On June 21 in San Francisco, a court hearing was held in the case of the “San Francisco Eight.” The Eight were arrested in California, New York and Florida on January 23 on charges relating to the 1971 killing of police sergeant John V. Young in San Francisco’s Ingleside station.
Seven of the accused are former Black Panther Party members. The case, which has garnered national attention, has
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The latest court hearing was about the issue of sealed documents filed by the prosecution that contain statements that prejudice defense arguments to lower bail and dismiss the charges. Bail has been set in amounts ranging from $3 to $5 million.
The prosecution wants the documents to remain sealed to protect its secret sources; the defense wants access to them. The defense says that the documents would demonstrate that prosecutors have no new evidence or grounds to prosecute these men.
Presiding judge Phillip Moscone has not made decisions on any substantive issues in the case. He set the next court date for August 6 because he is going on vacation. This is a considerable delay in the struggle to get reasonable bail set for the San Francisco Eight. Meanwhile, they will continue to languish in jail.
Another issue to be tackled on August 6 is shackling. Currently, when the prisoners appear in court, their hands are cuffed to waist chains and their legs are cuffed to leg shackles. The prosecution hopes to maintain the illusion that these men are dangerous criminals. That’s why they argued for outrageously high bails and want to keep them shackled during court appearances.
The Eight have professed their innocence. They say they are the victims of COINTELPRO, a covert FBI program aimed at investigating and disrupting political organizations, such as the Black Panthers. COINTELPRO officially existed from 1956-1971, but in reality, it continues today.
Following the arrests, San Francisco police investigators stated that the eight arrested men were members of the Black Liberation Army—an underground offshoot of the Black Panthers. The cops said they were “bent on creating terror and chaos.”
These racist characterizations of Black liberation activists have been repeated ad nauseum by the capitalist media. In fact, the state apparatus is what is “bent on creating terror and chaos” in Black communities.
This case reflects the renewed effort to stamp out political dissent and organizing, especially among African Americans in this country.
Click here to read more from PSL on the San Francisco 8.
http://www.freethesf8.org
