Datum: Donnerstag, 29. Oktober 2009 22:23
Dear Friends: In nearly three decades of being on Pennsylvania’s death row, MumiaAbu-Jamal has become a global symbol in the campaign against the deathpenalty and human rights abuses. There is an escalated effort by theauthorities to see him die at the hands of the executioner. This isthe most dangerous time for Mumia since his 1981 arrest.
I amfighting for his life. Public support is crucial to this campaign tosave and free him. There follows an overview of recent significantdevelopments. United State Supreme Court We continue to litigate on behalf of Mumiain the U.S. Supreme Court. Last year the U.S. Court of Appeals forthe Third Circuit, Philadelphia, ruled that he was entitled to a newjury trial on the issue of the death penalty. That victory never tookeffect because the state petitioned the Supreme Court for review. Thematter is pending. Thus Mumia remains on death row and under a deathsentence.
Even though the major briefing has been completed, the Supreme Courthas withheld rendering a decision due to the pendency of a case fromOhio, Smith v. Spisak, which has a similar issue regardinginstructional errors at the penalty phase. In Mumia’s case the jurorswere instructed that they were precluded from considering anymitigating evidence unless all 12 agreed on the particularcircumstance. The Supreme Court heard oral arguments in Spisak onOctober 13. Mumia and I are anxious about the effect of that casebecause it is one of the worst imaginable. As Shannon P. Duffy of TheLegal Intelligencer wrote the next day: „In a bizarre twist of fate,Mumia Abu-Jamal . . . may find that his very life hinges on theoutcome of the case of a neo-Nazi triple murderer who wore a Hitlermustache at trial as he testified proudly about his desire to killblacks, Jews and gays.
“ That is ironic, for Mumia’s life as ajournalist and author has been committed to speaking out againstracism, discrimination of any sort, inequality, injustice, and humanrights abuses. My office has received many inquiries as to when the Supreme Courtwill rule, my analysis of what occurred in Spisak, and what will thecourt decide. First, I anticipate a decision within two months eventhough it is always difficult to accurately make such predictions.Secondly, there are significant differences between the Spisak caseand that of Mumia. Most importantly, the controlling decision ofMills v. Maryland applies to Mumia’s case but not to Spisak. Millswas decided in 1988, a year before the Pennsylvania state proceedingsbecame final in our case. However, Spisak had already been decidedwhen Mills came down; Mills is not retroactive.
The Spisak caseactually concerns both the instructional issue and another on theineffectiveness of the defense attorney due to his penalty phaseargument. Only the former has any relevance to Mumia. The hearing was lively with Justice Sonia Sotomayor at the outsetquestioning the Ohio attorney general about the applicability of theMills decision since it was decided after Spisak became final. Itseems that all the justices, with the exception of Clarence Thomas,had questions. Finally, my impression at the end of the day was thatclearly some of the justices were poised to reverse and rule for Ohioon the legal incompetence issue. Whether there are enough votes forsuch a decision remains to be seen. Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg andSamuel A, Alito, Jr. were clearly bothered by the trial lawyer’s poorpenalty-phase jury argument, while Anthony Scalia thought it was„brilliant.“ As to the instructional issue that affects Mumia, itdoes not seem so clear for there are different ways the court couldgo. On the one hand it might not reach the issue since Mills does notapply, or because the court finds that the death penalty cannot standin view of the lawyer’s ineffectiveness.
On the other hand, the courtcould address the Mills issue which might affect my client’s situationin different ways. Pennsylvania Supreme Court We are also litigating an issue concerningthe reliability of the ballistics evidence presented at trial. OnApril 20, 2009, we filed a Petition for Habeas Corpus Relief in thetrial court, the Court of Common Pleas, Philadelphia. The petition,based upon newly discovered evidence, was denied without a hearing onMay 27, 2009. The matter is being appealed to the PennsylvaniaSupreme Court. Recent activities In recent months there have been many eventsregarding Mumia. A few of the more interesting, were: Germany There are organization and individuals in Germany who aredong incredible things to save Mumia. Their work is a model ofpositive activism.
Last spring the Akademie der Künste (Academy ofArts), Berlin, hosted a panel discussion on Mumia to a capacitycrowd. It began with an except from In Prison My Whole Life.Participating on the panel, was: Madame Danielle Mitterrand, formerFirst Lady of France; Klaus Staeck, President of the Akademie; JohanoStrasser, President of PEN Germany; Günter Wallraff, a well knownauthor; Gerhart Rudolf Baum, member of the Bundestag (parliament),former Minister of the Interior, and United Nations representative;and me. A video of the event is available, at:http://www.adk.de/de/aktuell/forum_dokumentationen/forum_27.Akadgespr.html. The Netherlands and World Day Against the
Death Penalty October 10was World Day Against the Death Penalty. I was in the Netherlands atthe invitation of Amnesty International to speak on behalf of Mumia.That included a lecture at the prestigious Utrecht University schoolof law, sponsored by Ad Informandum. My topic: Mumia Abu-Jamal andthe Death Penalty: A Global Human Rights Crisis. It was a greatexperience, for I have not encountered more bright and inquisitivestudents. They were interested in why the United States, in companywith countries such as Iran, China, and Saudi Arabia, is still in thebusiness of executing people. I also spoke at the showing of theextraordinary movie, In Prison My Whole Life, concerning my client andthe death penalty.
Mumia and I are particularly indebted to Amnesty’sStef Arens, who was responsible for organizing these events. Anotherhighlight was seeing Arlette Stuip, who attended Goddard College withMumia. She and her husband Tom have remained his good friends. Reporters Without Borders, Paris Recently Reporters Without Borderspublished a video interview regarding Mumia and the latest casedevelopments. It is in English, French and German, and can be foundat: http://www.rsf.org/spip.php?page=article&id_article=34689.
France The movement for Mumia in France is strong, led by theEnsemble Sauvons Mumia Abu-Jamal which is composed of approximately 80organizations. Come rain, sleet or snow, supporters continue todemonstrate each week at the U.S. Embassy in Paris. The film InPrison My Whole Life is being shown in theaters around France.
InSeptember, Nicole and I joined Claudine Cordillot, Mayor of Villejuif,a Paris suburb, for a showing of the movie and a presentationafterwards. One of Mme. Cordillot’s first acts upon taking office in1999 was to come out in support of Mumia. The Council of Villejuifunanimously declared both him and Nelson Mandela citizens of honor. Donations for Mumia’s Legal Defense Our legal effort is the frontline of the battle for Mumia’s freedom and life.
His legal defenseneeds help. The costs are substantial for our litigation in the U.S.Supreme Court and other court. To help, please make your donations asfollows: Spendenkonto für BR Deutschland und umliegendes europäisches Ausland: Archiv 92/Sonderkonto JamalS.E.B. Bank BremenKonto-Nr. 100 8738 701 (BLZ 290 101 11)Stichwort »Verteidigung«(Überweisungen aus EU-Ländern:IBAN DE78 2901 0111 1008 7387 01 – BIC: ESSEDE5F290)
Conclusion Mumia’s life remains in great danger. My career has beenmarked by successfully representing people facing death in murdercases. My goal is to save Mumia’s life and win his freedom.
Yours very truly, Robert R. BryanLaw Offices of Robert R. Bryan2088 Union Street, Suite 4San Francisco, CA 94123-4117Lead counsel for Mumia Abu-Jamal