> >> >>PRESS RELEASE >>> >>>DICK GREGORY TO FAST UNTIL IMPRISONED ATTORNEY LYNNE STEWART IS FREED >>> >>>Dick Gregory issued a declaration today, (SEE BELOW) on the anniversary of >>>the >>>assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr., that “I shall refuse all solid >>>food until Lynne Stewart is freed and receives medical treatment in the care >>>of her family and with physicians of her choice without which she will die.” >>> >>>The 73-year-old Stewart, a renowned criminal defense attorney, is suffering >>>from Stage 4 cancer. Gregory, known for his social activism as much as his >>>for comedic wit and political commentary, has taken this step to reinforce >>>the worldwide petition in support of Stewart’s application for compassionate >>>release. Over 6,000 people, including Archbishop Desmond Tutu and Pete >>>Seeger, have signed to date with the numbers growing by the minute. >>> >>>As a criminal defense lawyer for over 30 years, Lynne Stewart defended the >>>poor, the disadvantaged and those targeted by the police and the State. Such >>>has been her reputation that judges assigned her routinely to act for >>>defendants whom no attorney was willing to represent. One of these was the >>>blind Egyptian cleric Sheikh Omar Abdel Rahman, who Stewart represented with >>>co-counsels former Attorney General Ramsey Clark and Abdeen Jabara. >>> >>>In 2002, Lynne Stewart was targeted by then-President George Bush and >>>Attorney General John Ashcroft for providing a vigorous defense of her >>>client. She was charged with conspiracy to provide material support to a >>>terrorist activity after she exercised both her and her client’s first >>>amendment rights by presenting a press release to a Reuters journalist. >>> >>>In 2006, while the Department of Justice demanded a 30-year sentence, Judge >>>John Koetl, handed down a 28-month sentence noting: “By providing a criminal >>>defense to the poor, the disadvantaged and unpopular over three decades, it >>>is no exaggeration to say that Ms. Stewart performed a public service not >>> >>>That sentence, however, was not to stand as the Second Circuit Appellate >>>Court, withdrew Lynne Stewart’s bail — even though her case is still before >>>the courts — and remanded the case back to Judge Koetl with the harsh demand >>>that he revisit his sentence and issue a severely enhanced one. On July 15, >>>2010, Judge Koeltl increased Stewart’s sentence from 28 months to 10 years >>>imprisonment. This has become a virtual death sentence for Lynne Stewart. >>> >>>As Gregory so eloquently states: “The reason for the prosecution and >>>persecution of Lynne Stewart is evident to us all. It was designed to >>>intimidate the entire legal community so that few would dare to defend >>>political clients whom the State demonizes and none would provide a vigorous >>>defense. It also was designed to narrow the meaning of our cherished first >>>amendment right to free speech, which the people of this country struggled >>>to have added to the Constitution as the Bill of Rights.” >>>### >>> >>> >>>DECLARATION BY DICK GREGORY — APRIL 4, 2013 >>>I hereby declare on this day commemorating the life and sacrifice of my >>>friend and brother in struggle, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., that in the >>>spirit of his moral legacy, I demand the immediate release from prison of >>>the legendary lawyer Lynne Stewart, who devoted her entire professional life >>>to the poor, the oppressed and those targeted by the police and a vindictive >>>State. >>> >>>I further declare that from this day forth, I shall refuse all solid food >>>until Lynne Stewart is freed and receives medical treatment in the care of >>>her family and with physicians of her choice without which she will die. >>> >>>There is no time to lose as cancer, which had been in remission, has >>>metastasized since her imprisonment. It has spread to her lymph nodes, her >>>shoulder and appears in her bones and in her lungs. >>> >>>A criminal defense attorney in New York for over 30 years, Lynne Stewart’s >>>unwavering dedication as a selfless advocate was acknowledged by the >>>community as well as judges, prosecutors and the entire legal profession. >>>Such has been her reputation as a fearless lawyer, ready to challenge those >>>in power, that judges assigned her routinely to act for defendants whom no >>>attorney was willing to represent. >>> >>>In 2002, Lynne Stewart was targeted by then-President George Bush and >>>Attorney General John Ashcroft for providing a vigorous defense of her >>>client, the blind Egyptian cleric Sheikh Omar Abdel Rahman. She was charged >>>with conspiracy to provide material support to a terrorist activity after >>>she exercised both her and her client’s first amendment rights by presenting >>>a press release to a Reuters journalist. She did nothing more than other >>>attorneys, such as her co-counsel former Attorney General Ramsey Clark, have >>>done on behalf of their clients. >>> >>>The reason for the prosecution and persecution of Lynne Stewart is evident >>>to us all. It was designed to intimidate the entire legal community so that >>>few would dare to defend political clients whom the State demonizes and none >>>would provide a vigorous defense. It also was designed to narrow the meaning >>>of our cherished first amendment right to free speech, which the people of >>>this country struggled to have added to the Constitution as the Bill of >>>Rights. >>> >>>The prosecution and imprisonment of Lynne Stewart is an ominous threat to >>>the freedom, rights and dignity of each and every American. It is the agenda >>>of a police state. >>> >>>I ask you to join with me to demand freedom for Lynne Stewart. An >>>international campaign has been launched with a petition that supports her >>>application for compassionate release. Under the 1984 Sentencing Act, the >>>Bureau of Prisons can file a motion with the Court to reduce sentences “for >>>extraordinary and compelling reasons.” Life threatening illness is foremost >>>among these and Lynne Stewart meets every rational and humane criterion for >>>compassionate release. >>> >>>Join with me, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Pete Seeger and 6,000 other people of >>>conscience throughout the world who have signed this petition to compel the >>>Warden of the Federal Medical Center, Carswell and the Director of the >>>Bureau of Prisons to act. Act now. There is no time to lose. >>> >>>The petition (below) can be found online at the Justice for Lynne Stewart >>>website: www.lynnestewart.org <http://www.lynnestewart.org/> or at >>> >>>www.change.org/petitions/petition-to-free-lynne-stewart-save-her-life-releas >>>e-her-now-2 >>><http://www.change.org/petitions/petition-to-free-lynne-stewart-save-her-lif >>>e-release-her-now-2> >>> >>>PETITION TO FREE LYNNE STEWART: SAVE HER LIFE – RELEASE HER NOW! >>> >>>Lynne Stewart has devoted her life to the oppressed – a constant advocate >>>for the countless many deprived in the United States of their freedom and >>>their rights. >>> >>>Unjustly charged and convicted for the “crime” of providing her client with >>>a fearless defense, the prosecution of Lynne Stewart is an assault upon the >>>basic freedoms of us all. >>> >>>After years of post-conviction freedom, her bail was revoked arbitrarily and >>>her imprisonment ordered, precluding surgery she had scheduled in a major >>>New York hospital. >>> >>>The sinister meaning of the relentless persecution of Lynne Stewart is >>>unmistakably clear. Given her age and precarious health, the ten-year >>>sentence she is serving is a virtual death sentence. >>> >>>Since her imprisonment in the Federal Prison in Carswell, Texas her urgent >>>need for surgery was delayed 18 months – so long, that the operating >>>physician pronounced the condition as “the worst he had seen.” >>> >>>Now, breast cancer, which had been in remission prior to her imprisonment, >>>has reached Stage Four. It has appeared in her lymph nodes, on her shoulder, >>>in her bones and her lungs. >>> >>>Her daughter, a physician, has sounded the alarm: “Under the best of >>>circumstances, Lynne would be in a battle of the most serious consequences >>>with dangerous odds. With cancer and cancer treatment, the complications can >>>be as debilitating and as dangerous as the cancer itself.” >>> >>>In her current setting, where trips to physicians involve attempting to walk >>>with 10 pounds of shackles on her wrists and ankles, with connecting chains, >>>Lynne Stewart has lacked ready access to physicians and specialists under >>>conditions compatible with medical success. >>> >>>It can take weeks to see a medical provider in prison conditions. It can >>>take weeks to report physical changes and learn the results of treatment; >>>and when held in the hospital, Lynne has been shackled wrist and ankle to >>>the bed. >>> >>>This medieval “shackling” has little to do with any appropriate prison >>>control. She is obviously not an escape risk. >>> >>>We demand abolition of this practice for all prisoners, let alone those >>>facing surgery and the urgent necessity of care and recovery. >>> >>>It amounts to cruel and unusual punishment, in violation of human rights. >>> >>>There is immediate remedy available for Lynne Stewart. Under the 1984 >>>Sentencing Act, after a prisoner request, the Bureau of Prisons can file a >>>motion with the Court to reduce sentences “for extraordinary and compelling >>>reasons.” Life threatening illness is foremost among these and Lynne Stewart >>>meets every rational and humane criterion for compassionate release. >>> >>>To misconstrue the gravamen of this compassionate release by conditioning >>>such upon being at death’s door – released, if at all, solely to die – is a >>>cruel mockery converting a prison sentence, wholly undeserved, into a death >>>sentence. >>> >>>The New York Times, in an editorial (2/12), has excoriated the Bureau of >>>Prisons for their restrictive crippling of this program. In a 20-year >>>period, the Bureau released a scant 492 persons – an average of 24 a year >>>out of a population that exceeds 220,000. >>> >>>We cry out against the bureaucratic murder of Lynne Stewart. >>> >>>We demand Lynne Stewart’s immediate release to receive urgent medical care >>>in a supportive environment indispensable to the prospect of her survival >>>and call upon the Bureau of Prisons to act immediately. >>> >>>If Lynne’s original sentence of 28 months had not been unreasonably, >>>punitively increased to 10 years, she would be home now — where her medical >>>care would be by her choice and where those who love her best would care for >>>her. Her isolation from this loving care would end. >>> >>>Prevent this cruelty to Lynne Stewart whose lifelong commitment to justice >>>is now a struggle for her life. >>> >>>Free Lynne Stewart Now! >>> >>>Ralph Poynter and Family >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >> >> >> >
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