The
Supreme Court has upheld a lower-court ruling throwing out the death
sentence of former Black Panther and acclaimed author Mumia
Abu-Jamal. The high court left in place lower-court rulings that
would allow a new jury to determine if Mumia will face execution or
serve life in prison.
It
is widely recognized that Mumia was framed for the 1981 murder of
Philadelphia police officer Daniel Faulkner. Faulkner was shot during
a traffic stop of Mumia’s younger brother. Mumia was arrested at the
scene and convicted of first-degree murder a year later.
Mumia
has exhausted his appeals on that conviction, despite strong evidence
of his innocence and grievous misconduct by the judge and prosecutor
during the trial.
Mumia’s
death sentence was thrown out by federal district judge William Yohn
in 2001 because the trial jury was given improper instructions in the
sentencing phase. Jurors had been told they must have unanimous
agreement in considering any mitigating circumstances to recommend a
life sentence, rather than the death penalty. In fact, only a
majority of jurors need agree on possible mitigating circumstances.
Judge
Yohn ordered a new sentencing trial, but the notorious Philadelphia
chain of prosecutors and politicians challenged his decision to the
Third Circuit Court of Appeals. The prosecutors lost and appealed to
the U.S. Supreme Court.
The
U.S. Supreme Court’s latest backing of the Third Circuit means
that, for the prosecutors to try to reimpose the death penalty
against Mumia, they would have to order a new sentencing trial. That,
however, poses a risk to the prosecutors, as a sentencing trial would
give Mumia an important opportunity to expose the illegal conduct of
the state in the original trial.
People
around the world and in the United States are demanding immediate
freedom for Mumia, a heroic leader of progressive struggles, whose
voice has never been silenced despite severe prison repression.
Stopping the death penalty is critical on the long road to justice.
