Tag: crime

Happy Holidays!!

On By Melba V. PearsonIn Legal News2 Comments

And just like that, 2023 has come to an end! It has been a nonstop year, and I look forward to getting some R&R this holiday season. But before I do, here are some quick updates!

Congratulations to Tanya Bhatt, who has been elected to the Miami Beach City Commission. She is someone I supported during her race, and I look forward to seeing great things from her in the coming year.

I was honored to provide input on the ongoing battle to get recreational cannabis on the ballot in Florida. The Miami New Times quoted me in a two-part series, that you can read here and here. I also weighed in on an awful case of police brutality for the Knoxville News Sentinel, which thankfully ended well under the circumstances. Lastly, with two high-profile rappers on trial in Atlanta and Broward County, I chatted with the Miami Herald about the use of hip-hop lyrics by prosecutors as evidence of wrongdoing. It’s a slippery slope since the lyrics may have been written way before any crimes may have occurred, and artists often brag about things they have no involvement in (often encouraged by studio bosses because it sells records).

Graphic with photo of Melba and text "If you want to go fast, go alone; if you want to go far, go together" African Proverb
Quote of the Month!

On the work front, our team at the Prosecutorial Performance Indicators at Florida International University has been doing a great deal of work in Maryland, with our work being featured in Maryland Matters. Using data for transparency in prosecution shouldn’t be feared by offices, it should be embraced!

ICYMI

Check out my recent appearance on CourtTV discussing the Young Thug case among others; I also weighed in on the Jonathan Majors and P. Diddy cases.

I had a wonderful #MondaysWithMelba with MaryKay, the owner of Your Alpaca Cottage! We managed to blend our love of animals and social justice.

Are you on TikTok? If so, see my recent video on the importance of supporting survivors of sexual assault and domestic violence in the wake of multiple allegations against P. Diddy.

Had a fun time with Erik Fleming on his podcast, along with Dr. Tracy Pearson (ironically, no relation!).

Panel discussion hosted by Lexis Nexis on the changing legal landscape in Florida

Call To Action:

We are soooo close to getting abortion access on the ballot in Florida, but we need more signatures — especially in Broward, Orlando, Osceola, Tampa, and Polk County. Ohio is proof of concept that this can happen, and the polling is consistent — the majority of Floridians (despite who they may vote for) support access to safe abortions. Keep in mind that what happened to a woman in Texas can — and has happened — in Florida. If you have not signed, please do so here.

You may recall the horrible case of AJ Owens, who was killed in front of her children by her racist neighbor. There is a collection and toy list to help them during this holiday season, so please join me in giving them a little joy during the first holidays without their mom.

Enjoying a great Art Basel exhibit on the Harlem Renaissance with fellow members of the
Miami Beach Black Affairs Advisory Committee

Candidates I’m Watching:

End-of-year giving is not just for charities — it’s for candidates too! The last quarter push is critical. Here are some folks to support locally for their elections in 2024:

Rodney Jacobs — I’m really excited about Rodney throwing his hat in the ring for the Florida State Senate. His military service, as well as working on police misconduct in the City of Miami, gives him a fresh, balanced perspective that is sorely needed!

Marisol Zentano — Marisol is taking another shot at becoming Miami Dade’s Property Appraiser. She ran in 2020 with me and did incredibly well with little name recognition plus a short runway to campaign. 2024 will be the year for her to win it!

Lucia Baez – Geller — Lucia served us so well on the School Board that she became a target for extremists who want to ban books in a willy-nilly fashion. She is now running for Congress, taking on an incumbent who voted to keep George Santos in Congress among other awful votes. She’s a public school teacher, a daughter of immigrants, and frankly, a breath of fresh air.

Monique Worrell — She is still fighting despite being wrongfully removed by the Florida Governor. She had her hearing in front of the Florida Supreme Court and is awaiting a decision regarding reinstatement. Regardless of the outcome, she is running for her second term as State Attorney in the Orlando area. The people should decide who serves in elected office, not anyone else.

Thank you for all of your support, comments, and emails this year. I’m doing a digital detox until January to reset for what we know will be an intense year in politics! Wishing each of you the happiest of holidays, and best wishes for the New Year.

In Solidarity,

M.

Happy Holidays from the Diva and the Cowboy!

It’s October – But There’s No Slowing Down!

On By Melba V. PearsonIn Legal News, Pop LifeLeave a comment

My father has a saying that resonates more and more as I get older (along with many other “Jamaicanisms” since we love to speak in riddles, lol).

It’s not the moment that a leaf falls to the water bottom that it rots.

Practically, it’s accurate. A leaf doesn’t rot that fast, it takes time. But day by day, bit by bit, time and water break down the leaf.

The same applies to politics. One act is rarely in isolation; and multiple acts together can erode democracy, or can create a toxic environment for various communities. I’ve been very vocal about why it is important for history to be taught accurately, for the power of the voters to remain undiluted, and to push back against hate. The horrible events in Jacksonville, where three people were murdered at a Dollar General simply because of the color of their skin, lays this very bare. Florida is now home to 89 hate groups as per the Southern Poverty Law Center, including the Proud Boys and Nazis who have paraded in major streets in Orlando – including outside Disney World. The Florida governor’s policies that led to banning of books by Black/other authors of color, and discussions of the “benefits” of slavery chips away at the humanity of us all, allows hate groups to flourish due to feeling that they have a home, and results in people with hate in their hearts acting out in violent ways.

I also see this connected to the removal of 9th Judicial Circuit State Attorney Monique Worrell. The Florida governor ignored the will of more than 66% of the voters in the Orlando area who overwhelmingly voted for SA Worrell to be their elected prosecutor, and removed her from office. I did a TikTok breaking down why this is so problematic, along with an op-ed by my colleagues and I that appeared in the Miami Herald. And for those who say “but the people elected the governor” — they’re clearly missing the point of how democracy works. This isn’t a monarchy where everyone serves at the pleasure of the king. Elected officials should not be pulled out of office for political differences – this must only be if they are literally not doing their job. With crime on the decline in the Orlando area as shown by the data, clearly her method of prosecution is working. Check out the press conference where I spoke along with fellow Miami attorneys here. Despite the wrongful removal, SA Worrell is running for re-election while suing to get her job back. You can support her by donating to her campaign here and GoFundMe here.

Lastly, in another attack on the voters, the Florida Supreme Court asked the Florida Legislature to look into consolidating some of our 20 judicial circuits. I did a Mondays With Melba as to why that’s problematic – and in the public comments that have been given at townhalls around the state, NO ONE is speaking in favor of this from either party. It will make it harder for survivors of crime to access justice, as well as for every day people to resolve matters in court since it may close the courthouse closest to them. Let your voice be heard on this! The Judicial Circuit Assessment Committee will hold their next public hearing at 10:00 am (EDT) on Friday, October 13, 2023, in person at the George Edgecomb Courthouse, 800 E Twiggs St, Tampa, FL 33602, and virtually via Zoom. To attend participate virtually, you must register in advance by clicking here.

Nothing like having a front row seat to history – congrats to ACLU of Florida alum Judge Nancy Abudu on becoming the first Black woman to be appointed to the federal 11th Circuit of Appeals by President Joe Biden!! Wonderful to be reunited with my former co-workers for this amazing event.

ICYMI

See my #MondaysWithMelba with Moms for Libros — a dynamic duo pushing back on the extreme book bans in Miami!

Great to be back on the Sunday morning political roundtable on WPLG Channel 10 This Week in South Florida, where we talked about the Republican presidential debate, the Jacksonville shooting and other current events.

Very fun interview with the team at City Life Guru on my early days in Miami, my career path, and my favorite places to go when in town!

Enjoyed bringing my legal analysis to the brand new CourtTV show “Opening Statements“

In studio at Court TV!

Call To Action:

In addition to letting your voice be heard around the issues I mentioned above, be sure to check your vote by mail status! All vote by mail registrations in Florida were deleted from the system last December, so everyone must re-enroll! Some residents have elections coming up soon – for instance this November in Miami Beach, and a special election in South Dade. Click here to re-enroll if you haven’t already!

Tune in for a very educational and intense #MondaysWithMelba for Indigenous People’s Day on October 9 at 6pm! My guests are Mrs. Betty Osceola of the Miccosukee Tribe, and Chairman Robert Rosa of the United Confederation of Taino People. We talk about everything from environmental issues to respecting the remains of the Indigenous elders. Tune in via my Facebook Live, LinkedIn or YouTube pages; later in the week on my Instagram @resident_legal_diva and @melbaformiami.

#MondaysWithMelba honoring Indigenous People’s Day on Monday, October 9 at 6pm EST!

Candidates I’m Watching:

Andrea Jenkins — I was proud to co-host a fundraiser supporting her re-election campaign. She’s the first Black transgender woman to be elected to public office in the US, and she serves as the President of the Minneapolis City Council. The election is November 7.

Johnny Farias — On December 5, there’s a special election for the Florida House in South Dade, and I wholeheartedly support Johnny. He’s a Navy vet, an electrician with his own business, and a true man of the people.

Turning to the 2024 races:

Christopher Benjamin — It was an honor to co-host a fundraiser for him! I’ve known Rep. Benjamin for quite a while now, and he is a true public servant — attorney, state representative, and now, seeking the position of County Court Judge in Miami.

Rodney Jacobs — I’m really excited about Rodney throwing his hat in the ring for Florida State Senate. His military service, as well as working on police misconduct in the City of Miami, gives him a fresh, balanced perspective that is sorely needed!

Marisol Zentano — Marisol is taking another shot at becoming Miami Dade’s Property Appraiser. She ran in 2020 with me, and did incredibly well with little name recognition plus a short runway to campaign. 2024 will be the year for her to win it!

Just celebrated my 50th birthday! Embracing this new chapter.

In Solidarity,

M.

The System is Not Broken

On By Melba V. PearsonIn Legal NewsLeave a comment

I respect the decisions of the jurors in the Rittenhouse trial. The jury reached a verdict, but the process was flawed: the Judge was not impartial, which led in part to this outcome. He telegraphed from the onset, by way of his rulings, his racist statements about Asians, his inappropriate physical closeness to the defendant, and his conspicuous belief the defendant was innocent, We saw so many examples of actions by Judge Schroeder that communicated to the jury his support for the defendant, including having him in such a close proximity. This is highly unusual, and in 16 years as a prosecutor, I have NEVER seen this happen — it has certainly never happens with Black and Brown defendants. It raises issues of race, equality, and of judicial impartiality.

These not so subtle messages impact justice and verdicts. Judge Schroeder left any premise of impartiality at the courtroom door. 

That said, I see much deeper implications for the rule of law, race, equity, and justice in our country. Every day, defense attorneys nationwide fight to get their clients of color the same level of respect and dignity this defendant received in his trial. Prosecutors fight for  victims of color to be heard and respected. Kyle Rittenhouse blatantly benefitted from white privilege while many others in the system that are Black and Brown must overcome so much more just to be treated with a modicum of the decency they deserve, in a country that believes in the concept of “innocent until proven guilty.”

To me this case is just another example of systemic racism in our country. And it is a case that connects so many concerns —the murders of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, Elijah McCain, and the subsequent uprisings in the aftermath last summer. The procedural concerns impact, and further destroy,  the trust of some Americans in our criminal justice system. We are reminded of other cases in history including the violence the Freedom Riders, and others, faced during the first Civil Rights Movement in the 1950s and 1960s where perpetrators of violence were not held accountable. 

This case also raises issues surrounding who can, and cannot, exercise their First and Second Amendment rights. It infringes on the true use and meaning of “self defense,” and renews concerns regarding the application of ‘Stand Your Ground” as well as vigilantism. Perception is reality — and if people do not perceive the system to be fair, less people will report crimes, testify in trials, or respect the rule of law.

Judges are an elected to office. Schroeder is the longest-serving circuit judge in Wisconsin. He was first appointed in 1983 and has continuously won election since, often running unopposed. Free and fair elections are the backbone of democracy, and that includes having a choice of who sits on the bench.

I’ll conclude this message with a challenge: get involved in democracy in your community. Vote all the way down the ballot, without skipping judicial races and other less discussed races. Join or start a CourtWatch program to learn about your local judges. Help build a bench: get to know stakeholders in your community and recruit and encourage them to run for office. Get involved. Mobilize. Most importantly, whatever you do – do not sit quietly on the sidelines. Do not accept the status quo. Stay vigilant, never complacent..

 If you are neutral in situations of injustice, you have chosen the side of the oppressor.” — Archbishop Desmond Tutu

We stand in solidarity with those who are hurting today. I hope you will join me in the fight for our democracy, and to push forward equality for all in the legal system in this country.
 

Though we strobed
That we came in peace
He was already at war.
We have battled hard to be.
Nothing —
Nothing —
Can keep you safe.
Silence least of all.
Look alive, everyone.
May such a prayer,
A people,
A peace,
A promise,
Be outs.
Be right
& radiant
& real.
— Amanda Gorman

In solidarity & sadness,

M.

Lyin’ Lochte’s Tragic Overshadowing of the Olympics

On By Melba V. PearsonIn Legal News1 Comment

May I have your attention please?
May I have your attention please?
Will the real Slim Shady please stand up?
I repeat will the real Slim Shady please stand up?
We’re going to have a problem here

Lyrics from “The Real Slim Shady” by Eminem

Will the real swim shady please stand up?

Ryan-Lochte-New-York-Daily-News-Loch-Mess-Monster1
NY newspapers always keep it real….

Although the lights have dimmed and the closing ceremonies have finished, the amazing accomplishments by the athletes in the last week have been overshadowed by a drama of Olympic sized proportions.

Ryan Lochte and three other swimmers, spun a tale of robbery in Rio which turned out to be completely false.  However, the reactions of some on social media call into question where we are as a country.

Let’s put this in context.  During the week, Olympic gymnast Gabby Douglas didn’t raise her hand to her heart during the National Anthem after she received her team gold medal in gymnastics.

gabby-douglas-national-anthem
Photo Courtesy of Jet Magazine

No one was harmed. No property was harmed. No lies were told. She apologized for her actions.

gabby apology

Yet her actions were scrutinized to the point of sickness. The “we gave you a chance” narrative became front and center on social media, and she was accused of being “ungrateful”.

Hello, she earned it!! No one “gives” you a place in sports. You have to shed blood, sweat and tears to get a spot. Gabby gave up everything she knew — her town, her family and her time — to qualify for the US Olympic team.

By comparison, Ryan Lochte made the similar sacrifices and won gold. Yet he lied and entered into conduct unbecoming of an athlete. In a drunken episode with his friends, he urinated on the side of a gas station, and trashed a door. He then told the media and Brazilian law enforcement that he was robbed at gunpoint, even going so far as to say the gunman put the firearm to his temple.

If you look at the surveillance video from the night in question, it is clear that he and his companions are intoxicated. They did not even return to the correct taxicab after vandalizing the gas station property.  A man comes up to the cab, and it appears that he orders them to get out. They exit, with wallets out, as if to compensate for the damages.

He has since issued an apology, in which he still paints himself as a victim because he was held at gunpoint after committing a crime.

Whelp, that’s kind of what happens when you get arrested or detained.

Lochte urinated on Brazil literally and figuratively. He destroyed property and lied about it, assuming that everyone would believe his tale of being a victim of violence in a beleaguered 3rd world country. Purportedly this story broke because he told his mother a lie, his mother called the media out of fear/concern, and he continued the lie when asked by authorities in Brazil.

As a grown man, he should have known how his mother would have reacted.  There are stories that my mother went to her grave not knowing about my escapades, simply because I knew that she would panic or react in a certain way.  If Lochte had exercised this discernment, he would not have had this problem.

Even if he decided to lie to his mother, when asked by Brazilian authorities, he could have told them that this was a family misunderstanding, no robbery occurred, and end it there.  He did not. To be clear, he was sober at this juncture. This is another moment of poor judgement.

All of these moments of poor judgement add up to a criminal offense (as often happens).
His lapse of judgement is treated by some as a harmless “boys will be boys” prank. Most boys don’t commit crime. And FYI at 32, Lochte is not a boy. His criminal actions threaten to overshadow all of the amazing work that Team USA has done at the Olympics in Rio. Granted, there is an argument to be made that it is not the worst Olympic scandal in history (Tonya Harding and Nancy Kerrigan come to mind), but it is pretty close.

In the United States, falsifying a police report is a misdemeanor in most states, subject to a fine or a short jail sentence of less than a year.  It is a crime in Brazil as well, likely subject to similar penalties.

What disturbs me is the vitriol Gabby Douglas endured as a result of her actions, while there is a willingness to look past Lochte’s criminal behavior.  There have been some interesting articles on this that I would like to share, by  Emma Gray at the Huffington Post, and one by Charise Frazier at NewsOne.

The question is: is this white privilege at work?

Let me know your thoughts!

Police Shooting Videos in the Courtroom

On By Melba V. PearsonIn Legal NewsLeave a comment

gavel

It’s beginning to seem like another day, another police shooting video.  We’ve all seen the videos — Eric Garner, Tamir Rice, now Alton Sterling and Philando Castile.  The videos go viral, folks become outraged, protests are sparked….but that outrage does not always translate in the court of law. 

Why is it, that if these cases get to trial, that the videos do not trigger a quick guilty verdict? Often the outcome is the exact opposite of that.

The simple answer is desensitization. The video is shocking the first couple times you see it, but after a while, the impact lessens.  The same way we see kids become desensitized to violence after repeatedly playing violent video games or watching scary movies, is the same way jurors become desensitized after the repeated playing of a troubling video.

There’s no real solution — but it is food for thought.  

Ben Hancock at Law.com wrote an interesting piece on this phenomenon.

SAN FRANCISCO – Viral videos of police shooting victims Philando Castile and Alton Sterling in their final moments have left much of the American public seething, saddened and convinced that deep-rooted racial bias led the officers to fire their weapons.

But as compelling as the videos are—and as important as they have become in the broader debate about law enforcement and race—they rarely have the same decisive impact in court that they have on the way the public perceives an event.

Lawyers who have been involved in police shooting cases and dealt with videos as evidence say that often a case rises or falls on what the camera didn’t capture. Attorneys representing accused officers point to a camera’s technical limitations, or the fact that it didn’t see the angle the officer saw, which can wither a criminal or civil rights case targeting the officer.

Sometimes, the more a video is played in court, the less impact it has, and desensitizing a jury to a video’s violence often emerges as a deliberate defense strategy—as does drawing the jury’s attention to uncertainty around what happened immediately before the camera was turned on.

See the rest here.