No death penalty for Mumia

[Wroclaw]

In later mythmaking, the Mumia machine tried to spread the tale that Faulkner was brutally beating Cook, but there was simply no evidence for it whatsoever. They were simply "cashing in" on the Rodney King incident.

Which is really amazing, considering that the murder of Faulkner happened a decade earlier.

 

[Wroclaw]

All in all, I find it difficult to believe Faulkner was trying to beat Mumia's brother to death. He might've lost it and/or felt threatened enough to deal out punches, which is understandable but not really "decorum" for a police officer. The thing is, which most people do not seem to understand, is that even self-defense against an overly aggressive cop is very problematic. Heck, the same goes for regular security guards et al. You can report them for any assault, but it's a lot harder to, in court, justify returned violence against a guard or police officer.

Which is why Mumia should have been found guilty — but not of capital murder.

 

[Wroclaw]

That being said, while the prosecution never made an issue of it, a lot of Cook's antics smell funny. Turning the wrong way? Up Locust St?! Then taking a swing at the arresting officer?!

It happened on Locust right near 13th Street. Woody's (a gay bar) is right there. Don't know if it was there in '81. Still a lot of prostitutes along 13th Street, of all varieties, although as a whole, the neighborhood is much nicer now than it used to be.

A block away is Juniper Street, which runs south (13th runs north). The rule of thumb east of Broad is that odd streets run north and even streets run south. If Cook was coming east from Broad, it was an easy-to-make mistake to turn the wrong way at that corner. It wouldn't depend on the nature of the turn, i.e., from which street to which street.

That being said, nobody would say "up Locust Street." It runs east. If anything, because as you drive along Locust, you're getting closer to the Delaware River, you say "down Locust Street."

A part of me, albeit with almost no real evidence, suspects that Mumia goaded or otherwise convinced his brother to pull this stunt but didn't tell him he was going to shoot a cop.

I fixed the above for you.

 

[Wroclaw]

Peephole, was it wrong to execute Oba Chandler?

It's a matter of opinion, to be certain, but the matter of the innocent or guilt of the person is irrelevant to a larger issue, which is this: Are you comfortable giving your government the right to take a life under any circumstances?

Personally, I'm not.

 

[Wroclaw]

I did some brief searching that was not that helpful, but does anyone know WHY people support Mumia? Is there ANY reason to doubt this conviction? Just what puts the doubt in people's mind (so much so that they make a campaign out of it?)

Mumia's a bright guy and good-looking. In the absence of someone to refute his story, he appears convincing.

It's that simple.

 

[Wroclaw]

It has to do with the historical background of the FBI's documented campaign against the Panthers and the Philadelphia police conflict with MOVE, not to mention Philadelphia's horrendous urban decay. A lot of black Philadelphians and African-Americans nationwide don't trust the Philadelphia government any further than they can throw it. Mumia has played into this, promoting himself as the last political prisoner of black liberation. A lot of left-wing white activists, looking for a political prisoner to rally around, have also bought it.

Support for Mumia is MUCH bigger outside of Philadelphia than inside, even though all of the above is generally true.

The best thing that happened for Mumia's case was the MOVE fire in 1985.

 

[Wroclaw]

3. Gives closure to friends and relatives of the victim(s). Life in prison and forgotten about is easier on them than 'Celebrity Death Row'.

Not to mention that friends are family are not the plaintiffs in a murder case. The state is.

 

[bynmdsue]

Which is really amazing, considering that the murder of Faulkner happened a decade earlier.

That may be why K said "in later mythmaking"

Cook set it into motion by punching Faulkner in the face. Don't want to get hit by a cop? Don't punch them. Cook later pled guilty to assault.

 

[bynmdsue]

No, but you can shoot someone once for breaking into your home when you're there, and if they die, it's still legal.

Goddamn right. Don't break into people's homes if you don't want to get shot.

 

[The Central Scrutinizer]

Goddamn right. Don't break into people's homes if you don't want to get shot.

It's a rule I live by and it has kept me alive.

 

[kookbreaker]

Which is really amazing, considering that the murder of Faulkner happened a decade earlier.

That angle was done during his appeals, which came after the riots.

 

[kookbreaker]

That's the best summation I ever heard of the case. What is often not said about this case is that the cop in question was beating Mumia's brother when the shooting happened.

"beating" meaning he was hit 3-4 times after striking Faulkner. Not impressed.

It happened right around the corner from where I live. There's not a lawyer in Philadelphia who doesn't believe Mumia killed Faulkner but none of them think it was first degree murder, nor do they think Mumia's original trial was a fair one.

Living in Philly, I know enough lawyers to know that is not true. If it was even remotely true you would think at least one member of the PA supreme court would have been convinced during the appeal.

 

[kookbreaker]

It happened on Locust right near 13th Street. Woody's (a gay bar) is right there. Don't know if it was there in '81. Still a lot of prostitutes along 13th Street, of all varieties, although as a whole, the neighborhood is much nicer now than it used to be.

A block away is Juniper Street, which runs south (13th runs north). The rule of thumb east of Broad is that odd streets run north and even streets run south. If Cook was coming east from Broad, it was an easy-to-make mistake to turn the wrong way at that corner. It wouldn't depend on the nature of the turn, i.e., from which street to which street.

Ummm. To turn wrong onto Locust you would have to have come from 12th or some small street like Camac. Juniper doesn't factor in here. Even if it did it makes little sense. Little streets shouldn't factor into the average Philly driver's mindset regarding alternating streets. Maybe on Chestnut, where Juniper earns a traffic light but that's a few blocks away.

Can you explain this further? It makes no sense as it stands.

That being said, nobody would say "up Locust Street." It runs east. If anything, because as you drive along Locust, you're getting closer to the Delaware River, you say "down Locust Street."

When I am saying 'up' in this case I am not referring to the Philly up-vs-down meme. I am referring to 'up' as in against the flow of traffic.

I fixed the above for you.

There's a suspicious bone in me. Cook turns the wrong way down Locust, ends up near or in front of Mumia's cab. Then takes a swing at the officer? It could have just been a coincidence, in fact it likely was, but I still raise an eyebrow at the whole setup.

 

[kookbreaker]

Mumia's a bright guy and good-looking. In the absence of someone to refute his story, he appears convincing.

It's that simple.

In that, you are correct.

 

[Wroclaw]

Ummm. To turn wrong onto Locust you would have to have come from 12th or some small street like Camac. Juniper doesn't factor in here. Even if it did it makes little sense. Little streets shouldn't factor into the average Philly driver's mindset regarding alternating streets. Maybe on Chestnut, where Juniper earns a traffic light but that's a few blocks away.

Can you explain this further? It makes no sense as it stands.

I'm not sure I understand your point. Why couldn't I turn wrongly onto Locust from Juniper? Or from 13th, for that matter?

OK, let's back up: First of all, I haven't seen a source that is explicit regarding which street Cook was driving the wrong way on — only that he was pulled over for that reason. I've seen equal numbers of reports stating it was 13th or it was Locust.

What we do know is that once Cook was pulled over and out of the car, his car was facing east (with the traffic) on Locust. It's EXTREMELY unlikely that he would have been driving the wrong way on Locust and thus turned around by Faulkner across two lanes of traffic to right his car on Locust. It's more likely that he was driving south on 13th (which goes north) and was pulled over onto Locust, where he got out.

Does that make sense?

{P.S., I mentioned Juniper because it can easily confuse people who are not familiar with Center City. Juniper is the only non-numbered north-south street between the Delaware River and Broad Street that has traffic lights along it. That makes it difficult to count streets, and that can cause people to make bad turns — particularly when they've been drinking. That clear it up?}

There's a suspicious bone in me. Cook turns the wrong way down Locust, ends up near or in front of Mumia's cab. Then takes a swing at the officer? It could have just been a coincidence, in fact it likely was, but I still raise an eyebrow at the whole setup.

That's what coincidences do. Nevertheless, they happen. Conspiracies are actually LESS likely that coincidences. Remember Occam's razor.

 

[Vorticity]

He "argues" his innocence in general terms - "society is to blame for all crimes", "I am political prisoner", etc...

All else aside, I've never understood the logic of the "I am a political prisoner" claim. Suppose it's true. The police/prosecutors framed Mumia for the crime in order to silence him for his political affiliations and work. What, then, about the dead cop? We'd have to believe that either 1) the police/prosecutors conspired to kill Faulkner themselves, or 2) that they deliberately ignored the true killer in order to maintain their case against Mumia.

 

[Vorticity]

And to get a cool t-shirt.

You can change your avatar but you'll always be a stooge to me.

He'll always be that guy from Joe's Garage to me.

 

[Wroclaw]

All else aside, I've never understood the logic of the "I am a political prisoner" claim. Suppose it's true. The police/prosecutors framed Mumia for the crime in order to silence him for his political affiliations and work. What, then, about the dead cop? We'd have to believe that either 1) the police/prosecutors conspired to kill Faulkner themselves, or 2) that they deliberately ignored the true killer in order to maintain their case against Mumia.

Or that the conspirators were willing to sacrifice one of their own to frame Mumia.

Like all conspiracy theories, it lacks a whistleblower in thirty years of this case.

 

[Vorticity]

Or that the conspirators were willing to sacrifice one of their own to frame Mumia.

Like all conspiracy theories, it lacks a whistleblower in thirty years of this case.

Indeed. Police officers tend to be a pretty tight-knit bunch. I find it difficult to believe that a sufficiently large group of them would agree to shelter the killer of one of their own - let alone directly conspire in the murder itself - just to assuage some politically-motivated whim of their higher-ups.

 

[bynmdsue]

Why frame him and put him in prison? Why not discover his body in one of the city's unsolved homicides? They're just not that crooked?