'I believed he was guilty' -Juror No. 4

Juror #4 is wrong in believing the jury was influenced by the "Stand your
Ground" Law. Prejudice was the factor in the inability of three jurors
being unable to bring in a verdict of murder.
Whether it was prejudice toward a Black youth, or prejudice toward a bunch
of young people playing loud music, it was prejudice and nothing else.
Our Leaders, led by our Prince of Peace, set the tone for Americans to
become gun slinging Mavericks, acting as judge, jury and executioner.
Is this the way we are keeping our citizens safe from Terror? Fighting
Terror around the world, everywhere it threatens our Corporation's safety,
while allowing gun toting, self-appointed killers to gun down anyone the do
not approve of?
Welcome to Obama Land!

Carl Jarvis

****

Dear Carl,

"I believed he was guilty." --Juror No.4 ("Valerie")

This past weekend a Florida jury failed to convict Michael Dunn for the
murder of Jordan Davis. Now, juror No.4 has broken her silence and
confirmed that it was the issue of self-defense that lead some jurors to
detract from the overwhelming majority who wanted to convict Dunn of
first-degree murder.^1 Florida's so-called "Stand Your Ground" law was
mentioned to the jury during their instructions when Dunn's defense
lawyer
said his client had a right to "stand his ground and meet force with
force, including deadly force."^2

Anywhere there is a so-called "Stand Your Ground" or "Shoot First" law we
are poised to see miscarriages of justice like we have witnessed in
Florida. These laws provide immunity for vigilantes who neglected their
duty to retreat. And when you add deep-rooted racial prejudice like
Dunn's,^3 they become even more dangerous as a threat to Black youth, who
these shooters profile as "thugs" and criminals.

[3]Can you pitch in $10 or more today to make sure ColorOfChange has the
resources to fight and win repeal of "Shoot First" across the country?

Because of "Shoot First" we saw a jury fail to convict Dunn for the
murder
he actually committed just a day before what would've been the 19th
birthday of his victim, Jordan. Had it not been for "Shoot
First"-influenced instructions in Dunn's trial, we might have seen
justice
completely carried out for all of the charges against Dunn and not a
select few.^4

Florida's "Shoot First" law is the product of an obsessed right-wing gun
industry lobby -- those who have no actual concern about public safety or
self defense. It's because of their work to increase profits for this
industry that "Shoot First" is becoming a refuge for shooters in states
with susceptible political leadership across the country.^5

We have to demand accountability from our elected officials around the
dangers of "Shoot First": we're urging elected officials to repeal these
dangerous laws that put everyone at risk. We will provide support to the
officials that have the courage to fight for us and we will increase
pressure on those that don't.

[4]Help stop the next Michael Dunn: please make a contribution of $10 or
more today.

Thanks and Peace,

--Rashad, Matt, Arisha, Aimee, William, Johnny and the rest of the
ColorOfChange.org team
February 20th, 2014

References

1. "Florida 'loud music' trial juror: 'I believed he was guilty'," CNN,
02-19-14
[5]http://act.colorofchange.org/go/3300?t=1001&akid=3303.1048765.y4BrR2

2. "How To Make Sense Of The Michael Dunn Verdict,'" ThinkProgress,
02-15-14
[6]http://act.colorofchange.org/go/3299?t=1002&akid=3303.1048765.y4BrR2

3. "Michael Dunn Takes Stand, Racist Letters Take Center Stage Online,"
The Root, 02-11-14
[7]http://act.colorofchange.org/go/3301?t=1003&akid=3303.1048765.y4BrR2

4. "Fla. man faces 60 years for shooting at teens," USA Today, 02-16-14
[8]http://act.colorofchange.org/go/3302?t=1004&akid=3303.1048765.y4BrR2

5. "ALEC and the NRA: Profiting from gun violence," ColorOfChange
campaign, 01-04-13
[9]http://act.colorofchange.org/go/2834?t=1005&akid=3303.1048765.y4BrR2

References

Visible links
1. http://act.colorofchange.org/go/3306?t=1006&akid=3303.1048765.y4BrR2
2. http://act.colorofchange.org/go/3306?t=1007&akid=3303.1048765.y4BrR2
3. http://act.colorofchange.org/go/3306?t=1008&akid=3303.1048765.y4BrR2
4. http://act.colorofchange.org/go/3306?t=1009&akid=3303.1048765.y4BrR2
5. http://act.colorofchange.org/go/3300?t=1010&akid=3303.1048765.y4BrR2
6. http://act.colorofchange.org/go/3299?t=1011&akid=3303.1048765.y4BrR2
7. http://act.colorofchange.org/go/3301?t=1012&akid=3303.1048765.y4BrR2
8. http://act.colorofchange.org/go/3302?t=1013&akid=3303.1048765.y4BrR2
9. http://act.colorofchange.org/go/2834?t=1014&akid=3303.1048765.y4BrR2