ANOTHER Benton Harbor man found dead, floating in the Lake

Body on Beach Identified as Michigan Man 4.16.12 - Chesterton Tribune The body of the John Doe found washed ashore in Beverly Shores [Indiana] on April 11 has been identified. The man was identified as William Edward Hurse, 33, of Benton Harbor, Mich., reported missing more than two months ago, Porter County Coroner Chuck Harris told the Chesterton Tribune on Saturday. The Indiana State Police crime lab made the identification by running a usable fingerprintobtained from the body through the Integrated Automated Fingerprint System (IAFIS), Harris said. The cause of death remains undetermined, however, and how, when, and under what circumstances Hurse entered Lake Michigan are unknown, Harris added. The results of a toxicology screen are pending. Benton Harbor Det. Lt. Delmar Lange said today that Hurse’s mother reported her son missing on Feb. 3, after he left to run some personal errands and never returned. Hurse was dressed in bib overalls, a black tee-shirt, and a black do-rag when he was found around 7:30 a.m. April 11 by a Florida woman taking photographs in the 600 block of Lakeshore Drive. Hurse was wearing a single hiking boot and a black wristwatch and in his pockets investigators found a Swiss Army knife, an all-in-one tool, and 35 cents in change. The body had been in the water for some time, Harris has said. Anyone with information about Hurse’s activities is urged to call the Porter County Coroner’s Office or the Indiana Department of Natural Resources. href="http://chestertontribune.com/PoliceFireEmergency/body_on_beach_ided_as_ michigan_m.htm">http://chestertontribune.com/PoliceFireEmergency/body_on_ beach_ided_as_michigan_m.htm

People in Berrien County who could facilitate the search for Timothy Allen but refuse

Chief county prosecutor Art Cotter
Sheriff Paul Bailey
St. Joseph Township Police Chief Ross Bates
County Commissioners:
Dave Pagel
Mac Elliott
John LaMore
Debra Panozzo
Marletta Seats
Jon Hinkelman
Zach Perkins
Bob Wooley
Mamie L. Yarbrough
Bryan Bixby
Jeanette Leahey
Cathy Thieneman
Andy Vavra
Rep. Fred Upton
Benton Harbor Police Chief Roger Lange
State Rep. Al Pscholka
State Sen. John Proos

Rev. Pinkney has received new information indicating that St. Joe Twnshp. police spoke to Mr. Allen in a rude manner. The video is in the possession of BH police who refuse to allow citizens to view it, except for Allen's family.

Blacks Go Missing in Police Custody: Timothy "Bulldog" Allen

PLEASE HELP find Timothy "Bulldog" Allen. His family called an ambulance for him in Benton Harbor, Michigan almost two weeks ago and have not seen him since. There are seven(7) paragraphs, one(1) photo with description, and three(3) links and twenty-eight (28) recent @koffietime tweets in this article (not counting links in tweets). Police were the last to see him, according to his family at this linkfor the Rev. Pinkney Blogtalk radio show on November 20, 2011. His family asks for his return, even if he is dead. They need closure.

MORE INFO AT MaryLovesJustice

Judge Charles Lasata plays doctor

Buckle your seat belt and breathe deeply.

Beverly Lewis from Benton Harbor has only a third grade education due to severe epilepsy and a school system lacking resources. She suffers several seizures per day and is heavily medicated. Needless to say, Ms. Lewis, late 30's, is physically and mentally handicapped. (Her father happens to be the deceased wrestler, Bo Bo Brazil.)

On January 5, 2011, Ms. Lewis attended the infamous Berrien County courthouse for allegedly attacking a woman. Judge Lasata, suddenly playing the role of court physician, told Ms. Lewis that she fakes the seizures she has lived with for decades.

She was unlucky enough to have public defender Scott Sanford as counsel.
Court watchers cannot think of a case Sanford has won in a decade, and know him primarily for saying the words, "Plead guilty." Ms. Lewis has led an exemplary life, has never even received a parking ticket, but was forced to plead guilty to this crime which she did not commit.

At first she did refuse, but after Sanford hit her in the face with some papers and told her he would see that she spent the rest of her life in prison, she didn't know any better than to plead guilty. We can say with confidence that the main goal of the courthouse is to imprison for life as many BH residents as possible.

In the county jail, two days later, she sent word that she needed some assistance, so, true to common Berrien County jail practice, a guard was sent to beat her up.

Judge Lasata must be stopped.

The story ends here for now. It is our constitutional duty to hold law enforcement and courts accountable for their actions, inactions, and wrongdoing. We must fight for justice.

There is a saying in Berrien County: Do not fight Whirlpool. Why? They can
financially ruin you and do great harm to you and your family. Whirlpool controls every aspect of Berrien, including the courthouse and judges.

Innocent Benton Harbor prisoner will challenge Smigielski in court

BHPD officer Wes Smigielski sent innocent BH resident, Charles Gray, to prison. Gray will go back to court with a judgement against Smigielski in the coming year. So far, the judgement contains the following: Falsified BHPD forfeiture paperwork; Falsified a sworn complaint and affidavit; Falsified police report; Planted drugs on Gray; Lied about searching Gray's truck and about Andrew Collin's involvement; Lied on the stand. Berrien county prosecutor's office assistant Mary Malesky was involved in the cover-up. To make his case stronger, Smigielski attempted to involve two other officers - det. Hopkins and officer Long from St. Joe. They had nothing to do with Gray's case.

Smigielski manipulates another citizen to lie

Benton Harbor police officer Wes Smigielski is looking for another witness to lie for him in a January court case. See if you can follow the workings of a psychopathic mind.

(Information on psychopaths: http://educate-yourself.org/cn/barrretttwilightofpsychopaths21aug08.shtml)

Ok, here goes - Pat Taylor's son, Patrick Thomas, is charged with murder and is currently in jail waiting for trial. (He's innocent and is taking the fall for Dewayne Yarbrough, member of a Whirlpool sponsored family. See story here: http://bhbanco.blogspot.com/2010/10/bizarre-stories-two-berrien-county.html)

Camilla Crumbley's children were taken from her by Child Protective Services. Officer Smigielski tells Camilla that Pat Taylor made the call to CPS which got her children removed. He wants Camilla to be a witness in the January trial of Patrick Thomas. The rationale he's using is that lying to help convict Patrick Thomas for murder will give her the chance to get even with Thomas's mother for calling CPS.

Nothing he's saying is true as he manipulates more Benton Harbor residents for Berrien county's corporate master, Whirlpool. We wouldn't be surprised if Smigielski himself called CPS. Eradication of the African-American population for development of the land is the decades old project of the state sponsored corporation.

Daily Crimes Against Humanity

The Sick and Twisted Values of St. Joseph, Michigan and the Rogue Berrien county court

1. Shannon McKinney, a Benton Harbor man in his 30's, was a victim of former officer Andrew Collins. Today McKinney must go to court for a charge of which he is innocent. Collins planted drugs on him, he did time, and was one of the few to be released from prison by Prosecutor Art Cotter after Collins was convicted. Now, law enforcement is going after those who were released.

McKinney was recently stopped by deputy Haskin who told McKinney he'll "make life hell for him." Haskin took McKinney's truck, impounded it, took all of McKinney's money, and issued a warrant for his arrest. He charged him with Delivery of Drugs. Now McKinney doesn't know what to do. In a different vehicle, McKinney was stopped a second time by Haskin who put a gun to his head - payback for McKinney filing a complaint with the county. Haskin found it in the car, took it, and tore it up.

2. Rishar Goss, a BH man in his 30's, has been in county jail for armed robbery. Yesterday was his preliminary examination in Berrien county court. Always on the lookout for new ways to ruin black peoples' lives, Wes Smigielski brought a 15 year old boy to court to lie and say Rishar Goss was part of a group who committed a robbery. Unexpectedly, the boy's father showed up before the examination and told his son not to lie. Bolstered with confidence, he answered prosecutor Mike Sepic's repeated 'question:'

"You said Goss was part of the robbery" by stating,

"No, Smigielski said that."

The case was dismissed.

BRAVO to the teenager!

More on Vigansky

Another case Berrien County's Gerald Vigansky prosecuted last summer involved a 17-year-old Benton Harbor high school student who had a boyfriend, but no idea that a warrant for his arrest had been issued. She was arrested at school while rehearsing for graduation (typical technique used in these parts to instill "group fear" - in how many towns would cops wait until a teenager was in school to arrest them?) She innocently told police that she had been in a motel with her boyfriend, so they arrested her for aiding and abetting a fugitive. She had never been in court before, and was like a lamb going to slaughter with Vigansky vigorously attacking her, prosecuting her like a pit bull in a hearing where he forced her to plead guilty.

Like so many BH residents before her who's lives and liberty have been stolen from them by the Berrien County authorities, she will have a lifetime record preventing her from getting employment, entering college, and receiving grants. Or at least making these things much more difficult.

Comment from March 8, 2008
Stories From Another Planet (we wish)

"I personally know Officer Igert and was in his presence when he called the 70 year old woman a 'stupid nigger.' Officer Igert is a rogue cop who has sexually molested his young child and most recently broke into a girlfriend's house and robbed her and her young child of everything they own. He has gotten away with everything he has done by using his badge."

http://bhbanco.blogspot.com/2008/03/stories-from-another-planet-we-wish.html?showComment=1287560716798#c7944721924940097620

Racial injustice never stops rearing its ugly head in Berrien County

Innocent 17 year old in jail for murder

The most recent case involves murder charges against a trio of African-American youths all who have been jailed awaiting trial in January.

Dequarius Stewart and Kanisha Dyer, cousins, were hanging around outside a store in Benton Harbor when Lavors Coats, 17, comes along. A Mr. Kusiak, middle-aged and white, had entered the store earlier, and Dequarius asked Lavors to see if he had any money.

Coats goes in and comes back saying Kusiak had no money. He was trying to protect Kusiak from harm. Kusiak then comes out and goes down the street where Dequarius was waiting. Dequarius hit Kusiak several times, killing him.

BHPD and detective officer Wes Smigielski arrived along with the FBI (presumably because Kusiak was white.)

During the preliminary examination in the notorious Berrien County Courthouse, det. officer Wes Smigielski stated that Coats said Krusiak had a little money, along with other untruths. Courtroom attendees could tell that Smigielski was obviously lying each time he made a statement. Coats was branded the "lookout" by Smigielski.

The paid defense attorney, extremely uncommon in the Berrien County courthouse, let Lavors Coats explain that he just didn't want Krusiak to get hurt, and told Dequarius that Krusiak had no money. The judge then abruptly said, "Lavors Coats, Dequarius Stewart, and Kanisha Dyer will be going to trial for murder."

Knowledgeable observers are rightfully outraged over how Berrien County law enforcement and judicial system have gone to great lengths to complicate a straightforward case. But, as it has been said, not one but three black youths have been taken off the street to the obvious satisfaction of authorities. Hidden agenda: state protected Whirlpool is devouring land and does whatever necessary to eradicate it of African-Americans.

Documentary spotlights Berrien inmates, kids

DePaul University film team hopes to capture how severely children are affected when a parent is serving time
By Scott Aiken - H-P Thursday, September 9, 2010

ST. JOSEPH - When a mother is convicted of a crime and goes to jail, the punishment may not fall on her alone.
Children, unable to understand why their parent is gone, often suffer lasting harm.
"The effect of a woman leaving for a few months is devastating, it's heart-wrenching," said Kim Clark, part of a documentary film team that has been working in the Berrien County jail since July....

Policy matters wrote on Sep 9, 2010 4:46 PM:
"...There is nothing at all contradictory about the notion that very bad social outcomes - in this case, the prospect of children growing up with one or both parents incarcerated and the myriad associated problems - can be a result of both irresponsible personal behavior and bad policy. Certainly, parents ought to consider the well-being of their children when they engage in risky, illegal,and unethical behavior. Acknowledging this fact, however, it is still the case that incarceration policies in this country are badly out of whack. The rate at which we imprison people is the highest in the world, there is little evidence of any safety benefits accruing to this rate, and there is a great deal of harm that comes from placing almost two and a half million people behind bars at any given time. One of the harms being the incidence of broken families. "

outsideinthecold wrote on Sep 9, 2010 5:16 PM:
" America, land of the free, has the largest prison population in the world. Since 1980, the US prison population has risen 400% and the trend continues upward.

The cost to our society is simply unsustainable. One-third of all black males are either in jail, or on parole/probation. Half of all black males have criminal records...We continue to enforce a 'War on Drugs' that costs over $100,000,000,000 a year and has only made the black market more lucrative for both the suppliers and dealers as well as members of the arrest and punishment industry while creating an unemployable underclass that is a cause, in large measure, of the results reported in the HP story. "

Gotta Wonder wrote on Sep 9, 2010 5:18 PM:
" I understand that we should have zero tolerance for crime. But this documentary is addressing a particular aspect of crime and its effect on children.

I think the point is, who will teach these children? Their parents may not be the best role models, but who really gets punished when they are incarcerated and not even able to care for their children in the most basic sense? So, who gets the job? Grandparents, the State, and perhaps a little attention from a social worker at school.

Particularly with women, I think there is a lot of incentive to go straight and sober up, so to speak, if it means rebuilding the family. I think the Fresh Start program has had some success.

It isn't necessarily in the best interest of children of offenders or society to issue lengthy sentences to mothers. Once the bond of mother and child is removed, mothers lose incentive to improve their lives and the kids start to drift toward crime. We are talking about people who have been raised in a cycle, a culture, a heritage of crime. "

Policy matters wrote on Sep 10, 2010 10:21 AM:
" To Logician: There is nothing in my first post to suggest that I think incarceration is never appropriate for parents. What I am claiming is that our country locks up far more people than is optimal, with no appreciable safety benefit, an enormous burden on state budgets, and a host of very serious social harms. One of these social harms, as depicted by the documentary in question, is borne by the children of the incarcerated.

Prison time is no doubt warranted for parents who pose a genuine threat to society. Likewise, all parents ought to be compelled by the state to abide by the law. There is quite a lot of careful thought, however, to suggest that this compulsion as currently applied is grossly inefficient in many ways. What we need, and what is clearly possible, is a criminal justice system that better provides the desirable outcomes of a safe and orderly society without the massive externalities of the current system. Such a system will almost certainly entail locking up many fewer people, parents included. "

rukahs wrote on Sep 10, 2010 1:37 PM:
" These jails are owned by private corporations they rely on incarcerations....more people in jail=$ "

http://www.heraldpalladium.com/articles/2010/09/09/local_news/1848670.txt

A Benton Harbor resident comes forward with a personal story of police abuse. You'll read in these short paragraphs how corrupt cops (backed by Whirlpool) ruin peoples' lives, and relationships with family and others. This story illustrates one part of the larger corporate objective to remove BH residents - by any means necessary.

I was one of the people in their reign of terror. They raided my house in ‘07 and took my chevy van. They took a large amount of money from my mother-in-law, and gave her only a percentage back. They also took money from me, saying they had found 3 eight balls in the house on the cabinet in vases. They were lying because where they said they found drugs my wife’s mother had cleaned the vases the day before. I told Mr. White, my attorney, that I never made a statement to Officer Collins or Hall, but he indicated that I told Collins that I drove my van around selling drugs to each and everyone that called me.

They also raided my uncle’s house - the same tormenting - them trying to make him say I sold drugs. The only thing I regret is losing my mother-in-law’s trust.
She started calling me a drug dealer, and I had them put out of the projects. I tried to talk to Mrs. Hester - she didn’t want to talk. She said I was a target. I also told her that I didn’t have any drugs nor did I sell drugs.

No one believed me, so I spent 2 days in jail and 2 years on a felony probation. All I want back is my life that I can’t seem to catch up with. I’m glad they found out the truth because nobody was asking questions about what Collins and Hall were doing. Pope tried to talk to the chief, but was not able to. I don’t blame just those two because it took more cops to do the drug raids, and some of those cops were there to witness what was found and what was planted.

Prosecutor authorizes charges in BH brawls

[The Herald Palladium has all the "right" language to describe BH activities; in this headline it's
"brawls." The more inflammatory, the better, to foster racist bigotry towards BH.]

By Julie Swidwa - H-P (excerpts & commentary)
April 2, 2010

ST. JOSEPH - Berrien County Prosecutor Art Cotter has authorized charges against several people in connection with a disturbance Tuesday in Benton Harbor.

Cotter said seven people were charged in connection with a large fight that happened between 6:30 and 7 p.m., and two more people were arrested in connection with a second, smaller disturbance...

COMMENT: BH history tells us that police instigate fights, and it could be true in this case.

State police and the Berrien County Sheriff's Department were called to help Benton Harbor police break up a large crowd in the neighborhood bounded by Lavette and May streets and Broadway and Empire Avenue. The later incident happened in the McAllister Street area, Cotter said.

COMMENT: Cotter has waited for months for something to happen since there has been a recent drop in BH residents being arrested. Crime in BH is down.

Initial reports from Benton Harbor Police Chief Roger Lange said all the people arrested were ages 14-19. But the arrest list provided by Cotter Thursday indicated some of the people were much older.
_______, 36, and ________, 38, are among those charged with resisting and obstructing police, Cotter said. __________, 19, and _________, 18, face that same charge, a two-year-felony.

COMMENT: Does the punishment fit the crime? Is a courthouse goal to give all BH residents a record (a life-ruining stigma)?

Also arrested in connection with the early incident were: ____________, 17, charged with assault and battery; and ______________, 18, charged with disturbing the peace. Those are misdemeanors carrying a maximum penalty of 93 and 30 days in jail, respectively.

COMMENT: This is a waste of taxpayers' money. The hidden hand of Whirlpool is evident to those who have paid attention. How can Harbor Shores development be completed with all these BH residents in the way?

Cotter said police were called again later Tuesday night to a disturbance on McAllister Street in Benton Harbor. Arrested there were ______________, 22, and ___________, 44. They both are charged with disturbing the peace, Cotter said.

COMMENT: Police were called by who? other police?

Lange said that, to his knowledge, there were no serious injuries related to Tuesday night's events.

The chief said state police and the Berrien County Sheriff's Department will continue to assist Benton Harbor police in patrolling the neighborhoods. He said the first warm days typically bring large crowds into the streets.

COMMENT: Warm weather brings people outside all over the world. The state police and the sheriff have lazer beams pointed at Benton Harbor. As residents know too well, there are cops in other nearby jurisdictions who have also used BH as a racist's "playground." People in BH have been arrested after being told they couldn't walk down a certain street at a certain time. And, of course there's the infamous drug planting...Hopefully the new BH police chief can put a stop to gratuitous and juvenile arrests.

jswidwa@TheH-P.com

Nothing happens in Berrien County without the secret hand of Whirlpool. Keep that in mind while reading this article about BHPD officers Hall and Collins who will go down in history as cops who cooperated with the effort to rid Benton Harbor of African-American citizens so Harbor Shores could be developed. This massive human and environmental rights disaster continues with barely a whisper from media. No organizing by midwest "peace" groups. Kalamazoo, the nearest city of size, is mostly quiet. Chicago has people involved in the struggle. From your computer you can read the Herald-Palladium and leave a comment - maybe you'd like to do it on a daily basis. Comments after this article are surprizing - the Palladium must be under pressure from citizens. Their policy used to disallow comments against the "power structure."

In an imaginary world where equality exists, Whirlpool would leave BH, restore the beach, and help repair homes - as a gift to residents. They would open a factory and offices and give every person a job. They owe BH, big time.

Prosecutor, police chief say Bernard Hall and Andrew Collins' actions will have lingering effects; pair were indicted on corruption charges involving dozens of drug arrests

By J. Swidwa - H-P

Fri., March 5, 2010
GRAND RAPIDS - Benton Harbor and Berrien County will suffer serious, long-term repercussions from the actions of two former police officers who violated the civil rights of residents, the city's police chief and the county prosecutor told a federal judge Thursday.
U.S. District Court Judge Janet Neff called the victim impact statements read by Police Chief Roger Lange and Berrien County Prosecutor Arthur Cotter "very eloquent" and sentenced former Benton Harbor policeman Bernard Hall Jr. to 30 months in prison.
Hall, 34, along with former Benton Harbor policeman Andrew Collins, 27, were indicted in 2009 on corruption charges related to dozens of drug arrests in the city from 2006 to 2008.
The indictment charged that the two falsified search warrant affidavits, obtained search warrants without probable cause, embezzled money from the department, filed false police reports and unlawfully seized people's money and personal property for their own personal use.
The two fabricated controlled drug buys to secure illegal search warrants and to embezzle funds from the police department.
Collins is serving 37 months in a federal prison and was brought to court Thursday to testify in a sentencing hearing for Hall.
Hall pleaded guilty last September to conspiracy to violate civil rights. The statutory maximum sentence is 10 years, but based on a presentence investigation, the sentencing guideline range for Hall was 24 to 30 months.
Hall, through his lawyer Don Ferris of Ann Arbor, asked for a lighter sentence, saying he wasn't the ringleader, but was a follower.
As a corporal, Hall was Collins' supervisor when the two worked in the city's narcotics unit. Hall testified Thursday he had falsified just seven search warrant affidavits compared to Collin's 80 to 100, that he took money from Collins on one occasion and never kept drugs seized from alleged dealers or stole money from them as Collins did.
Collins was a one-man operation in the narcotics unit from November 2005 until Hall was transferred from the School Resource Officer division to narcotics in June 2006. Collins testified that he told Hall "early on" how they could falsify reports to obtain search warrants, and said he had been doing it to increase his arrest numbers "to, in my mind, do a better job."
Collins said he would keep drugs in his office to either plant on people during a search or to falsify drug buys to embezzle money from the department.
Under questioning by Assistant U.S. Attorney Brian Delaney, Collins said that if Hall claimed not to know about the drugs stashed in the office, "that would be a lie."
Shaking his head, Collins said, "No. We were together all the time. We ate lunch together. I went to his house with him several times. It was me and him. We were close friends."
Collins told the court he had falsified 80 to 90 search warrants and "(Hall) was aware of most of them. He assisted with them."
Under cross-examination by Ferris, Collins said, "I was the one who hatched the idea," but said Hall knew the extent of his actions.
Hall maintained throughout the hearing that he was less guilty than Collins.
"Collins told you about shortcuts and illegal acts, and that was fine with you, right?" Delaney asked Hall.
"Yes," Hall answered.
"But you're trying to get this court to think you're really not that involved," Delaney countered.
"Because I'm not," Hall said.
Former Benton Harbor Police captain Randel Pompey was called to testify about Hall's claims that he had come to Pompey early on with concerns about Collins.
"No. I would have stopped it," Pompey told the court. "I didn't work 25 years to go to Benton Harbor to have my career ended by two guys not doing what they were supposed to do."
Pompey, a state police veteran before working in Benton Harbor in 2007 and 2008, has since become chief of the Coloma Township Police Department.
Pompey said Hall came to him in February 2008 and said Collins had marijuana in the narcotics office that had not been inventoried and packaged within 24 hours as required by department regulations.
That led to a search of the narcotics unit office in which Pompey found a lock box under Collins' desk. The box was empty, but Collins told another officer that he had thrown drugs in a trash can.
Former Chief Al Mingo and Pompey subsequently found marijuana, heroin and crack cocaine, fired Collins and launched an investigation.
"I was mad. More than mad," Pompey told the court. "I was disappointed and thoroughly disgusted."
Pompey said he worked in Benton Harbor another year and, after Collins' arrest, spent most of his time responding to complaints about police officers.
"It became, and still is, hard to work in that city. I don't think either of them recognize what they've done," Pompey said of Collins and Hall.
Pompey left the department for his job in Coloma and Mingo retired.
The new chief, Roger Lange, said in his victim statement Thursday that the actions of Hall and Collins have had "a devastating impact" on the city of Benton Harbor.
The city, already with serious financial problems, faces several civil lawsuits stemming from arrests made by Collins and Hall.
"My officers and I on a daily basis must deal with citizens who can never forget the betrayal of these two officers ... ," Lange said.
He thanked the U.S. Attorney's office and FBI Special Agent Al Dibrito for their work on the case.
In his victim statement, Cotter said the prosecutor's office has suffered, too.
"I knew when I first learned of this, that it was going to be a mess. It's a total breach of fidelity to the people of Berrien County and the citizens of Benton Harbor, and it's taken months and months of work," Cotter told the judge. "The citizens of Benton Harbor may end up paying for this."
Cotter said the actions of Hall and Collins have resulted in the reversal of 43 drug cases so far, with dozens still to be reviewed. He said he is combing through every case and that Collins has cooperated, but Hall has not.
"Mingo said he put Hall there (in charge of narcotics) because he was older, more experienced, level-headed and trusted, to make sure this younger, maybe over-exuberant officer had supervision," Cotter told the judge. "Bernard Hall violated that trust. I've been waiting, hoping, that he would step forward and right his wrong, and he hasn't. I ask you to throw the proverbial book at him."
Neff told Hall the case is much bigger than him.
"This is a whole lot bigger than you, here, and that's the part that doesn't seem to have landed with you," she said.
Neff said she is familiar with Benton Harbor.
"You live and served in a community where that trust was already very fragile. I know just how fragile that trust was between police and citizens and now, if not totally broken, it's awfully close," the judge told Hall. "Frankly, I think that lands more at your feet. You were older, more experienced, you were in charge. That's what I'm not hearing from you. I don't think the numbers make any difference."
Hall, wearing black pants and a burgundy sweater with his hands clasped behind his back, fought back tears as he told the judge, "You're right. I'm wrong for what I did. I apologize."
Delaney told the judge that her sentence will be heard "all over homes in Benton Harbor and the police community."
Neff sentenced Hall to 30 months in federal prison, three years' supervised release and $10,000 restitution. She said that for his safety, the court will try to place him somewhere separate from people who are serving time for drug convictions in the Western District of Michigan.
"I hope some level of incarceration will provide you with deeper insight," she told him. "I don't think, listening to you, that you understand the greater implications of what you've done. You could have put a stop to this, and you didn't."
Hall agreed to surrender himself and was allowed to leave court on his own Thursday.
Delaney said Hall will be notified by the court where and when to begin his prison sentence.
Full article and comments: http://www.heraldpalladium.com/articles/2010/03/06/local_news/1252440.txt

Powerful Statement by former Benton Harbor resident

I am L.D. Fuse's oldest sister and lived in B.H. for 21 years and now live in Dallas. I am a Registered Nurse. I had to leave B.H. and MI period to graduate from nursing school. I met road blocks at LMC and GVSC in the 80's. I had A's in classes but was told I didn't pass clinical per a white instructor. I am here to tell you that I graduated as an RN in 1985 in Dallas, Tx on the dean's list and work in hospitals, clinics and schools in Dallas. B.H. is like the deep South of the 60's. My family has been deeply traumatized emotionally and physically. The police twisted my mother's neck and arm and she has lots of pain everyday. My dad who is 92 is helpless at what happened to his son named after him, and his wife. He used to haul trash for the city and white customers for 45 years. He was well respected and trusted in their yards and homes. But now in 2008-2010 he lives to see racism at an all time high against his family. I can't believe the same town, my hometown is so evil and wicked! I will never forget their names. One Day, God will pay them back in Judgement Day, and yes there is a God. As a nurse, I treat all races equally but some think they are supreme beings, above the law. I could never move back there and hope to move my family one day as it is like Sodom and Gomorrah. The judges and police would hang blacks if they could but it is all being recorded by God's Angels.

The sad fact of the matter is that too many killer cops are still walking around free

I call it murder by Cynthia McKinney, Jan. 31, 2010

They shot this Black man in his genitals and in his back. It sounds like a hate crime to me. How else could one describe it?

Well, according to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, it was self-defense. But how many times have we heard self-defense by cops used as a cop out?

Well, what about Amadou Diallo? Amadou Diallo was murdered on February 4, 1999 by New York Police Department (NYPD) cops who mistook a wallet for a gun. They claim that they thought he was going to shoot them and so they shot him in self-defense. One officer fell as if he had been shot. 41 bullets later, Amadou Diallo had been shot 19 times. Young Amadou was only 24 years old. He could survive the itinerant life of an African trading family, moving from Africa to Asia, but he couldn't survive the mean, racist streets of America. And the killer cops went free. Diallo's mother and step-father settled with the City of New York for $3 million in a lawsuit alleging wrongful death, racial profiling, and violation of Amadou's civil rights.

Kathryn Johnston was 92 years old when she was murdered by Atlanta Police Department (APD) officers who claim that they shot her in self-defense after narcotics officers broke into her home on November 21, 2006 using a "no-knock" warrant. Police forced their way into Johnston's home and claimed to have found a stash of marijuana there. The APD officers claimed that she had injured them with her rusty revolver. Sadly, it was all lies. Later, it was learned that the Atlanta Police officers were actually injured by friendly fire after discharging their firearms 39 times; that they planted marijuana in the Johnston basement; lied on the drug warrant authorizing the raid; invented an informant justifying the raid; and pressured an actual drug informant to lie for them. Atlanta's lying, killer cops did serve time--either for manslaughter, conspiracy to violate Johnston's civil rights resulting in death, or perjury. The three officers were also required to reimburse the Johnston estate the $8,000 cost of her burial.

In the wee hours of November 25, 2006, Sean Bell was murdered in a hail of 50 bullets fired by officers in the New York Police Department. Bell was celebrating his upcoming wedding and was leaving the club where he had just held his bachelor party. Police opened fire after they suspected the victim had a gun. Bell was struck 4 times in the neck and torso and died from his wounds. When no gun was to be found, they concocted a mystery witness who could possibly have had a gun. New York's killer cops were acquitted on all charges.

Although Diallo, Johnston, and Bell were Black, Blacks in the United States are not the only ones who can be victimized by murderous U.S. law enforcement. While on a visit to Cuba, I had the opportunity to meet and apologize to the widow of Filiberto Ojeda Rios, a leading Puerto Rican Independentista. Wanted by U.S. authorities for actions stemming from his belief that Puerto Rico was a U.S. colony that should be independent, Ojeda Rios was murdered on September 23, 2005, shot by the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) at his home. An FBI press release stated that Ojeda Rios opened fire on the FBI and that the FBI retaliated, but that claim was not substantiated by an Inspector General's report that noted that the FBI opened the attack on Ojeda Rios with a "flash bang" device. Ojeda Rios shot 10 times and the FBI fired one hundred times. Ojeda Rios was struck in the lung by a single sniper's bullet, fell to the floor, and bled to death over 12 to 15 hours with no medical help allowed to save his life.

Continue reading at http://www.gp.org/cynthia/display.php?ID=30

The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency, HBO program from Botswana

If you are lucky enough to see this wonderful detective show, you will delight in the methods used with those who commit crimes. Framing? Arrest? Conviction? Jail? Prison? Quite the opposite: forgiveness and restitution, among others. And, one can understand how these methods are effective.

We know that Resorative Justice programs exist in the US, certainly not in Berrien County, one of the harshest and most punitive areas of the country where lives are permanently destroyed on a daily basis. Maybe someday citizens will come forward to establish a RJ program in Berrien, and through some miracle, will succeed.

(After doing a search, we found that some libraries carry DVD's of the first season (08-09) of The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency.)

JAIL CENTRAL: BERRIEN COUNTY, MICHIGAN

Interview with Dorothy Pinkney By Joseph Peery

Joseph Peery: Dorothy, what happens when young people are arrested in Benton Harbor?:

Dorothy Pinkney: They tell them to plead guilty and you’ll just be fined. By hearing this they get excited and think “I can do this, I can say I’m guilty and I’ll go home.” But it doesn’t happen like that. It’s not set up that way. The powers that be know that the poverty level in the city is so high and there are not many jobs. So when they give these young African American guys their jail sentences, they know they cannot afford to pay their sentence. So what do they do? Go to jail. Then the jail becomes overcrowded. I’ve seen so many mothers, wives, girlfriends, packed into the Berrien County Jail just to visit their boyfriends, their husbands, their fathers. It was too much to handle. I didn’t know it was this extreme.

JP: Many families don’t have a bread winner at home. And during winter, there’s a lot of homes that don’t have water or gas. Can you speak to this.

Dorothy: You’re just adding misery to people’s lives. It’s like you take a nail and hammer and you hit that nail. It’s going to pierce the wood, but you keep nailing and hitting and it goes deeper and deeper. There’s so much poverty. The city is being drained.The government doesn’t care. Why do you keep beating someone down when people are saying “we can’t take any more.” Instead of helping, you’re steady nailing deeper and deeper.

JP: What do you feel people in other cities need to do?

Dorothy: I think we can all come together and unite as one, fight for one particular thing, get that accomplished, and then go to the next thing. It’s a slow process but we can do it. It’s never too late.

http://www.peoplestribune.org/PT.2010.01/PT.2010.01.12.html#two

We Need Justice in Benton Harbor by Dorothy Pinkney

[excerpts]...On highways and in neighborhoods in the city of Benton Harbor people are regularly subjected to stop and search procedures based on racially biased drug courier profiles for just being black...schools are segregated and profoundly unequal...more than before Brown vs. Board of Ed...one-third of all Black men in their twenties are either behind bars or on parole in Benton Harbor because of corruption in the Berrien County court system.

The promise of fair and equal treatment for Black people remains frustratingly elusive in the city of Benton Harbor, Michigan, especially in Berrien County. Our schools are segregated and profoundly unequal, more than before the U.S. Supreme Court 1954 decision in Brown versus the Board of Education. Equal, adequate, public education is far from a reality in Benton Harbor. The city has substantially fewer resources than white schools in every area from teacher qualification to money spent on school books. This is because of the inequality in school funding, which is based on property taxes. The federal government must provide equal funding for every child.

As far as the so called “war on drugs” in Benton Harbor, police officer Andrew Collins and Berrien County prosecutors knew drugs were being planted on Benton Harbor residents. Over one hundred people were sent to jail or prison because of this. The war on crime disproportionately targets Black men and one-third of all Black men in their twenties are either behind bars or on parole in the city of Benton Harbor because of the corruption in the Berrien County court system.

On highways and in neighborhoods in the city of Benton Harbor people are regularly subjected to stop and search procedures based on racially biased drug courier profiles for just being black. Frederick Douglas’s question of making good the promise of the Constitution must be answered with a resounding yes! By any means necessary, for all of our people. So you must keep your mind on your freedom and freedom on your mind.

DONATE TO BENTON HARBOR VICTORY

Rev. Pinkney was released from tether in an Appellate Court victory. But he still must pay court costs, aimed at breaking a defendant, in the amount of $6,405. Send donations to BANCO, 1940 Union St., Benton Harbor, MI 49022
http://www.peoplestribune.org/PT.2009.11/PT.2009.11.12.html#three

Berrien County, Michigan:

1. is headed up by one of the wealthiest right-wing men
in the state and one of the wealthiest, and most
corrupt corporations

(items below are all related to/controlled by 1.),

2. has a court with the most convictions in the state
(highest rate of convictions of innocents and juveniles),

3. has an African-American city being gentrified
brutally and illegally,

4. is destroying endangered plant and animal species
and a Lake Michigan pristine park (stolen land) for
possibly the most massive development on the lake,

5. installs judges having conflicts of interest (investments
in the development) who coldly lock up human beings
after admitting that they're innocent,

6. has a newspaper hiding truth on a daily basis,

7. has a state governor/government which remains mute
on all of the above,

is it surprizing that a black whistleblower has been
imprisoned for writing an article?