His newest appeal in federal court is underway.

Court hears latest Mumia Abu-Jamal appeal - CNN.com

For those who don't know about him, Mumia Abu Jamal (a/k/a Wesley Cook) was a radio reporter/journalist and Black Panther Party member in the 1970s-early 1980s. In 1981, he shot and killed Philadelphia police officer Daniel Faulkner outside a tavern.

Since his conviction, Abu Jamal--with the help of a group called MOVE--has campaigned for a new trial, alleging that he was framed and convicted in a racist trial full of wilful prosecutorial and judicial misconduct.

Over the years, "Free Mumia" has become a celebrity cause in radical chic and militant left circles, including with some Hollywood actors, musicians, domestic and foreign politicians, and they claim that Mumia to be a 'political prisoner' who was set up by a racist and rigged trial.

For example, Santa Cruz, California issued a proclamation calling for a new trial. San Francisco Mayor Willie Brown named August 16, 1997 as "Justice for Mumia Abu-Jamal Day." The Beastie Boys and Rage Against the Machine played a controversial arena benefit concert for the death row inmate at the Meadowlands in East Rutherford, New Jersey. He has been made commencement speakers at some colleges by videotape and given honourary degrees. The Mumia cause in Europe includes acts such as a radical group in Copenhagen, Denmark barricading themselves into the Danish Parliament and hoisting a "Free Mumia" banner outside a window. In Paris, they even made him an honorary citizen (Picasso . . . and Mumia, if you can believe it) and named a street after him. In cinema, the show Law and Order even cast a district attorney as a fervent Mumia supporter.

The man shot Faulkner IMO. At least five witnesses said they saw Mumia kill Officer Faulkner. Mumia was found lying with a gunshot wound next to the fallen officer. A gun registered to Mumia was found next to him and he was wearing a holster. Mumia's sidearm contained five spent shells and five bullets were extracted from the slain officer that matched the shells found in Mumia's gun. Mumia was shot by a bullet from Faulkner’s service revolver. Even Mumia's own brother who was at the scene has never denied Mumia's guilt.

Sentiments in Philly--a minority majority city with a black mayor--has Faulkner memorials and groups, and US Route 1 in the city is named after Faulkner. His case has always been a sore point in the city looking at the claims and actions of the 'Free Mumia' movement.

What do you all think of the Free Mumia movement and the case?

I think he should get a new trial if anything can back up his innocence but I have never really seen anything offered. It just seems like a hip thing to support in some leftist circles. I think that many support him because of his past political action rather than facts in the case at hand.

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Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
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Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,
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Heh... there also seems to be rampant disinformation... allow me to share with you part of a blog that my communist ex-roommate wrote...

I think he means "ballistics" not "logistics," but at any rate he doesn't seem to agree that the bullets were from his gun. Why is something that should be so clear up to debate? I assume that even if the official ballistics test showed the bullets were from Jamal's gun, former roomie would just think that the "man" was lying, but he seems to think that the official verdict is that they weren't from his gun?

I don't really know anything about this case though.

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I read alot about the case a couple years ago. What I read made the prosecution case seem pretty solid but there were enough doubts to make this the kind of thing you can't really decide from a distance. Alot (most?) of Jamal's proponents make over-the-top claims and sometimes don't seem to know alot about the case except that Jamal is black and well spoken and the philly police have (or at least had) a reputation for racism.

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yep, i am not really feeling sorry for this guy until some real evidence of trial tamperment or his innocence are brought forward.

if he played professional football, he might of got away with it.

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How difficult would it be to perform a ballistics test to see if Mumia's handgun had been fired or if he had gun powder residue on his hands? From what I understand one was never done. The evidence surrounding the .38 handgun is profound and I think a ballistics test would remove any reasonable doubt that someone may have. From what I've read, I honestly believe Mumia is guilty. Mumia's .38 handgun is a very distinct one and the fatal bullet retrieved from Officer Faulkner came from a very distinct .38. A very distinct .38 was found next to Mumia and Mumia was shot from Officer Faulkner's firearm. I think it's obvious they shot each other.

I feel the need to roll my eyes at the Free Mumia hype in the same way I look at someone wearing a Charles Manson t-shirt and I wonder why it became 'cool' to commercialize criminal behavior. I stand with the people of Philly on this and I find Geno's support of Faulkner very touching.

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Sometimes it's just "hip" to support people. It makes people who are empty inside feel like they are part of something that really doesn't deserve to exist. Che Guevearra(sp), "Tookie" Williams, Abu Jamal, and George Bush.

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I agree. I never thought that groups such as Rage Against the Machine, System of a Down, and Public Enemy ever really did anything to help simply because they turn serious issues into a fad and tend to make people think of political activism as something for dirty hippies that like to get high and mosh rather than something that is for people to analyze and look for solutions to society's problems. That and they almost never actually get anything accomplished. That being said I love all three groups for their music itself.

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"Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"

And if MUMIA is the killer and is falsely abusing the idea of justice for his own benefit, then what does that say about all the people who support him?

I'm originally from Philly. I can tell you: there are alot of posers. Many supporters have no idea what MOVE is and what the MOVE bombing has done to Police relations.
They only know that Rage Against The Machine and The Beastie Boys support Mumia with their Free Mumia shirts.

There is no doubt people are, to this day, reacting to the MOVE bombing of 1985. Mayor Goode supporting a war against his own citizens, has not healed with time. Mix this in with the percieved injustice against a Move member, you have the equation. YOu have the posers. The reactionaries and the politically hungry.

Many sided with MOVE after that day in 85. To this time, I cannot believe that it is not a well-known travesty in history. This could be the reason why many have used Mumia as a podium to remind people the way Philadelphia treated its own citizens.

That cop who Mumia is accused of killing did not deserve to die. The people of that city block, many were MOVE members but not all, did not deserve to burn to death. In the end, each side used the other to inflict what continues to this day: bad police relations.

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Crystal, could you please link directly to the ballistics report?

Thanks

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and the nurse who testified that jumia actually said; “at least I got me a pig”...what? that’s imagination?..there were black witnesses who testified against him.......maybe we can give him the death sentence and bury him on the street that jack ass, th wife of Frances prime ministers, Mitterand’s wife named for him..please this stinks of the same cry baby Willaims, nonsense regards the crip who got what he deserved here in cali last year.......please find another cause cause you’re running out....and oh I see and obfuscation here, we want ballsisic reports linking the gun to the crime..they were in the book of the trial go read it ..I did....its not online.....to bad.....you just trying to make yourself right through some nonsense? I credit you with more than that....this is juts another cassue the left has fastened on.........nope no one is guilty of “white “ justice...hey you knownhow many blacks were on his jury ..? yea okay .....go look it up...

[i]In the early hours of December 9, 1981, around 3:51 a.m., Philadelphia Police Department officer Daniel Faulkner was shot and killed during an altercation that ensued from a routine traffic stop of a vehicle driven by William Cook, Abu-Jamal's younger brother.
The following sequence of events was accepted by the jury at the trial: during the traffic stop, Cook assaulted Faulkner, who in turn attempted to subdue Cook. At this point, Abu-Jamal emerged from a nearby taxi which he was driving and shot Faulkner in the back. Faulkner was able to return fire, seriously wounding Abu-Jamal. Abu-Jamal then advanced on Faulkner, and fired four additional shots at close range, one of them striking Faulkner in the face, killing the policeman. Abu-Jamal was unable to flee due to his own gunshot wound, and was taken into custody by other police officers, who had been summoned by Faulkner at the time of the traffic stop. In his possession was a .38 caliber revolver that records showed Abu-Jamal had purchased in 1979. The cylinder of the revolver had five spent cartridges. Abu-Jamal was taken directly from the scene of the shooting to a hospital and was treated for his injury. Witnesses stated that while he was receiving medical treatment, Abu-Jamal acknowledged that he shot Daniel Faulkner.[/I]

So, lets see, witnesses to the crime, the nurses testimony et al are all are all to be thrown out? Uh huh..... Yea okay cool, okay ley him go...deal? IF he lives with YOU .......no doubts, let him live in YOUR house.....yea whatever,,,any takers? Uh huh...you’re blind because you have a cause that leftist dilettantes et al want to forward...... good,,, great .......take a shower afterward....talk about being used.....

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So where does one find this "book of the trial"? Do you mean court transcript?

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Who does vote for these dishonest shitheads? Who among us can be happy and proud of having all this innocent blood on our hands? Who are these swine? These flag-sucking half-wits who get fleeced and fooled by stupid little rich kids like George Bush?

--Hunter S. Thompson

Did you read her post correctly?

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As Mrs. M pointed out, it's my understanding a ballistics test was never done. Mumia was never checked for gun powder residue and as far as I know his gun was never tested for recently being fired or for fingerprints. When I say he had a "very distinct" hand gun I understand he had bought a .38 that left 8 grooves on a bullet as opposed to the usual 6 grooves. The .38 that was found next to Mumia was a .38 was a gun that left 8 grooves and the fatal bullet removed from Faulkner had 8 grooves. I'll see if I can find the link where I had read this - I'm kind of going by memory right now.

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