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Anti-Police Rally at African-American Community Church

by Jacqueline Carpenter Monday, Jul. 15, 2002 at 4:58 AM
Jackie.Carpenter@calbar.ca.gov

Parishioners, leaders and neighbors gathered at Faith United Methodist church this evening to speak out and organize the African American community's response to the police beating of Donovan Jackson-Chavis.

Los Angeles, CA -- Parishioners, speakers and neighbors gathered at a respected community church this evening to speak out and organize the African American community’s response to the police beating of Donovan Jackson-Chavis, and the arrest of Mitchell Crooks. Faith United Methodist Church on 108st Street in Los Angeles hosted the first meeting of the Justice for Donovan Jackson-Chavis Committee. The meeting drew speakers such as Maxine Waters and Dick Gregory, as well as reporters and cameras from all major news networks, including the BBC. A crowd of about 800 filled every pew in the small church and jammed every aisle and doorway.

Cheers erupted as Sister Taleeba Shakur, the cousin of Donovan Jackson-Chavis and a founding member of the committee, read aloud its demands at the beginning of the rally. “All criminal charges against Donovan must be dropped,” she firmly stated, “and criminal charges must be filed against the police,” including those officers who witnessed the incident, but failed to stop it. All of these officers should be suspended without pay, according to Shakur, not with pay, as is the current custom. “We’ve got to hit them in their paycheck,” she shouted, which elicited cheers from the crowd. To this end, the committee wants a civilian review board created to determine police discipline, and they demand that the members of the board be elected. “We don’t want Jesse James to be investigating Frank James,” Shakur sneered, referring to the often corrupt peer review system in place in most police departments. Lastly, the committee sternly warned Steve Cooley that he will be held personally responsible for the treatment in custody of Mitchell Crooks, the amateur videographer who was arrested two days ago on an outstanding warrant.

The speeches that followed gave voice to the community’s frustration with its constant scourge of police racism and brutality, and the failure of whites to accept police brutality as real. In exasperation, legendary civil rights activist Dick Gregory proclaimed, “We’ve got to explain it like this to white people. Police brutality is just as real to me as sun cancer is to you.” Likewise, Congresswoman Maxine Waters dismissed the speculative talk from many whites about the videotape with, “We don’t know what happened before the video, we don’t know what happened after, but we do know what happened during the video, and that’s enough.”

However, much of the speakers’ focus was on the education and organization of the community as a political force that channels its anger and outrage to its benefit. James Simmons of the National Conference of Black Lawyers explained the penal code sections that define the police beating of Donovan Jackson-Chavis as a crime under the Step Act (Street Terrorism Act), while longtime activist and Black Panther Michael Zinzin described the history of police crimes and the penal code sections that keep police discipline secret. “It’s not police brutality, it’s not police abuse,” said Simmons, “stop talking like it’s an administrative problem. Let’s call it what it is…absolutely what happened is a crime.”

Dick Gregory lightened up the crowd with his characteristic racy humor and jabs at the press. He reminded activists not to internalize their anger and lash out at themselves or their families, but to use it to revitalize a movement for change. “Thirty years ago we wouldn’t be in this church without five hundred state troopers outside…but progress is one thing, change is something else.”

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anti-police... but where's the grassroots

by johnk Monday, Jul. 15, 2002 at 6:22 PM

I was blown away by some of the speeches, but underwhelmed by the fact that there wasn't much organizing going on. Oct 22 had a meeting after, which I'm sure was cool, but, I thought that there's the potential to really push for civilian review and power over policing, and it wasn't done.

The problem is that bad cops aren't fired or jailed consistently (if at all). The bad apples increase, the good apples leave, and all you got left is a basket of rotting fruit. We've seen it happen over and over.

With police, it's more serious, because they're the only people in our communities who have the right to assault and attack people. They have a license to kill.

Where's the "checks and balances" in the system? I feel like we have none.

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Labor Organizing Needed Now

by Labor Creates All Wealth Monday, Jul. 15, 2002 at 7:00 PM

The police brutality continues because labor is weak. Conditions in this country continue to worsen because there is no serious labor organizing. It is long overdue that the 60% of us who sell our labor for less than ,000 a year all be in labor unions. That is the surest and best way to end police brutality, poverty, housing problems, rotten schools and all discrimination.

Meanwhile, in conjunction with labor organizing, keep filing the lawsuits and force these cities, counties, states and the federal government to pay millions of dollars. That does help, but it is not enough. Anyone who can, please do labor organizing.

All of you who vote, please do not vote for any Democrats or Republicans as those are the twin parties of capitalism, and therefore anti-labor. Having a token representative who expresses sympathy but is ineffective does not change the fact that the Democrats-Republicans cannot possibly represent any worker. If you can, vote socialist, otherwise skip the people and just vote on the propositions. It is important to vote on the propositions. As we build a labor movement, we will have labor candidates who refuse to have anything to do with the Democrat-Republicans, and those candidates will win based on a serious labor movement, which will certainly put an end to police brutality, prisons, the death penalty and the war machine, for we cannot have both guns and butter. The police are the armed thugs of the capitalist state at home, while the military is the same abroad. It is time to put an end to both the police and the military and transfer all that money to urgent social needs.

Organize the unorganized. Solidarity forever!

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IN THE BLACK

by tiger woods Sunday, Jul. 21, 2002 at 1:56 AM

Come on now.
Black people are ALL TALK and NO ACTION !!!
I hope this answers your questions.

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citizens for police

by mitchell crooks Monday, Nov. 17, 2003 at 2:41 PM

This is in protest towards the organization "citizens for police" who are constant "trolls" on this site. This organization is formed by ignorant racist white people in favor of jeremy morse. Jeremy morse is the "cowardly" officer from inglewood california who is on trial for the chickenshit beating of an innocent child last july 6th 2002.

These images were captured by mitchell crooks who was present at a hotel nearby the gas station where, Coby chavis the father of 16 year old donovan jackson was parked pumping gas. Several LA county sheriff cars descended to a "parked car" and found a black man driving a "taurus" (found to be too good a car for a black man by racist police) with unregistered tags.

As mitchell crooks found in his young life, Cops have a hatred towards black people and whites who think about living in a unified world. This is how they (cops and law enforcement) infiltrate our way of being. Anyone who has ever been in prison knows how the cops keep order because of the hate they spread. They could not maintain control of the prisons or society's without spreading the racism. This is the ONLY reason they remain in control and corrupt.

So back to the incident. 16 year old special Ed student Donovan jackson purchases a bag of chips with the money left over by paying to fill his fathers tank. Meanwhile after drinking heinekens all 4th of july weekend, mitchell crooks is laying down in his hotel room. Donovan walks out of the small little convenience store to find his dad in a police car for unregistered tags on his car. All this time, a young man from New zealand is taking pics of the arrest from the balcony of the hotel. (this man was flown in by the jeremy morse defense to testify against Donovan jackson) After returning to his fathers car, a hothead pig asks donovan to get out the car and put his hands up. An innocent teen who goes to church and is respectful to all? Donovan was scared to death because he knew he did nothing wrong. But, when your black, pigs hate you regardless. This pig was threatened by donovans black skin. He ordered him to stand still and not move. Donovan then put his hands in his pocket. Having nothing to fear (why wouldn't he?) he reached for his pocket and thats when the inglewood PD showed up at the scene. 5 police cars total. For unregistered tags?

Inglewood PD had been briefed earlier that a "GANG" was planning a hit on a cop. And sadaam had weapons of mass destruction too? This is the excuse by the department for their actions this day. Donovan is NO gang member. His father had plates on his car, I m sorry a sticker on his car that was expired. (prolly due to the outrageous cost of registering a car which the majority is fully aware of. No officers in inglewood were "HIT" on that day or since?

So on this Holiday weekend, when amerikkka is celebrating it's independence from europe, A "terrorist" opens fire at the el al terminal at Los Angeles international airport (LAX) killing two people. He was shot and killed by airport security. The Homeland Security was on high alert since the terrorist attack on 912. Shouldn't we be more concerned about protecting the citizens from terrorists? An unregistered car is hardly a terrorist threat. All this time mitchell crooks is about to uncover a terrorist plot himself.

Alot of different stories about what happened after donovan put his hands in his pocket have emerged. first, nobody found a gun or a weapon on donovan. That is fact. Donovan did nothing wrong. In fact, his father was detained over an unregistered tag. That is fact. Now if donovan jackson was going to put a hit on a cop, i am the fuckin pope.

Donovan was "ATTACKED" by several officers and dragged by his "bling" (a necklace to the ignorant) across the ground by jeremy morse and bijan darvish. He was assaulted by carlos lopez (the sheriff sergeant on scene) as well as all the others. Donovan fearful For his life and knowing he was innocent, struggled to keep free from the Harassment of these pigs. He did nothing wrong. He was afraid of them. They were bigger and threatening HIM. Donovan was hit over the head with a flashlight and punched several times in the head. He was BEATEN by the LA sheriff and inglewood PD. All because his father did not fill some paperwork out at DMV.

This entire time, the man from new zealand (is that fag country) was taking pics of the arrest. Yet he was nowhere to be found once mitchell crooks started shooting the incident. A woman was watching the whole scene and was screaming and yelling during the whole scene. Now this woman is the true hero. She had the presence to yell the keywords out. "Dont resist" & "Stop hurting him" & "help"! she is the true hero of the day! Those keywords gave me the knowledge that pigs were hurting yet another human being. She was also not asked to testify during the trial of jeremy morse? Why? Because the District Attorney is in bed with the Police (fags). They are working together on many issues. Thats why we need a separate police prosecutor to get these pigs when they are out of line. PIGS NEED TO POLICE THEMSELVES! We need alot of extra shit like a police prosecutor and a new justice department. "You are so out bush it's not even funny". You can see my statements on that @ http://homepage.mac.com/encyte/Personal22.html at the october 22 2003 protest against police brutality http://www.october22.org/index.php

So as this woman was screaming I looked out my window and thought it was a fight at the hotel. When she said "RESIST" I knew it was my clue to grab my Sony digital8 camcorder from my backpack. The citizens for police org have stated "why do we pander to these lawless individuals?" I had been on a trip around the divided states of embarrassment. http://www.angelfire.com/hiphop/edog/lyrics/2.html or watch the flash movie here http://www.sundanceonlinefilmfestival.com/animation01_15.html

I was traveling around the states to film a documentary about america and it's rave culture. I had no idea the project would turn into a political one.

I raced out to see this woman in panic. She was keeping her kids inside the hotel room so they couldn't see the police terror going on across the street. I flipped open the view finder on my camera and started filming the incident.

When I saw donovan laying there I just started to cringe. I thought "what could he have done to deserve that treatment?" I had no idea he was a child. I thought he was a 19 or 20 something. I was freaked out by the fact that if I was filming police doing wrong I would be targeted next. As I said on my Videotape. http://homepage.mac.com/encyte/iMovieTheater14.html I was told by the woman, you can hear on the tape, "they are not going to come after you". Huh I knew better!

You can see the video for yourself unedited at the above link or at www.noreversal.com

So, as I was filming this "terrorist attack" by police, I thought "they are going to arrest me and punish me for doing so". I was right. More on that later. I was shocked by the coward doing this in broad daylight! There were about 20 witnesses on scene and not one of them was asked to testify at jeremy Morse's first mistrial. The DA is in bed with pigs remember?

So after I videotaped the incident I gave the tape to friends cause I knew the cops would confiscate the tape and that would be the end of that. I also separated the camera from myself and changed my clothes. I knew these foreign backpackers only a little but they knew what they had seen on the videotape was wrong. The pigs came into the hotel and asked alot of people "who was the one who videotaped the incident?" Nobody snitched. Even though 90% of them knew I was the one. I grabbed a heineken and went down by the pool where people are still enjoying their fourth of july weekend. I sure as fuck did! After 912, police were regarded as heroes and shit cause a couple of the died at the trade center. So I reminded the entire world how fucked up our police Still are. haha.

I went to NBC 4 and showed them the tape. They were not interested. Because I had seen police brutality all the time in LA, I thought the media was not going to take on the situation. I went back to the hotel. Later that next day, I had an appointment to see a potential loft in downtown LA. I went to that and on the way back, I went to UPN and thought they would like a copy for the news. I was happy if they showed it. When they offered 150 dollars I was excited. The News director told me to keep the rights and sell it to as many news outlets as possible. Thats when the inglewood PD was informed. I sold this tape for 150 dollars to several local news outlets. Which is a rip-off considering that the guy who videotaped the rodney king video made 50,000 dollars initially. So to those who say I did it for money, "FUCK YOU" I did it cause it should be done. The world wind of media kept calling from all over the world and wanted the permission to show this video.

IF YOU WANNA BLAME SOMEBODY, BLAME THE "RIGHT WING" MEDIA. NOT ME. lol.

So as soon as the police did a search on me and my name they found a misdemeanor warrant for petty theft and Dui. What you do not know, is that the patriot act has been used so many times against people it was not designed to do. For instance, I was arrested in front of CNN for misdemeanor crimes out of placer county. I was staying in a hotel (leparc in west hollywood) when a DA (steve cooley) from LA tried to illegally supeona me on a radio show. He wanted the video. When I refused to give up my location to him he enacted the patriot act. Actually to be even more honest, FBI or "whoever" were parked outside my hotel room w/ headphones on, listening to me and a friend inside the hotel the night before. When I refused to accept this Illegal supeona to testify before the grand jury, I left the hotel for fear of what I saw the night before. I was appearing on BET w/ Ed Gordon That night (w/congresswoman maxine waters). Twice that night and in the morning, my friend was approached in the hotel, by plain clothes and actual officers demanding him to tell me where I was. How did they know where I was? They had to have illegally tapped the land line inside my hotel during the radio interview. I was not registered at the hotel? I then went to a different friends house in long beach when I noticed cops casing his apartment even before we got there! Tell me how they could know this? Later that night after going to a bar, two undercover cops sat next to me and my friend till we left. They left. I stayed at his house all night long and heard people outside his door all night. Then, the next morning I call my original friend on a cell phone and he is scared to death. I call from CNN inside the building on a land line. He had a cell phone. I told him to bring the tape to CNN and the camera because I was to go onto another BET show taping out of the CNN building.

As soon as he showed up, I mean within seconds, I was standing outside smoking. He dropped off the tape and 7 or so plain clothes officers assaulted me and threw me in a unmarked suv w/ tinted windows. CNN later came out and Showed the world my arrest for misdemeanor crimes that WERE NOT IMPORTANT UNTILL Capturing police doing wrong. At least 5 DOCUMENTED times, I was let go cause the warrant was not that big a deal. Now the whole world knows.

So many of these "PIG LOVERS & RACIST TERRORISTS" have pointed out that I stole VCRS from my mom and had a DUI. Why is that important? Because the LADA used this to arrest me. I refused to testify to the grand jury w/o a lawyer. These warrants were not a big deal until I came forward with the tape. That is FACT. I was stopped in sacramento (one county over from Placer county) Albakurkee NM and in New york and by LAPD in fall 2003 for jaywalking by ofc. v.perez. I was let go after being booked at the culver city police department. I have proof. He should be in jail according to DA steve cooleys explanation to the LA city council that it is illegal to let someone go with knowledge of a warrant. I was refused entry to canada because of the warrant and was let go? If this warrant for misdemeanor crimes was so awful then, why didn't they arrest me then? Cause I did not film police brutality till I returned to my home LA. The charges were so PETTY that my mother was upset about the focus being turned onto me and not the pig jeremy morse. I had pawned a VCR that was in my room at my moms house in 1999. The cops had found the pawn slips in my car and trumped the charges in order to secure giving me more time in placer county jail. See I was the victim of a police attack in placer county CA as a youth (16 too?) and they hated me for it. Since I was not at fault (and the officer) they had a deep-seeded hatred towards me. If I had a competent public pretender at the time I would have beat all the charges. I was duly convicted and plead guilty at the first court hearing. (never do that) My lawyers wanted to appeal the original plea to try it again cause the charges were so weak but that would take 6 months or more. I was sentenced to six months in jail for a 0.08% dui and a petty theft w/ prior.

Even tho the LA county jail had a program were they were kicking out inmates w/ misdemeanor crimes, a private jet flew me to placer county jail the day after the LADA and sheriff assaulted me for videotaping their own "terrorists". I was beaten severely by LADA's and handcuffed for 24 hours str8. That is illegal. That is fact. I was refused a visit from my lawyers and kept in a cell handcuffed to the outside of the cell all night. I was hospitalized for my injuries by the LADA.

I had to serve my six month sentence anyways. I was let go on Jan. 4 2003. I have no charges and no probation/fines/classes so that is good. It worked I am no criminal. I had been turning my life around since 1999. I appeared on the TV show 7th heaven 3 times and turned it around. (check out the episode when the oldest son left the show after getting hitched to a Jew.) Even though, the judge couzins wanted to give me 2 years for bringing attention to the most racist jail in amerikka. Placer county is so corrupt. http://homepage.mac.com/encyte/iMovieTheater15.html They have a 92 % white population and have the largest republican county in Califas. They were so pissed off to see the public focusing in me. Congresswoman maxine waters along with democrat candidate al sharpton called them and threatened them that if anything was to happen to me, they would be in serious trouble. So they put me on 23 hour lock-down for 6 months. They said they needed to protect me from White power inmates? These same white power inmates I got along with and were happy to see the pigs in trouble and sweat-in.

So jeremy morse was put on trial at the end of july 2003 (a year after) and was found basically guilty 7 to 5. The jury was not even given a good case but LADA's max huntsman and mikey petterson blew the case on purpose to satisfy the public. The trial was held in a courthouse nowhere near the crime scene in inglewood. The DA called all the defenses witnesses (the cops) and not a single other witness involved. they used the tape but did not supply the jury with ALL THE FACTS. The other officer Bijan darvish who beat donovan jackson was let off because the current footage does not show him beating him. He was charged with filing a false police report. That child abuser jeremy morse goes back on trial in january 2004. The trial was to start oct 22 but was moved yet again.

The media was hoping for a riot and thats the only reason why they even bought my tape in the first place. They were hoping for the bigger picture. They were disappointed that inglewood did not respond by burning their own businesses and homes. This is what the citizens for police (jeremy morse pig lovers) says is the reason for the retrial. "To award a community for not burning their homes down is crazy" is what they and jeremy morse attorney john barnett (defended the rodney king pigs) is saying? That is sooooo ignorant! Barnett argued that the one black man on the original jury resembled donovan too much to be included. What a racist! He thinks all blacks look alike? What a nazi! To think that a retrial is only important because of not burning a house down is so 20 century. You nazi fucks need to come to the realization that jeremy morse crossed the supposed line. He beat a handcuffed 16 year old defenseless child! He was not a danger to these pigs he was a 100 pound child. Jeremy morse is about 220#. WTF? You harping on me and my situation is so funny to me. I am going places and doing whatever the fuck I want. Don't be jealous cause in inglewood you will not get 5 white jurors who will refuse to convict jeremy morse cause of 912. Fuck You. You nazi racist people are so fuckin hilarious to defend such a coward! What's next Ok' in a priest to fuck little children? You fuckin nazi's are powerless http://homepage.mac.com/encyte/Personal22.html you have NO control. Jeremy morse is the one on trial not me.

The LADA might be overmatched (on purpose) by barnett but. not Johnny cochran and milton grimes. Oh yeah jeremy can't afford barnett for that. His mother lori pettit of torrance had to sell her home in Seattle just to pay for her nazi sons mistakes. Boo fuckin hoo. Jeremy morse will be broke and will have to hide in his home forever. I on the other hand have a lawsuit against the LADA and the media that will set me up for life. I have no worries. I am not a criminal. I have turned the corner and jeremy morse is just beginning to have his life turned around.

So to all those who support police no matter what (including the 5 old white jurors) who think that a cop can do no wrong, I say FUCK YOU. You mean shit to me.

You ain't seen nothing yet pigs.

Sincerely,

Mitchell Crooks

PS. Your assumption that donovan was a violent subject is based merely on your hatred towards blacks and young america. You do not know donovan jackson and you do not know what happened before I arrived (yet). You are truly ignorant and hate-mongers. People like you make me so happy I Came forward. The world laughs at you. I really could care less about you or your chickenshit army occupying OUR streets.

http://www.stolenlives.org/

http://www.copwatch.com/

http://refuseandresist.org/

http://www.geocities.com/capa_dfp2001/

http://live.axisofjustice.sparkart.net/

www.noreversal.com

FOR A GOOD LAUGH

http://homepage.mac.com/encyte/Menu1.html

ARTISTIC VERSION IN INGLEWOOD

http://homepage.mac.com/encyte/iMovieTheater11.html

MY WELCOMING BACK TO LA BY SOUTH CENTRAL

http://homepage.mac.com/encyte/iMovieTheater9.html

OCT 22 2003 MARCH AGAINST POLICE TERROR

http://homepage.mac.com/encyte/Personal22.html

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