Last week afforded another grim reminder that life in America for black youth is intensely harsh. Smack dab in the middle of the George Zimmerman trial came the video of a then-St. Louis police officer, Rory Bruce, sucker punching a handcuffed teen as the kid exited a police van.
The videotape of the 2012 alleged assault of the teen was released recently only after KSDK TV filed a request under the Freedom of Information Act. Bruce is shown hitting this teen so hard I felt my own jaw twinge. Then, as if he remembered the van’s cam was rolling, Bruce can be heard saying, “I told you I wanted to search you and you came out of the thing and started lunging at me.”
There was no such lunging, but Judge Teresa Counts Burke didn’t admit the tape as evidence before she cleared Bruce of third-degree assault. However, Bruce was fired anyway and now is seeking his job back.
To her credit, Circuit Attorney Jennifer Joyce has re-opened the assault case. We’ll see what happens with Bruce’s future as a St. Louis cop.
The assault victim in the above case seems to be hiding out for fear of police retaliation. He remains at large, nameless and faceless, but still may get justice. Maybe not. U.S. courts are unpredictable when it comes to justice for African Americans.
The world knows the story of Trayvon Martin, a black teen who told his friend on the cell phone that he was being followed by a “creepy *** cracker.” It turned out to be neighborhood-watch-captain-turned-vigilante George Zimmerman, who shot Martin at point-blank range just a few houses from his intended destination. Zimmerman faces a second-degree murder charge.
This is a different situation than most cases black folks find themselves in. The prosecution is usually not in our corner and often works to gain a conviction by any means necessary, including unethical and illegal means.
The burden of proof is on the state in a murder case. The prosecution has an added weight with second-degree murder that is not required with a manslaughter change: “unlawful killing of the victim by an act imminently dangerous to another and demonstrating a depraved mind without regard for human life.” Proving Zimmerman had a depraved mind can’t be a subjective notion.
I’ve said all along that this not a slam-dunk case.
Yes, Zimmerman racially profiled Trayvon Martin—as he had done with other blacks. Yes, Zimmerman was told by a police dispatcher not to follow Martin, yet he persisted anyway. Yes, Zimmerman exaggerated his injuries to justify his self-defense claims. Yes, an unarmed Martin is dead, shot through the heart. Yes, the forensic photo of Trayvon after his death doesn’t jibe with Zimmerman’s statement that he extended the youth’s arms out. Yes, Zimmerman told Fox News’ Sean Hannity that he had no regrets and would do nothing differently on that night.
This is not enough to get a conviction. There are known variables that can cumulatively lead to an acquittal.
You have a jury with six women, five white and one of unknown ethnicity. The trial is in Florida, home of the Stand Your Ground law. Trayvon can’t tell his story. Defense attorneys only have to poke holes in the state’s witnesses to raise reasonable doubt. Zimmerman’ attorneys have been very good at this, resulting in legal observers giving Mark O’Mara and Don West the upper hand in the trial so far.
I recently talked to local attorney Justin Meehan about the case; Meehan is also a martial arts expert. He raised that fact that Zimmerman is trained in mixed martial arts and was capable of doing a number of moves on young Trayvon before bringing a 9 mm gun into the situation.
This and other little-known facts – like Zimmerman taking Temazepam and Adderall, which may have caused his aggressive and anxious actions – will have to be rolled into a crisp, clear, hard-hitting, fact-heavy closing statement by the prosecution.
Otherwise, another one gets away.
