Chicago Press Conference Demands: Indict, Convict, Send the Killer Cops to Jail

July 4, 2016 | Revolution Newspaper | revcom.us

 

The whole issue of police murder continues to pulsate through Chicago, where protests erupted last fall after the release of the video of Laquan McDonald being shot 16 times by Chicago police officer Jason Van Dyke. The Chicago Tribune has an ongoing series titled “Chicago’s Cop Crisis” with articles appearing sometimes more than once a week with some new revelation of police and criminal justice misconduct. Last Sunday’s Tribune had a huge photo of Gloria Pinex, whose son Darius Pinex was murdered by the police in 2011, with another such revelation. (“City Hall often fights to keep files secret in police abuse cases“)

On June 30, only days after this article appeared, Gloria Pinex, along with other family members of people murdered by police, and the Chicago Revolution Club held a press conference/protest at the 7th District police station in Englewood. Three of the murdering cops were assigned to this station, and the protesters demanded that they be indicted, convicted, and locked up.

Speaking were Gloria Pinex and Emmett Farmer, whose sons Darius Pinex and Flint Farmer were both murdered by pig Gildardo Sierra. After murdering Darius Pinex, Sierra went on to shoot a teenager three months later. He then murdered Flint Farmer six months to the day after he killed Darius. This all happened five years ago. Even after it was found that Sierra and his partner, Raoul Mosqueda, lied about Darius Pinex’s murder and that the city attorney withheld evidence, even after the Internal Police Review Board (IPRA) found the murder of Flint Farmer unjustified, the cops have still not been charged.

Gloria Pinex said: “I came to demand that these three known murderers who worked for the 7th District be indicted for the murder of our children. IPRA said that they were unjustified for the murder. That means wrongful death. Indict the cops and send the killer cops to jail.”

Also attending the press conference were Chantell Brooks and Freddie McGee. An officer from the 7th District murdered Chantell’s 15-year-old son, Michael Westley, on June 16, 2013. Freddie McGee’s son, Freddie Latice Wilson, was shot at least 18 times by police and killed on November 15, 2007.

Percy Coleman spoke about the brutal murder of his son Philip Coleman in 2012 while Philip was in police custody. He said that over a dozen cops were involved in his son’s murder. Philip, a University of Chicago graduate, was taken into custody after his family called the police because he was acting erratically. Percy Coleman told the Chicago Tribune that an officer brushed off his family’s pleas to take Philip to a hospital. “We don’t do hospitals, we do jail,” Percy Coleman reported the cop saying. Philip was tased 13 times while in custody. Percy Coleman is a former chief of the nearby Ford Heights Police Department.

A group of young men from the neighborhood where Martice Milliner was murdered by police on July 9 last year stood together to represent for him. A close friend of Martice gave a moving statement about witnessing the murder. Later he told Revolution, “Martice Milliner was gunned down in cold blood by a police officer who was supposed to be serving and protecting him. He shot him once in the back and then stood over him and shot him four more times. I don’t know why cops were called. We were enjoying ourselves on a block in the neighborhood we grew up in. I guess he thought we were all criminals. He didn’t have any respect for us and definitely didn’t respect Martice. I was a witness and there were 30 or 40 other people there. We gave our account to IPRA, the police review board, but since that time nothing has been done. They are sitting on it, an obvious murder case, with the gunshot wound, ballistics, and all our testimony. They have to be held accountable.... We need to continue to stand up, we’re not going to lie down, we need to do what we have to do to keep them from coming in our neighborhoods and killing us.”

Arthur Stringer, who is with Black Men United for Peace, also spoke as part of a contingent who came to represent for Martice. He told Revolution, “Enough is enough. If the people don’t stand up, we will keep dying. Enough is enough. How many youths have to die? It doesn’t have to be my son killed to take a stand. We have to take a stand even when it doesn’t affect us at first, because it’s unjust for any of us. So that’s why I’m here, trying to stop violence in the city. I think we’re doing a good job, being that voice for those that don’t have a voice out here.”

Eric Russell, president of the Tree of Life Justice League of Illinois, spoke for the family of Betty Jones. Betty was murdered by police along with Quintonio LeGrier the day after Christmas 2015. Quintonio’s family has been sued by the cop who murdered him! Eric told Revolution: “In other communities police are able to de-escalate. In ours they shoot first and ask questions later. They don’t get the right to be judge, jury and executioner. We have targets on our backs. They have no respect for our humanity and murder us with impunity. This goes up to the mayor. Mayor Emmanuel has blood on his hands, he should be in jail. We will never forget.”

A spokesperson for the Revolution Club gave a statement. Her remarks included the following point: “I am here to tell you that it doesn’t have to be this way. There is a way out of the hell of this system of capitalism-imperialism. There is a strategy, a plan, and a leader—Bob Avakian—who has forged a path to bring this system down through revolution at the soonest possible time.”

One young woman in the crowd, a friend of Martice Milliner, told Revolution she knew six of the people on the Stolen Lives banner brought by the Revolution Club showing the names and faces of dozens of people murdered by police. She told how she grew up with Corey Harris, murdered at age 17 in 2009 by the CPD, and helps keep up the park that people in the neighborhood named after him.

Revolution Club members in their “BA Speaks: REVOLUTION—NOTHING LESS!” T-shirts distributed the Message from the Central Committee of the Revolutionary Communist Party, USA: “Time to Get Organized for an ACTUAL Revolution,” led the chant, “Indict, convict, send the killer cops to jail, the whole damn system is guilty as hell,” and other chants. Many people driving by honked in support.

Chicago media came out for the press conference/protest, including Univision, Fox, ABC, NBC, CBS and WGN.

 

 

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