December 16, 2007
Murdered by Mumia
By Bob Weir American Thinker
Twenty-six years ago, a police officer was brutally murdered on the cold, dark streets of Philadelphia. Patrolman Daniel Faulkner, making a routine traffic stop at about three o'clock on the morning of December 9, 1981, was knocked to the ground and shot several times in his upper body and face.
Four eyewitnesses to the cold-blooded homicide have identified the murderer as, Wesley Cook (AKA Mumia Abu Jamal). Mr. Cook was convicted of first degree murder the following year, and sentenced to death in the Electric Chair.
Well, here we are, 25 years later, and instead of an execution, we have something akin to a coronation. Mr. Cook has received money for the sales of books written while in prison, and he has been allowed to write a column in which he regularly rants about 'racial injustice in America.' In addition, his fight against the death penalty, for which he has had the support of several Hollywood celebrities, has proved fruitful because, a few years ago, a judge reduced his penalty to life in prison. Now, his international fan club, which has succeeded in getting him named an honorary citizen of 25 cities around the world, including Montreal, Paris, and Palermo, and even naming a street after him in the Paris suburb of St. Denis, is trying to get him released.
Maureen Faulkner, widow of the slain officer, recently co-authored the book Murdered by Mumia: A Life Sentence of Loss, Pain and Injustice. She should know; a part of her was murdered that fateful day.
When I think about the facts of this case, I have to agree with Mr. Cook, there is racial injustice in this country. Mr. Cook, a black man, murdered Officer Faulkner, a white man, and to this date Officer Faulkner has not received justice. Cook, a former member of the Black Panthers and an avid supporter of anti-government and anti-police groups, was observed firing a shot into Faulkner's back as the officer was struggling with Cook's brother William, the driver of the vehicle. The wounded officer spun around, drew his revolver, and fired back, hitting Wesley Cook in the upper torso.
At that point, the officer fell to the ground, writhing in pain from the back wound. Mr. Cook staggered a few feet, then, walked up to the helpless cop and fired at his chest. Faulkner was twisting furiously on the ground, trying to avoid the bullets. Ultimately, Cook placed the gun barrel within inches of the cop's face and fired again. Witnesses have stated that a few quick spasms signaled the end of Faulkner's life.
Before the officer stopped the vehicle, which was going the wrong way on a one way street with its lights off, he had radioed for backup, as police procedure dictates. After Cook fired the fatal bullet, he attempted to leave the scene, but his wound kept him from going very far. He was sitting on the curb with the murder weapon in his hand when the police arrived. When warned to drop the gun, he attempted to take aim at one of the responding officers, who, rather than shoot him, knocked the gun to the ground.
At the emergency room of the hospital, as Cook was violently resisting the police who brought him there for treatment of his wound, witnesses heard Cook shout: 'I shot the mother f...... and I hope the mother f..... dies.' The witnesses who were present at the shooting scene gave signed statements to the police only minutes after the occurrence. Without deviation, each one stated that they saw Cook murder Faulkner, and that they never took their eyes off him from the time he fired the fatal shots, to the time the police arrested him, just minutes later. At the subsequent trial, the witnesses testified accordingly.
One can scarcely imagine having more evidence for a trial and conviction than the incontrovertible facts presented here. During the trial, Mumia Abu Jamal, (He became an African tribal leader as soon as he found himself in a cell) repeatedly disrupted the proceedings on a daily basis with loud outbursts and verbal threats. An extremely patient judge and prosecutor dealt with his desperate attempts to make the trial about race, even allowing him to run his own defense and interview potential jurors.
In the end, the racially mixed jury convicted Mumia of First Degree Murder and recommended the death penalty. Up to that point, the system was working. If Mumia had been taken from the courtroom, brought to the place of execution, and been forced to pay with his life, justice would have been done.
But, this is America, the country that people like Mumia and others are quick to criticize as barbarous and primitive. In this country, the system of appeals is practically endless, and the race card has more stopping power than a .44 Magnum. Who cares that Officer Faulkner has been dead and buried for 26 years? Who cares that the evidence against his murderer is flawless? Who cares that the jury only needed 3 hours to arrive at a unanimous vote for conviction? Mumia is black, and that entitles him to proclaim that the only reason for his plight is his color.
Imagine if the situation were reversed. The white guy stood over the black guy and fired bullets into his face in front of 4 witnesses. Do you think the judge and the D.A. would be so patient with his courtroom antics? How many Hollywood celebrities do you think would be making appeals to save his life? Would he still be alive and able to spread his racist dogma in newspapers and magazines? Nah! He'd be toast!!
Mumia is right. This is a racist country.
Bob Weir is a former detective sergeant in the New York City Police Department. He is the executive editor of The News Connection in Highland Village, Texas.
At least writing children's books did not keep Tookie Williams from his date with the hangman.
ReplyDeleteHe killed four folk in 1979 and was not executed until 2005, but finally paid that blood debt.
The Governator stood firm.
Never heard of the case. The wiki article, which goes on at length about the point of view of the defense, brings out all the type of stuff you'd imagine. The police are corrupt, pressured the witnesses, who are mostly hos, pimps, drunks, etc.--there is a doctor's statement at the hospital that says Mumia was in no shape to be talking at that point--and on and on. There's even some other guy said to have confessed. The left can always find a 'hero', a 'martyr'--they ought to try and find someone a little easier to defend than this dude.
ReplyDeleteDid you guys hear who Time's man of the year is?
ReplyDeletePerson of the Year 2007
ReplyDeleteA Tsar Is Born
By ADI IGNATIUS
TIME's Person of the Year is a clear-eyed recognition of the world as it is and of the most powerful individuals and forces shaping that world�for better or for worse
An interesting story on how the Democratic Party will be shaping the immigration issue
ReplyDeleteEnforcement First wins in polling, across the board.
Tougher enforcement, therefore, is a key starting point in a Democratic plan. It can help lay the groundwork and provide reassurance for plans that include support for essential services and a path to citizenship. In some districts, the Democratic candidates will do well with a message that focuses on enforcement and chiding the elites and both parties who failed to get
control of the borders and workplaces. Nationally, Democrats should be critical of George Bush for losing control of this problem and should re-enforce its identity as the party that seeks inclusive solutions. The country is ready to support a party that really solves the problems that have left America hobbled.
Fancy that.
Bingo!
ReplyDeleteLooks like you might be voting democrat this year, Rat.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteWhen voters select between two comparative messages, the tougher one also comes out on top. A message about enforcement bests a message about enforcement-plus-citizenship by 7 points.
ReplyDeleteThis killer is a darling of the left
ReplyDeleteMumia’s many international supporters now include the Japanese Diet, the European Parliament, and members of both the British and German Parliaments. In 2003 he was declared an honorary citizen of Paris—the first since Pablo Picasso was similarly honored in the 1970s. Furthermore, students in France now study and write about Mumia’s case as a high school graduation requirement.
In April 2006 the Paris suburb of St. Denis named a major street after Abu-Jamal. Located in the Cristino Garcia District (named after an anti-Franco Spanish Republican), Rue Mumia Abu-Jamal leads directly to the largest sports arena in Europe, Nelson Mandela Stadium. Speaking at the inauguration ceremony, the mayor of St. Denis, Didier Paillard, declared that Mumia’s struggle “is a symbol for justice, the abolition of the death penalty, human rights, and resistance against a system which has the arrogance to reign over the world in the name of those same human rights that it tramples with complete impunity on its own soil.”
Breaking news on Fox web.
ReplyDeleteRudy and Shadegg, still look like my two Federal votes
ReplyDeleteState Rep. Percy Watson heard complaints of racial injustice from members of the Forrest County Environmental Support Team on Tuesday during a special meeting that preceded city council's final meeting of the year.
ReplyDeleteThe meeting was the first time city officials and the FCEST were presented with the initial results of an independent investigation by Apex Environmental Consultants. Apex was recently hired by the city to review the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality's past investigation into possible creosote contamination in a south Hattiesburg neighborhood.
Apex officials said their next step is to conduct interviews with residents to help them decide where to take soil samples.
Meeting Addresses Creosote
Listen to this optimistic news from Stratfor's Dr. George Friedman
ReplyDeletethe first since Pablo Picasso
ReplyDeleteGood Grief!
I am suprised Hillary didnt defend him in 1979...she was defending Black Panthers around that time, I believe.
ReplyDeleteTougher enforcement, therefore, is a key starting point in a Democratic plan.
ReplyDeleteI can hear the Democrats gagging on this right now. They will not play any part in what they see as holding the brown man down.
Mr. Carville and his colleagues rightfully see that a sizable anti-illegal immigration vote is up for grabs. But both parties are treating the issue like a hot potato. (With the exception of Tancredo - who is about to bow out - and Fred Thompson who I think is still running). Then again I haven't really listened to any candidates in the past week or two.
What's your take on this, Rat?
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ReplyDeleteDepends upon the State or District.
ReplyDeleteHere in AZ our Democrat Gov., Ms Napalitano led the Nation in declaring an immigration "State of Emergency". Followed by the Governator and Bill Rihardson in New Mexico. A lot of posturing, true, but that's where incrementalism begins, with posture.
The Democrats old line supporters, Labor Unions, are pro-enforcement.
Governor Spitzer felt the backlash, just as Carville and Company described he would. It is the issue that damaged Ms Clinton the most, the drivers license issue in New York.
They'll be blaming Mr Bush and the GOP for the problem, which is an accurate description of the historical situation. The greatest influx arriving on Mr Bush's and the GOP Congress's watch.
It is an issue that the Dems could use to reclaim the middle class Reagan Democrats. At least rhetorically.
Even when their actions gut the fence funding, under Mr Bush's Administration. If Mr Bush does not raise the issue, the Dems will get away with it.
Which they are, as Mitch McConell declared Mr Bush won the budget battle, when the Senate funded the Iraq War, but gutted the border security fence.
The GOP and Mr Bush self declared "winners" while the border is still open, all on Mr Bush's watch.
We have instituted our employeer sanctions law, in AZ, whether funded or not, Ms Napalitano is getting favorable press on the subject. The Democrats can ride that pony, positive rhetoric with no funding.
Like the border fence writ large.
If the Democrats are smart, they can make hay on this issue, the GOP failures, amongst the mass of the middle class that see an immigration problem.
Rhetorical support of "Enforcement First", then a lack of action when they win.
As Charlie Wilson said,
"It's tradition"
Did you guys hear who Time's man of the year is?
ReplyDeleteMumia Abu Jamal?
The Left Disparages The Family Portrait
ReplyDelete"Those sons are dead ringers for Fatty Arbuckle and Chris Farley."
The employeer sanctions to be leveled against "new hires" if one listens to the Maricopa County Attorney, who is a Republican, and not go after people already in the system.
ReplyDeleteHe also said it would take months of investigation before any prosecutions could begin. May be why $7,000 only will fund one case.
Don Black of White Pride World Wide--
ReplyDeleteWEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – Republican presidential candidate Ron Paul is planning on keeping a contribution from a former grand wizard of the Ku Klux Klan, according to a campaign spokesman.
Don Black, who runs the "Stormfront" website with the motto, "White Pride World Wide," recently donated $500 to Paul. Black is a South Florida resident, and is married to the ex-wife of former Louisiana legislator David Duke, himself a former Klansman.
"We like his stand on tight borders and opposition to a police state," Black told the Palm Beach Post.
Black also indicated he supports Paul's opposition to amnesty for illegal aliens and his strong desire to end the U.S. war in Iraq.
"We know that he's not a white nationalist. He says he isn't and we believe him, but on the issues, there's only one choice," Black told the Associated Press today.
Paul spokesman Jesse Benton told the Post the Texas congressman's camp does not monitor donors, nor does it return money to controversial characters.
"If someone of a small-minded ideology sends money, it's his loss," Benton said. "First, it's $500 less for Black to use on whatever it is he does. Then, it's $500 more for Dr. Paul to use to protect the individual rights of all Americans."
Billary should adopt this rational when dealing with Chinese money.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteIf Billary thought they where in the "right" they would do that.
ReplyDeleteBut their donations were illegally bundled, not just from an unsavory character.
Mr Paul is right, that fellow in Florida is within his rights to donate in a legal manner. Paul is not going to be bought for $500.
Not when 275,000 folk have sent a similar amount. Good to see that Ron Paul is not so easily intimidated by the MSM, when he knows he is in the right.
re: Ron Paul wanting to end the war.
ReplyDeleteWar's over, ain't it?
The Person of the Year is simply a gimic to sell magazines in what would be a slow time of the year. It means nothing. There is no point in devoting any energy to whether Putin, General David Petraeus, Al Gore or Sponge Bob gets it. It is all BS.
ReplyDeleteI saw Ron Paul on Glenn Beck's show last night. He's a librarian through and through but there's a lot that I agreed with him on.
ReplyDeleteRick Stengel, the managing editor of Time Magazine, and the guy who had the final say in picking Pooty, interviewed Pootsie for 3 and 1/2 hours. He was asked by NPR if Pootty ever laughed or smiled. Not really, kind of a half smile sometimes. Inscrutable. Called him "The Man With The Mona Lisa Smile".
ReplyDeleteTime Magazine will be out of print one of these days. I have the old issues, from my aunt a librarian, from the WWII days. Have the two Hitler covers, the X over Japan, etc. Kind of fun reading some of the old advertisemets too.
ReplyDeleteFast cars, and pretty women, an old theme. With a touch of class, even for the average joe.
Ash and I would keep the money.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteMaybe Pooty needs an American dentist?
ReplyDeleteNot as long as 700 foreign bases remain occupied by US troops.
ReplyDeleteMr Paul seems to think it's a world wide war & occupation, just not a shooting gallery, everywhere.
Some would tell you, sam, Iraq never was a war, just US playing pretend.
I've thought the Iraq war "over" since June of '03, when the US cancelled the Iraqi organized local elections. After that is was an occupation and bloody nation building process, poorly managed at that.
Mr Bush disagrees though, he's still the decider.
All those foreign military bases make for a nineteenth century foreign policy model. I fail to understand why we require one single military base in Europe in the twenty first century.
ReplyDeleteNew Candidate Quiz
ReplyDelete#1 McCain
#2 Clinton
wtf?
I read some of the Germans, at least, want what's left to stay, good for the local economy, just like local bases here. Local merchants don't want them closed.
ReplyDeleteKind of like Subi. That place must've died after packed up.
ReplyDelete'we'
ReplyDeleteOr in Korea, for that matter. The SorKs have a military more than adequate to defend themselves.
ReplyDeleteThe 25,000 US troops not required to defend the South.
McCain and Clinton '08/ Ying and Yang, The Totality.
ReplyDeleteVote Oneness.
The marvelous Ron Paul excepted, most of the GOP candidates are about the end of something. Mike Huckabee is about the beginning of the next big thing in Republican politics.
ReplyDeleteAs a disaffected conservative who does not yet know for whom he's going to vote, it's a pleasure to watch the plain-talking outsider's rise.
If you ask me, the howls and alarm bells sounded by GOP mandarins panicking over the Huckabeean revolt make a rousing soundtrack for a toga party in Dogpatch.
Huckabee's Legacy
After a quick look, it turns out the Republicans have all staked out the immigration issue. Too late for the Democrats, even if they wanted to follow Carville's advice.
ReplyDeleteRudy
Border security and homeland security are inseparable. A core responsibility of the federal government is to control our borders. To do this, we need to build a physical fence and a high-tech fence. We need a larger, better-trained border patrol..
Huckabee
1. Build the Fence
Ensure that an interlocking surveillance camera system is installed along the border by July 1, 2010.
Ensure that the border fence construction is completed by July 1, 2010.
2. Increase Border Patrol
3. Prevent Amnesty
4. Enforce the Law on Employers
McCain
I have always believed that our border must be secure and that the federal government has utterly failed in its responsibility to ensure that it is secure. If we have learned anything from the recent immigration debate, it is that Americans have little trust that their government will honor a pledge to do the things necessary to make the border secure.
Romney
The number of illegal immigrants in the U.S. has exploded in the last decade from 3 million to over 12 million. We must secure the border, implement an enforceable employer verification system, punish sanctuary cities and reject amnesty if we are to restore Americans’ faith in the rule of law.
Bear with me. I can be extremely slow on the uptake sometimes.
Tancredo is at the end of his campaign. Announcement tomorrow. Who will he endorse?
ReplyDeleteRomney
ReplyDeleteIgnoring Ahmadenihad is a critical part of Time magazine's worldview, just as surely as slighting David Petraeus is. Acknowledging Ahmadenijad as a major news story would tacitly acknowledge the necessity of seriously dealing with the unprecedented threat he represents.
ReplyDeleteInstead, we have both party's presidential frontrunners promising to turn on the diplomatic charm with Iran, with Republican Mike Huckabee going the extra mile in fatuity, comparing Iran to a wayward relative.
No doubt this attitude suits Time's vision just fine. But calling that vision "clear-eyed" is the height of arrogance and lunacy.
Petraeus doesn't Rank
Thompson.
ReplyDeleteHow much money ya got?
ReplyDeleteTwo virtual bushels, bout 24 virtual bucks. You got any car titles?
ReplyDeleteYep, '04 Holden Commodore. Holden now owned by none other than GM.
ReplyDeleteVirtual of course.
lunchtime
ReplyDeleteOnly thing the wife will let me wager is the 78 TransAm, fair motor, weak tranny, no upholstery. You move it. And I hope I lose. Says 'Indiannapolis Pace Car' on the side. Real looker.
ReplyDeleteNice. That sounds like a cool car. You should restore it.
ReplyDeleteI don't think Mumia did it. Almost all people who support his release do not believe he committed murder.
ReplyDelete