Manhattan Public Defender: Incident all too familiar [View all]
"Im a public defender in Manhattan. The Central Park video is all too familiar"
A white person calls the police on a black man. The police arrive and take the side of his white accuser, refusing to believe his version of events. He is arrested and arraigned. An outrageous bail amount is set. His family cant afford to buy his freedom. He gets sent to Rikers Island, where he sits for days, months or sometimes years.
In cases Ive taken to trial, the district attorney has offered recordings of hysterical 911 calls as evidence of my clients guilt, urging the jury to just listen to the fear in her voice, saying, You can tell she can sense a threat, and asking questions such as, Why would she lie? All too often, it works.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/im-a-public-defender-in-manhattan-the-central-park-video-is-all-too-familiar/2020/05/26/73c3de60-9f99-11ea-81bb-c2f70f01034b_story.html