we are filing over 300 pages of > materials which is the first defense Mumia has ever had in court. Along with > that we are filing a stay to stop the warrant for execution. And we are > filing a request that the judge disqualify himself for his own bias and > hostility as demonstrated in the first trial. Included in our papers are 47 > exhibits and 13 new affidavits. What we show generally is, first Mumia never > had a trial, the jury was racially picked. The judge removed a key juror in > Mumia's absence and replaced that juror, an African American woman, with a > white man, who said he couldn't be fair to Mumia. The judge, of course, has > not only put more people on death row than any judge in the US ( 31 death > sentences), but he has been reversed by appalate courts which have found his > running of trials improper more than any other judge in the US. As you know, > the prosecutor in Mumia's case had previously gain the conviction for a > demonstrably innocent man. Mumia was set without a defense lawyer. His lawyer > has filed an affidavit - it's one of our exhibits - in which he says, that > there were whole parts, key parts of the trial, he gave absolutely no thought > to. We also have an affidavit from his investigator at the time, who said he > did virtually nothing and wasn't available at the time of the trial > > With respect to the evidence, we have proof that the prosecution had > frightened and coerced people, who wanted to testify for Mumia. That they > gave favors to people who testified against him. That they purposely lost > important evidence such as a polygraph exam which one of Mumia's witnesses > took and passed who saw the shooter running away. That they kept out of > evidence a false identification which would have shown that Mumia wasn't the > shooter. We have a long list - there are 19 separate items, that we outline > and give proof to - to show that one there wasn't a trial and two, that if > there would be a new trial Mumia would be found not guilty. > > Can you tell me something about the legal process that is now taking place. > You are filing the motion for a stay of the execution and you are filing a > motion for a new trial. In which timeframe will this be decided ? > > LW: Unfortunately, I cannot answer that. I do not know and I don't think I'll > know on Monday. First, the judge - Judge Albert Sabo - has to decide, wether > or not he will disqualify himself. If he decides that he is fair, then he > will consider the stay. Wether he will grant the stay and when he'll grant > the stay, is something I cannot now say. If he refuses to grant the stay, > then we will have to go to another court to try to get the stay. If that > doesn't work, still another court. The process is very ambigious and I can't > give you definitive answers. The judge unfortunately, because the warrant was > signed, now has control over the timing of everything. What we are afraid of, > that our investments of months of investigation and review, will now be put > into a timeframe, where once again Mumia's position will not receive careful > and considerate attention. > > What is the higher court that you appeal to, if judge Sabo doesn't decide to > grant the stay ? > > LW:The Pennsylvania Supreme Court, then the Federal Court, the Federal > Appeals Court and the US Supreme Court. > > Is it always like that that the judge who has handed down the death sentence > is the one to review the motion for a stay of execution ? > > LW: Yes. > > The other question is, do you expect that outside pressure on the judge to > remove himself, can help ? > > LW: I cannot comment on that as an attorney. I am not permitted to advocate > pressure on any judge and I will not do it. > > Which court are you filing the motion for a new trial with ? > > LW: This motion also has to be filed with judge Sabo. > > As long as Mumia still has legal options, such as the motion for a retrial, > can the governor still order Mumia's execution or does he have to wait until > Mumia has finished all his legal avenues ? > > LW: It is up to a judge. If a judge grants a stay that stops the governor's > warrant. It stops it, as long as a judge wants to stop it. If a judge decides > no longer to stop it, then the warrant gets back into effect and a new date > is set. It's going to be up to this judge. > > As long as the judge doesn't stop it, then the date for execution is still > August 17th. > > LW: Yes, but I am quite confident that some judge will stop the warrant. > > Have you spoken to Mumia and can you say a little bit about how he is feeling > right now ? > > LW: I have talked to him. He has been moved out of his death row into an > isolation unit, where they keep prisoners awaiting execution. In that unit he > has virtually nothing. All of his papers have been taken from him. He has no > radio or TV. He has no contact with the outside or with anyone else. He is > being > treated, I am tolf, quite badly in that isolation unit . > > Can he receive mail or can he have visitors ? > > LW: I don't know about the mail, but he can have no visitors except for his > lawyers. If the stay is granted, Mumia is moved back to death row. > In general, his imprisonment conditions have gotten very bad since he has > been moved to SCI Greene in January. we have filed a suit in Federal Court in > Pittsburgh, because we found out, that the legal mail that I had sent to > Mumia, was opened, read and copied by the prison administration. The prison > then sent copies of important legal strategy papers to the Attorney General's > office. Ordinarily, these papers should be protected under the lawyer-client > confidentiality rules. Because, we have filed this suit, the prison is trying > to strike back at Mumia in full force. Just last week he received a list of > four of five "violations", which he supposedly committed. One of them is, > that the prison is charging him with "running a business", because he > continues to write as a journalist from his cell and eventually sells some of > his articles. > > Can you describe a little bit the forces that are pushing for Mumia's > execution ? > > LW:The forces are very considerably. He is the only person on death row in > the US who has a well-funded, well-organized, well-orchestrated campaign to > see to it, that he is executed. The Fraternal Order of the Police (FOP) in > Pennsylvania has contact with other FOP organizations all over the US and > they contribute to the campaign. They help to raise money and boycott. It is > very well financed. When the book was published, they chartered an airplane > to fly over the publishers' headquarters trailing a banner saying "The > publisher pays cop killers". We are facing a very formidable opponent, which > is determined to see to it, that Mumia is executed. Noone else on death row > faces that kind of an obstacle. > > Are there politicians or specific politicians who also press for Mumia's > execution besides the governor Ridge ? > > LW: There is Pennsylvania assemblyman McGeehan (D.) from Philadelphia, who is > on the air waves, granting interviews, and pressing for Mumia's execution. > > What about Sen. Bob Dole (Republican, Chairman of the Defense Comittee of the > US-Senate) ? > > LW: Bob Dole was involved in decrying the fact that Mumia's book was > published and that Mumia profited from the publication. > > Can you describe some of the forces who are supporting Mumia in the US ? > > LW: Well, among others there is a Committee to Save Mumia Abu-Jamal which is > made up of some very well known celebreties. They are contributing their > names and their support, such as actors Ed Asner, Ossie Davis and Whoopi > Goldberg. Then we have organizations such as International PEN and Amnesty > International, which are also helping. > > Do you get any favorable media attention in the US ? > > LW: There has just been a rash of very hostile media reports. There was > editorial comment in the New York Post ( daily tabloid), which not only said, > Mumia should be executed, but ridiculed his supporters and his attorneys and > made light of the fact that famous people are drawn to Mumia. There have been > a number of articles in Pennsylvania calling for his execution. Now that the > warrant has been signed, they are willing to interview some of us on the > defense side, so now the articles become headlined with the signing of the > article, but inside the article there is commentary from some of Mumia's > lawyers and supporters to kind of balance it of. > > Is there anything else that you would like to say ? > > People should understand the climate that exists in the US now. We have very > good legal papers and we are strong on the law. We are also strong on facts > and in an ordinary time we should prevail. But last month, they executed a > man in Illinois, who had the support of the chief of police in Chicago, > judges, prosecutors, ministers, priests, Rabbis, members of Congress, all on > this men's support and they executed him anyway. Two years ago, they executed > a young man in Utah, where the Pope intervened personally. A year ago they > executed a man because his lawyer filed the paper one day late. They are > executing people who are mentally incompetent and under age. It's a very bad > climate in the US just now. Although you have good legal papers and > ordinarily you should prevail, the situation is such here, that that is not > going to be enough. > > > (c) Junge Welt 1995 > > ## CrossPoint v3.02 ## > > > > @@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@ > ***** PEOPLE BEFORE PROFITS ****** > @@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@ > PNEWS CONFERENCES provide "radical" alternative views with an > emphasis on justice, humanitarian positions, protests, > boycott alerts, activism information, etc. > **************** > To subscribe, send request to: > <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> "SUBSCRIBE PNEWS-L <Your full name>" > @@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@ >
