from It’s Going Down
[This post only contains information relevant to Philadelphia and the surrounding area, to read the entire article follow the above link.]
Twitter troll @SylvioHunt was exposed this week as Norman “Chris” Henk, a Proud Boys recruit.
Online, Henk posts Anders Breivik memes and various Proud Boys propaganda, and engages in the harassment of leftist activists.
Currently, Henk works as a Conductor for New Jersey Transit. You can tweet to them @NJTRANSIT.
From AMW English
The following is a selection from a transcript of a podcast interview with Black and queer abolitionist writer Stevie Wilson. Stevie is being held captive by the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections and was recently released from solitary confinement. He speaks about the importance of abolitionist study, as a space of common encounter that undermines the hold that the carceral state has on our lives, both inside and outside prison walls.
Yeah, I got transferred from Smithfield and I’m now at SCI Fayette. Um, you know, sometimes when you’re an ally behind the walls… Sometimes means more than being an ally, being an accomplice actually. And, uh, it was a situation where a prisoner was attacked by two guards and, I kinda had an accident that we did online and the administrators found out about the accident. I was behind it and so they, uh, they moved to get me out of the way and kind of bury me in the hole. But thankfully because of the support that I had outside, it applied pressure on them and they got me out of the hole, but they transferred me to another prison. So now I’m — I was three and a half hours with my family. Now I’m six hours with my family, about 40 minutes South of Pittsburgh.
Definitely. It’s something that’s to be expected though. When you do this type of work behind the walls, it’s not about being an ally. You will become an accomplice and so whatever that person is doing they’re going to try do to you also. So I knew at one point they were trying to bury the young man in the hole because when they attack us, they try to flip it and say, you know, we attacked them. So they’ll bury them from six to nine months in the hole. And because we were successful in getting them out of the hole until a safer prison, you know, I became a target after that he was gone. And so, uh, I was able to go bother them and I did once again because of the people like Critical Resistance. I was able to come out of the hole, I did about two months battling with these people. We were able to come out of the hole and um, and, and be placed at Fayette now. So… but the work doesn’t stop. The work doesn’t stop you know?
Yeah. I think, I think…well, I’m gonna tell you something: That prison was a little different where many of the groups that we were doing were actually taking the place of programs that they had actually discontinued, right? So there was a lack of programming there. So we were putting together the transformative justice group and it was something that they liked, they gave us space for it. They gave us space for it you know, um, and what’s happening in Pennsylvania is because of the, the rehabilitation programs have been gutted. The educational programs have been gutted. There has been a space opened up for prisoners to initiate groups, right? Um, and so we did it at Smithfield, you know, and I’m here at Fayette, it’s kind of the same thing now, you know, where people don’t have anything to do when the prison wants them to do something, you know. So once again, there is an opening for us here.
Well, the first one we called 9-9-71, obviously in reference to Attica and it was a general abolitionist study group. We started with something like “Are Prisons Obsolete?” By Angela Davis and what we do is we do a chapter reading and then we would come back and we have discussion questions. We focus a lot on definitions because this is the first time many people were hearing about abolition. You know, when you think of a world without prisons, they thought we were crazy. You know, the first thing out of their mouths, “what are we going to do with the murderers and rapists and things like that?” And so we had to really talk about basic definitions and things like safety and community and things like that. So that was the largest group because it was more generalized. We also had a group called Circle Up, which is a transformative justice group, most of those men there were under the age of 25, about 23 young men. And they were doing a program called Circle Up and it was talking about transformative justice. How we apply, inside the prison in and our families and our communities. SAS was a Queer Aboltiionist group… That group we started because it was sometimes difficult to talk about those types of issues in 9-9-71. So we had a group that went through “Captive Genders” and queer injustice and works like this from an abolitionist perspective. And then we also had book clubs… that has been taken over by Haymarket books now. So here at Fayette we are going to be doing it and Haymarket books will be providing the books for us. So we’re happy to have that program still continue.
from It’s Going Down
[This post only contains information relevant to Philadelphia and the surrounding area, to read the entire article follow the above link.]
Panic! in the Discord exposed Lackawanna College student Matthew Guse as a member of white nationalist group Identity Evropa, recently renamed the American Identity Movement.
In the leaked Discord chats, Guse used the handle fgtveassassin, where he posted over 2500 messages discussing his activism, including leaving white nationalist recruiting materials at the Albright Memorial Library in Scranton, Pennsylvania.
Guse is a student at Lackawanna College in Scranton, Pennsylvania. You can tweet to Lackawanna College at @LackawannaEDU, or contact them via their Facebook or Instagram.
Submission
Over the last decade we have been made witness to the naked brutality of power. In the four corners of the earth domination has displayed its capacity to wreck devastation without hesitation. Those who were just holding on to their last lines of dignity have been dragged down in the mud. Those who rose up to regain their dignity and fight for freedom, have been smothered and massacred. Not content with the daily administration of oppression, it seemed as if the rulers were aiming for a decisive victory by escalating their repressive violence.
They were mistaken. Instead of resignation, we are witnessing the resilience of those who want to live against all odds. The ruins that power left behind, as monuments to its scorched earth tactics and as a warning for the future, are in our hands the first stones of a new life. The cynical calculations of politicians, who are willing to sacrifice whole generations to uphold their political reign or their economical dogmas, have been erased by the unforeseen. An invisible line has been crossed; beyond this line humiliation is no longer tolerated. Where this line is drawn, and why there, is to remain unknown till it has been crossed. That there is a line is a certainty that the dominant forces wished to ignore.
Many take a passive attitude due to the unpredictable character of that moment, when the social order is not only confronted by a few rebels but by a full-on rebellion. But for anarchists the knowledge of this resilience of people should warm our hearts and nourish our determination that any instance of rebellion has the potential of overflowing.
In order to survive we all adapt to a certain extent to the daily lot of humiliations that are part of authoritarian societies. But surviving isn’t enough and another line crossed can be one too many. These lines cannot be imposed by ideology or some kind of universal truth. And in a sense they are random, but that doesn’t make them meaningless. On the contrary, they are the starting point of an existence that matters; one that rebels against its subjugation.
PDFs on thelocalkids.noblogs.org
from It’s Going Down
We heard the call to action by Jailhouse Lawyers Speak!
From the birth state of the Crime Bill written by 1994 Senator Joe Biden, we wholeheartedly say burn the crime bill and reject the racist institution of the criminal justice system. Today as the #Vaughn17 hero’s Jarreau Ayers and Dwayne Staats faced their oppressors and “Starred into the eyes of the system and didn’t flinch,” ( quote from Jarreau Ayers on 9/13/2019), we stand in solidarity with all those who have suffered under mass incarceration due to this crime bill.
All power to the people!
Coalition of Supporters to Free the #Vaughn17
from Perilous Chronicle
George W. Hill Correctional Facility, Thornton, Pennsylvania
September 2, 2019
According to the Daily Times, a guard at George W. Hill Correctional Facility reported a “full-blown riot” at the facility on Monday.
“I’ve been there almost 20 years and it was the worst experience I’ve ever seen in my life working at Delaware County prison,” said another guard. “It was horrible. It was unsafe.”
“Two entire blocks refused to lock in,” the guard stated.
In response to prisoners refusing to lock down, guards entered the block in an effort to show willingness to use force.
Prisoners responded by covering their faces with ripped bed sheets and wielding shoes against the guards. When it became clear the prisoners were not going to comply, the guards retreated and a CERT team was called in to respond to the uprising.
The CERT team was armed with pepper ball guns and reportedly shot over 25 prisoners. Prisoners were also hit with batons.
In total the standoff lasted about an hour.
The uprising reportedly started on a day when the air-conditioning units were not functioning properly in the prison.
A statement from a spokesperson for GEO Group, the private company that operates the facility, stated, “Staff responded to a small group of disruptive inmates that were repeatedly non-compliant,” the spokesperson said. “All policies and procedures were implemented to maintain the safety for the staff and inmates until the issue was resolved.”
An interior report of the incident indicated that a call came in at 3 p.m. Monday saying that two pods had refused to lock in. About 20 officers responded and successfully got one of the pods to lock down. The other pod of approximately 44 inmates refused orders to lock down.
The report indicates the last staff member out of the block dispersed MK-9 pepper spray into the area before exiting. Further attempts to communicate with the inmates in the block were unsuccessful.
There were still 26 inmates refusing to comply when the CERT team entered and used pepper balls in an effort to regain control of the pod. Guards ordered prisoners to lie down on the ground but only half complied, according to the report.
“It just turned into an all-out war,” said one guard who accompanied the CERT team, “They were not going down without a fight. It was unbelievably scary … It was like something you see out of TV.”
The remaining 13 inmates were eventually subdued and handcuffed. A search of the pod’s dayroom later uncovered a makeshift knife, according to the report.
One guard said in a statement,“This was just the beginning. Now they’re prepared. They tested us and now they’re going to do it again, because they know we’re short staffed. I’ve been there long enough and I’ve seen enough to know that will happen. A CO is going to die.”
“Guard says staff put down ‘full-blown riot’ at Delco prison Monday“, Daily Times, September 4, 2016.
Article published: 9/12/19
from Mainstream Media
Issues of inmate misbehavior have escalated at George W. Hill Prison, with a “full-blown riot” taking place Monday afternoon during an air conditioner malfunction, according to one guard speaking on condition of anonymity.
“I’ve been there almost 20 years and it was the worst experience I’ve ever seen in my life working at Delaware County prison,” said another guard. “It was horrible. It was unsafe.”
“Two entire blocks refused to lock in,” said one guard. “One was able to lock in with verbal commands, the other refused with verbal commands.”
A guard said multiple staff members entered Block 7 – where at least two other violent incidents have occurred in the last month between inmates and guards – in an effort to show a willingness to use force if prisoners did not comply.
Inmates instead donned shoes and tore up bed sheets, wrapping them around their heads to protect themselves from pepper spray, according to the guard. When it became clear the inmates were prepared for a fight, the guard said staff was removed from the block and a Correctional Emergency Response Team – or CERT – was mobilized with pepper ball guns – essentially paintball guns in which the balls are filled with mace.
“We had to shoot multiple inmates,” he said. “A minimum of 26 inmates were shot with pepper balls.”
The guard said batons were also used to quell the inmates. Use of force lasted approximately 15 minutes before the block was brought under control, he said. All told, the standoff lasted about an hour.
A spokesperson for the Geo Group, the private, for-profit company managing the prison for the county, said the claims of the incident were exaggerated and “made by individuals with the intention of disrupting the safe operational flow of the facility.”
“Staff responded to a small group of disruptive inmates that were repeatedly non-compliant,” the spokesperson said. “All policies and procedures were implemented to maintain the safety for the staff and inmates until the issue was resolved.”
An interior report of the incident indicates the call came in at 3 p.m. Monday that two pods were refusing to lock in. Approximately 20 officers and sergeants responded. Guards explained there was some maintenance work ongoing on the roof and one of the pods was locked in without issue, according to the report.
The report says the second pod, consisting of 44 inmates, did not move when ordered and began displaying aggressive behavior, including “over talking the Sergeant and making comments of threats of fighting.”
The report indicates the last staff member out of the block dispersed MK-9 pepper spray to saturate the area, but further attempts to communicate with the inmates in the block were unsuccessful.
The report says there were still 26 inmates refusing to comply when the CERT team entered and used pepper balls in an effort to regain control. Guards ordered everyone to lie down on the ground but only half complied, according to the report.
“It just turned into an all-out war,” said one guard who accompanied the CERT team, coughing and gagging as he fought with inmates. “They were not going down without a fight. It was unbelievably scary … It was like something you see out of TV.”
The remaining 13 inmates were eventually subdued and handcuffed, and all prisoners in the block were strategically taken to medical for examination. A sweep of the pod’s dayroom later uncovered a makeshift knife, or shiv, according to the report.
“I’ve been there so long and I said, ‘It’s not if it’s going to happen, it’s when,’ because we’re so short staffed,” said one guard. “People blow this off and we’ve been saying it for years: It’s an unsafe place to work and no one cares and it’s awful. It’s an awful, scary place.”
A sergeant had previously been beaten with handcuffs and required hospitalization during a routine morning inspection Aug. 5 on that same block, and several inmates reportedly used heavy plastic trays to beat another inmate there Aug. 26.
The trays were eventually flung at a nurse and guard, who were trapped on the block for several minutes while backup was called in, according to one guard.
Inmates on that block had been placed on altered recreation last week, allowing guards to stagger exercise releases by tier or parts of tiers so they are easier to control, according to the guard. The block was supposed to remain on altered recreation until Saturday, he said, but was taken off early.
“Then this happened,” he said. “It’s just getting worse and worse in this place. It’s just got everything to do with how short-staffed it is in this place and the inmates are taking over.”
Delaware County Council Chairman John McBlain said he had spoken to Superintendent John Reilly Monday and Tuesday, and it was his understanding that a problem with an air conditioning compressor led about 20 inmates to refuse to go into their cells during a count, but the temperatures did not climb above 75 degrees.
“Ultimately the CERT team did go down and ushered everyone back in,” he said. “As these things go, it went well. You never want to have a situation where the inmates are not compliant with the rules there, but it sounds like they did a very good job of moving everybody back in. Every one of the inmates was taken to medical to be fully examined afterwards and there were no issues.”
McBlain said it was his understanding that there had been issues with drugs on that block over the summer, but he said Warden David Byrne had met with everyone on the block last week.
“They said today that they were analyzing whatever the reports were, talking to CID about it,” said McBlain. “I know the superintendent indicated there was a block representative for the inmates and he met with him yesterday and today.”
One guard said the inmates on Block 7 are inmates that are heading upstate, and the majority of them have done state time before. Another said that means they can’t be mixed into other areas of the prison to relieve tension on the block and the prison is too overcrowded to accommodate transfers at any rate.
Representatives for the Geo Group met with local prison guards and members of the International Union, Security, Police and Fire Professionals of America to discuss staffing and training issues approximately two weeks ago.
But one guard reports that corrections officers are still being forced to work 16-hour shifts every other day as staffing problems persist, leading to safety issues for both guards and inmates. An inmate was found unresponsive on the morning of July 31 in an apparent suicide and two other inmates in the work release unit suffered non-fatal overdoses over the weekend of Aug. 24. Geo has not released the name of the suicide victim.
“These kinds of incidents happen because there’s just not enough staff to control the prison,” said one guard. “There are guys who have hundreds of hours of overtime getting mandated (for double shifts) every other day. You’re basically a walking zombie.”
“And then if you’re a little bit late, they write you up,” said another guard.
McBlain said the county keeps in constant contact with the superintendent and warden, and he does not know that staffing has been a particular issue at the facility, though he added it is always a challenge in the field of corrections.
“In general, it seems it’s been questioned whether the entire atmosphere, regarding the anti-prison groups and whatnot, encouraging individuals to create problems because they know all these things will be printed,” he said. “That seems to be on the uptick.”
But two longtime guards said the reality on the ground is that staff are not being given the resources they require to do their job safely and they fear someone is going to die.
One guard said this incident “absolutely” could have turned into a hostage situation and he fears a repeat of the 2017 uprising at James T. Vaughn Correctional Center in Smyrna, Del., that resulted in the death of Officer Steven Floyd.
“This was just the beginning,” he said. “Now they’re prepared. They tested us and now they’re going to do it again, because they know we’re short staffed. I’ve been there long enough and I’ve seen enough to know that will happen. A CO is going to die.”
from It’s Going Down
Facebook Event HERE
In February of 2017, 18 prisoners in James T. Vaughn Prison were initially charged with multiple counts of murder, rioting, conspiracy and kidnapping. 1 of the initial suspect turned to a state star witness and Kelly Gibbs took his own life leaving a letter of declaration. Jarreau Ayers and Dwayne Staats already incarcerated with life without parole recieved charges, however the rest of the group received not guilty charges or had their the charges dropped. As their sentencing day is coming up we are asking you on behalf of their families to show up to court and hold signs in front of the court building.
Jarreau “Ruk” Ayers writes:
On September 13, 2019 myself along with our Comrade Dwayne Staats, the only two to be found guilty for the Riot that occurred on Feb 1 of 2017 at James T. Vaughn Prison that left one CO dead, will be called before the “Courts”, a conduit for this white supremacist totalitarian government in the occupied territory of Wilmington, DE. For purposes no other than what Ms. Assata Shakur correctly identified as a public lynching. We ask that you support us with your presence to make it abundantly clear to the authoritarian tyrants that they are being watched. That myself along with our comrade Dwayne Staats will NEVER be left alone, for this system to be psychological torture and isolate to the point of mental deterioration, I ask that you stand with us in solidarity as a clear acknowledgement that we the people determine what’s right and just. That we the people find that the actions of those who stood for the people of oppression on Feb 1, 2017 were righteous and just and deserve to be commended, not condemned.
We ultimately ask that you support us with your presence as a clear signal to those comrades not born yet or who are just consciously coming of age, that when you take action for your beliefs, our collective beliefs and are no longer just an orator of beautiful ideals, you won’t be abandoned! That regardless of the hardships, time/distance or enormity of the enemy, we will stand unflinchingly in solidarity!
Jarreau “Ruk” Ayers
Fore more information on how to support Dwayne and Jarreau on September 13th, go here.
from It’s Going Down
Background: On August 31, the Broadway Theatre in Pitman, NJ, will play host to variety of speakers from the far-right, including Carl Benjamin, aka Sargon of Akkad, who helped fuel the anti-feminist harassment of GamerGate.
Other speakers include Mark Meechan, aka Count Dankula, who was found guilty of violating anti-hate legislation in the UK; Aydin Paladin, a Holocaust denier; and Andy Ngo, a Quillette editor who recently pushed a conspiracy theory about journalists that inspired an Atomwaffen-affiliated kill list and has made a career off of promoting literal fake news about the antifascist movement.
Action: Call the Broadway Theatre at (856) 384-8381 and ask them not to let fascists use their space to organize. Be polite and offer to explain the context of the event.
Sample Script: Hello, I’m calling on behalf of No Hate NJ to ask you to cancel the upcoming MINDS New Jersey event that will be held at your theater on August 31. The speakers include Carl Benjamin, who helped inspire a campaign of harassment and terror against feminists during GamerGate; Mark Meechan, who was convicted of a hate crime in the UK; Aydin Paladin, a Holocaust denier; and Andy Ngo, a conspiracy theorist who recently inspired a neo-Nazi kill list with his lies. Thank you so much for your time.
On October 17th 2017, 17 prisoners were indicted for allegedly partaking in the uprising that occurred at James T. Vaughn Correction Center in Smyrna Delaware on February 1, 2017. This miscellany of individuals would eventually be given the moniker “Vaughn 17.”
Contrary to our charge of “conspiracy,” prior to this case many of us had never interacted with one another before. As far as myself I only knew 3 of my co-defendants on a personal level. I believe this unfamiliarity exacerbated the tensions that arise while one is engaged in a struggle for life, freedom or truth. Ultimately our triumph hinged upon surmounting psychological barriers that were buttressed by our diverse array of ideologies, idiosyncrasies, experiences, maturity levels and ways of life. Out of all that, there still remained a sad but proven reality that weighed heavily on our minds. There’s 17 co-defendants — the odds are in favor of at least 4-6 opting to cooperate with authorities to secure some type of leniency for their cowardice. With that being the foremost concern, me and Jarreau “Ruk” Ayers approached individuals and recommended that they first consult with us, if they found themselves pondering thoughts of compromising. Being though the vast majority wasn’t privy to or knowledgeable of any specifics concerning the takeover, we would of provided them with details pertaining to our actions, so they wouldn’t concoct fabrications about anyone else. Figuratively speaking we’d accept being stabbed in the chest to present others from getting stabbed in the back. Only one person gave the proposal any consideration. More than anything he was frightened of the maliciousness of the deputy attorney generals, and felt vulnerable against the power they wield. Imagine going to sleep at night with 4 years remaining on your sentence, then morning comes and your greeted by 3 counts of murder, 3 counts of assault, 4 counts of kidnapping, 1 count of riot, 1 count of conspiracy. Internally a lot of my co-defendants were grappling with this abuse of discretion, but they never expressed any desire to seek a pseudo refuge in anticipation of the metaphorical slaughter that some thought was inevitable.
During these preliminary stages it definitely appeared as though the prosecutors had everything rigged to ensure our guilt. The department of corruption aided their accomplice. By keeping us sequestered in living quarters conducive to the deterioration of one’s mind. Some of our adversaries disguised themselves as court appointed lawyers. The system “tried” to box us in on every level. For the first 8 or 9 months the only discovery (evidence) that “some” of us received was co-defendant statements, DNA analyses, and other reports that were deemed paltry. Any material critical to our defense specifically, information alluding to why we were charged was held under a protective seal by a judge’s order. The cumulative effect of these hinderances (tactics) provoked one of my codefendants to contemplate “throwing in the towel,” somehow he rationalized that pleading guilty to something he had no involvement with was a viable solution towards evading the barrage of mental intrusions. Their schematic design became so overwhelming that it nearly infringed upon his sanity. To a degree, all of us were on the verge of psychological exhaustion. Instead of mentally collapsing, it caused us to start making conscious efforts to morally support each other. This was around the time my motion to go pro se (represent myself) was granted. I filed a subsequent motion stating that I be issued a laptop and be given all the discovery discs that the lawyers were entitled to. My request was granted with the stipulation that I adhere to the rules and regulations of the protective order. Which basically meant that I share nothing with my co-defendants. “Yeah Aight!” Once I started receiving the material “we” began analyzing it. Simply saying that we immersed ourselves within this case would be an understatement. I never witnessed a group of individuals move with such a synchronized mind. “Due diligence” is why truly empowered our collective. After sifting through the discovery, which amounted to 7 boxes of documents and about 45 discs. There was no physical evidence, no surveillance footage, or forensic evidence. It all came down to our 17 against 41 lying snakes.
The results: Me and Ruk was found guilty, for basically admitting to our levels of involvement. Deric Forney, Kevin Berry, Abednego Baynes, and Roman Shankaras were acquitted. John Bramble and Obadiah Miller had a hung jury on a few of the charges, but a retrial would not be pursued. Cory Smith, Luis Sierra (Abdul Haqq), Janiis Mathis, Robert Hernandez, Jonatan Rodriguez, Alejandro Rodriguez, Pedro Chairez and Lawrence Michaels all got their cases dismissed. R.I.P. to Kelly Gibbs who took a plea during jury deliberations of the first trial. He committed suicide the night the verdicts returned.
This narration of events was shared to provide a fundamental basis to delineate another nuance of “Vaughn 17.” Like I mentioned, we were essentially strangers comprised of different races, affiliations, motivations etc. Some of my co-defendants had real beefs on the streets. We are a microcosm of the prison population, which reflects society as a whole. I just want to put emphasis on how our discrepancies became inconsequential after the true enemy was identified. If the 17 of us along with our comrades and supporters could unify to deliver a blow that caused the political landscape in Delaware to implode imagine what 1,700 or 17,000 strong can accomplish….
The power is the people.
-BIM
On Wednesday, June 12, Delaware announced it was dropping its last two cases against former Vaughn prisoners accused of participation in the 2017 prison takeover. Lawrence Michaels and Alejandro Rodriguez-Ortiz, whom the state claimed helped subdue correctional officers at the beginning of the takeover, will no longer be facing trial in the fall. The state also announced that it would not be retrying defendant Obadiah Miller, for whom the jury in a previous trial could not come to a decision about whether he had fought and stabbed the officer who later succumbed to his injuries. The other defendant against whom the jury had returned no decision charges on the assaults, John Bramble, had his remaining charges dropped in March. The charges cannot be brought back up.
The announcement is a major victory for all 16 remaining defendants, who chose to stick together and take their cases to trial in spite of extreme retaliatory abuse by the prisons, as well as the betrayal by one of the 18 indicted prisoners (Royal “Diamond” Downs), who was secretly working with the prosecution. Following the first trial, defendant Kelly Gibbs took a non-cooperating plea deal and later took his own life.
The defendants have worked non-stop since their indictment in fall 2017 to expose the lies on which the state has built its case, as well as the systemic abuse they’ve experienced leading up to the takeover and in retaliation. Two of the defendants who are serving life sentences, Jarreau Ayers (“Ruk”) and Dwayne Staats, sacrificed what chance they might have left of getting out of prison by testifying on behalf of the other defendants and taking responsibility for planning and carrying out aspects of the uprising.
Delaware’s announcement followed two trials in a row in which the state failed to obtain any convictions. The most recently exonerated defendant, Roman Shankaras, was released after his not guilty verdict on May 23. This past week, Rome gave damning interviews to the press that completely destroyed whatever credibility the state might have had left. The state’s decision also followed the release last week of a scathing letter written by Jarreau Ayers to mainstream press, which described the fallacies of the state’s case and the corporate media’s unapologetically biased coverage.
But retaliation continues against the defendants who are still on the other side of the fence. Despite having almost all been found not guilty or had their charges dropped, the state is continuing to punish ten of the defendants (Jarreau Ayers, Abednego Baynes, Kevin Berry, John Bramble, Deric Forney, Janiis Mathis, Obadiah Miller, Jonathan Rodriguez, Corey Smith, Dwayne Staats) who are now in Pennsylvania, where they are being held on lockdown indefinitely (via placement on PA’s Restricted Release List) on vague and questionable grounds. More than two years later, these prisoners are still being abused for staying in solidarity with one another against the state.
Shoutout to all the defendants and to all rebels inside and outside the prison walls! The struggle for liberation continues!
from June 11th
Peace and solidarity to all the men and women that’s behind enemy lines, who continue to resist and rebel against this oppressive system we face everyday.
Also peace and solidarity to all the organizations who support us and fight for us non-stop. A special shout out to Philly, Pittsburgh and Chicago Anarchist Black Cross (ABC), D.C Crew, R.A.M NYC, Ghost Town Prisoner Support and two friends of mine T and N, without all of y’all the Vaughn17 supporters, none of the not guilty verdicts and the charges dismissed for the remaining comrades wouldn’t be possible. So thanks to y’all for being there for us, the non-stop work y’all put in and the non-stop pressure y’all put on DE DOC, PA DOC and the judicial system to make sure were always good. As y’all know the fight continues, we still have three comrades* that have to face a corrupt judicial system. So to all that read this support these brothers and go to their trials the more supports they have the better, so support the #Vaughn17.
Now to my June 11th statement. As I sit here in my cell and write this I really don’t know what to write right now. As I told friends of mine I don’t consider myself to be a anarchist. I wouldn’t put a label on what I do and stand for as a man. I’m just write how I feel and what’s on my mind and hopefully other brothers and sisters behind enemy lines feel the same way. I hate all authority figures (police, C.O’s, judge etc.) with a passion. Some may ask why? My answer to that is why not! These so called authority figures don’t do anything but oppress people mainly people of color, trans men and women, and homeless people, so that’s why I hate them. I want to touch on something else I am passionate about. The abolishment of all theses concentration camps (prisons). I am with the abolishment of theses concentration camps “By any means necessary” as Malcolm X once famously put it. ^^ But to do away with theses concentration camps it must first start with us, the men and women who are on these camps, who endure every form of oppression daily, may it be verbally, mentally, physically or sexually, we face it everyday by our oppressor! To see the abolishment of these camps we must resist and rebel against our oppressor. We speak of resistance all the time but know that “words with no actions is just talk”. It starts with us, and it’s time we stand for something or continue to fall for anything.
Fred Hampton
“Dare to struggle”
You dare to win
Peace to all
#Vaughn17 Kev
*At the time of publishing only two of the #Vaughn17 still face charges, Obediah Miller has recently had his case quietly dismissed! For information about the 17 and up to date addresses (including Kevin’s) visit vaughn17support.org
Smart communications/PA DOC
Kevin Berry #NT0583
SCI Benner Township
PO Box 33028
St Petersburg, FL 33733
When sending to Kevin keep in mind that since he has been transferred to Pennsylvania mail for him is sent to a processing facility in Florida where it is scanned electronically then emailed to the prison where it is printed.
from It’s Going Down
Chicago Antifa identified Matthew Missimer, of Downingtown, Pennsylvania, as far-Right Twitter troll @Mathaeus-M. He frequently retweeted neo-Nazi and white nationalist accounts, including former Traditionalist Worker Party co-founder Matthew Parrott, white nationalist website VDARE, and Identity Evropa, and made frequent misogynistic and transphobic statements. After being publicly identified, Missimer promptly deleted his Twitter account.
“We are the account killers,” quipped Chicago Antifa. “3rd one this week.”
According to his LinkedIn profile, Missimer is an Invoice Processor at Aerotek, a staffing services company in Downington, Pennsylvania. You can let them know about their employee by tweeting @Aerotek.
[Philly Anticap note: We have only included a locally relevant fragment of the original post. To read the whole post follow the link at the top of the post.]
Rome is the eighth defendant to be tried in this case, and the fifth to have now been cleared on all charges. Having been scheduled for release last year, he has now been released and is at home with his family.
Two more defendants, Lawrence Michaels (“Smoke”) and Alejandro Rodriguez-Ortiz (“Capo”) are still scheduled to be tried in October. One defendant from the second trial, Obadiah Miller (“OB”) is still waiting for the state to decide whether it will retry him. The other defendant in the second trial for whom the jury returned “no decision” verdicts for two charges, John Bramble (“Johnny”), had his remaining charges dropped for good in March.
After their failure to convict any defendants in the second trial, the state dropped their case against the other six defendants in March.
The third trial in Delaware’s prosecution of the Vaughn 17 began on Monday, May 6th, 2019. This time, Roman Shankaras is a solo defendant, fighting the same charges that fifteen of his co-defendants also faced — conspiracy, felony riot, assault, kidnapping, and murder — for allegedly participating in the February 2017 prisoner takeover of C-building at James T. Vaughn Correctional Center in Smyrna, Delaware (two additional prisoners were also indicted on the same charges except murder). What’s changed is that at this point, the state has been unable to successfully convict five of them, and subsequently dropped their case against another six defendants. Another co-defendant, Kelly Gibbs, died under suspicious circumstances after writing a dying confession to the murder that also named the state’s star rat, Royal “Diamond” Downs. The question is, why does the state continue to pursue a bunk case built on the lies of prison snitches?
In opening statements, we learned that the prosecution is relying on Delaware’s accomplice liability theory in order to convict Roman for the entire uprising. The state doesn’t have any physical evidence related to Roman, aside from two “kites” (prison notes) written from Roman to Royal Downs, who Roman had not known was already collaborating with the police. Although even the state acknowledges that Roman never held a weapon and remained in his cell the whole time, they are trying to hold him responsible for everything that happened during the uprising — including the death of a cop — by alleging that he helped plan the takeover.
So far the prosecution has called in various police investigators and correctional officers to testify against Roman, but the only witness who claimed to identify him was Royal Downs. For anyone who has been following the trials, his lies this time clashed significantly from his previous testimony. Multiple times he identified another defendant, Lawrence Michaels (a.k.a. Smoke), as doing things in the takeover that, during the first trial, he testified to seeing Jarreau Ayers (Ruk) do. The coincidence is not lost that Michaels never had his charges dropped, and his trial is scheduled for October 2019.
Downs also previously claimed to have smuggled the kites out in a visit with his sister, and he is now testifying that he mailed it out in a card. He is no longer claiming for the jury’s benefit that testifying is the hardest thing he’s ever had to do and that given the chance he wouldn’t do it again, after that strategy failed under cross-examination in both the previous trials.
So far media has been silent on the major fallacies and inconsistencies of the case, attempting instead to rile up the public by reporting on new evidence recently found at Vaughn, which is irrelevant to this case.
Meanwhile, for the first time over the course of the three trials in which they’ve testified, both Lieutenant Charles Sennett and Detective David Weaver cried (obviously fake) tears while on the stand in order to influence the jury. The state is desperate, and this time they are resorting to tactics of red herring evidence and emotional play in addition to outright lies.
The state argues that the two kites show that Roman helped orchestrate the prison takeover and that therefore he is legally responsible for everything else that happened during it. So far, Diamond has testified that other Vaughn 17 defendants who’ve said they helped plan the takeover — Dwayne Staats and Jarreau Ayers — were in Roman’s cell during the uprising and consulted with Roman, Lawrence Michaels, and several others to make key decisions. On Wednesday, Diamond characterized Roman as the uprising’s “puppet master,” but the details of Diamond’s testimony indicate that major decisions about hostage negotiations were made spontaneously over the radio by Diamond and Staats in a different room, not in Roman’s cell.
Moreover, the state’s interpretation of the letters themselves is in question. In his opening statement, Roman’s lawyer — Patrick Collins — noted that, as we’ve heard in previous trials, what was planned for February 1, 2017, depends on who you talk to. Some inmates planned to stay in the yard as a nonviolent protest, while Diamond says he’d learned there would be a takeover but that he never heard that violence would be involved. Another plan was a coordinated violent takeover. But it’s still uncertain which prisoners intended to participate in which plan.
This means that the state would first have to prove that Roman’s letters unequivocally show that he helped plan a takeover of C-Building, as opposed to a nonviolent protest, and then also prove that Roman intended the takeover to be violent. In the language of Delaware’s accomplice liability law, they would have to show that Roman planned to commit an “unlawful act” with others in which the assaults, murder and kidnapping was “reasonably foreseeable” as a possible outcome, even if he never personally held a weapon. It is unclear how the state would decisively prove this based on Roman’s letters and the snitch testimony they’ve presented so far — which is supposed to be the strongest part of their case. As Collins pointed out, under the standard of reasonable doubt, even the jury thinking Roman is “probably guilty” is not enough to return a guilty verdict.
The state’s entire case against the Vaughn 17 has been based on snitch testimony, and it’s important to note that the two kites that the state is presenting as hard physical evidence in this case were written in communication with a snitch. In cross-examination, the defense has already established Diamond’s extensive influence in the prison as someone with time, and these letters seem to be a sting set-up.
So far, the state has failed to secure any convictions in its entire case against the Vaughn 17 except for what the defendants personally attested to having done. In the fall, Dwayne Staats was found guilty on all charges but intentional murder after he explained to the court that he had helped plan the uprising, knowing it could turn violent. Jarreau Ayers, also serving a life sentence, was found guilty of conspiracy, riot, kidnapping and assault based on his own testimony that he helped facilitate the takeover once it began. Deric Forney (called Twin) maintained his innocence and was found not guilty.
Following the second trial, in which all four defendants maintained their innocence, the jury found Abednego Baynes and Kevin Berry not guilty on all charges and came to no decision on a few final charges for John Bramble and Obadiah Miller, effectively acquitting them as well. The state has since quietly dropped those final charges for good.
After the second trial, the state also dropped most of the remaining defendants’ cases. Lawrence Michaels and Alejandro Rodriguez-Ortiz are still facing trial in October of this year.
Having completed his sentence soon after the uprising, Roman should have already been released from prison. Instead he is still being held on $2.8 million cash bail pending the outcome of this trial.
The seven Vaughn defendants who have already stood trial, along with an additional four whose charges were dropped, have since been moved to different prisons in Pennsylvania. After more than two years of state retaliation and abuse, they are all still being held in solitary and denied privileges, despite almost all having been exonerated by Delaware’s so-called justice system.
Roman’s trial will resume on Monday, May 13, at 9:45am in Room 8B of New Castle County Courthouse in Wilmington and will be in session every day for the rest of this coming week except Wednesday, May 15th. Court support is welcome and encouraged!
For more information on the Vaughn 17.
