The Sean Bell Demonstration at Houston and Varick

As promised, here are the photos of the Sean Bell demonstration at Houston and Varick Street taken around 3 pm this afternoon. [click on the photos for enlargements]

 

That's the intersection of Houston Street and Varick Street as shot from the NW side of Houston. There's a bit of construction going on Houston Street, and the building is undergoing renovations, so there's a sidewalk shed running for about half the block.

That bit of information will come in handy later.

 

That's a view of the demonstrators, who managed to completely fit underneath the sidewalk shed. Guess it was too warm for them to try and walk out in the open. Folks who wanted no part of the demonstration were forced to scoot around the edges. Media types and the police were all along the fringes.

 

The police were mulling around across the street and easily matched or exceeded the number of demonstrators. They looked bored.

 

So was the media.

 

 

 

I'm not sure who the guy with the armband was, but it said legal observer. He must have been cataloging who was involved in the demonstration for the eventuality of when the police arrested someone. In the time I was viewing all this, no arrests.

 

And Marcellus Wallace was in the crowd.

 

It's lovely to have preprinted signs that show just how ignorant you are. Two of the three cops who were involved in the Bell shooting were black, as was Bell.

 

More flora and fauna from the demonstration. That poster is the flip side of the one calling the shooting racist and this side has nothing to do with the stated purpose of this demonstration, but rather to call for the end of all deportations and raids.

 

Like I said, the media was definitely bored.

 

After all, the crowd was busy showing everyone that they knew how to count to 50 - representing the 50 bullets used by the three NYPD officers involved in the shooting, and then repeated the chant We Shall Overcome.

 

I know this banner is difficult to read because of the angle, but it says Stop the Brutality - Fight Back Against the NYPD.

 

After a while of seeing that Sharpton had failed to show up by 3:20 or so, I headed back to the office. By the time I left work for the day, I figured that the demonstrators would have completely tied things up at the Holland Tunnel, just as they promised. Well, I was wrong. They didn't stick around, though a lonely news truck was still hanging out. In fact, they apparently all headed downtown closer to the entrance of the Holland Tunnel as I could see the gaggle of helicopters hovering over Lower Manhattan.

 

Apparently 190 of the protesters overall were arrested, including Sharpton, Bell's fiance, and other leaders of the demonstration. They were arrested once they started blocking off the bridges and tunnels. As I suspected, those legal observers were part and parcel of Sharpton's crew to keep things organized.

Unfortunately, I didn't get the real juicy photos of Sharpton and his gaggle getting arrested. There's always a next time.

UPDATE:
There was one other photo I wanted to include in this post. It shows that a good portion of those demonstrating were members of SEIU Local 32BJ, which is apparently the building workers union.





All photos were taken by lawhawk © 2008.

UPDATE:
The NY Times has more on the demonstrations, including a breakdown of where arrests were made. Apparently reports claiming that Sharpton would be at the Houston and Varick site were wrong - as he apparently went to One Police Plaza instead. There's no word on the total number of demonstrators involved, nor can one discern how many protesters were involved at the Sharpton-led protest, but if you have a close cropping of the photos, you can be assured that the numbers weren't all that great. Oh, and the NYT roundup totally misses the Houston and Varick demonstration site altogether and the comments to that effect are pretty funny.

UPDATE:
Gothamist actually has a photo of the Varick Street contingent blocking the street as they marched downtown. That photo conveys just how big the crowd really was, which is to say that it wasn't all that impressive at all as most of those mulling about were gawkers, media, or police.

Demonstration Time

I just got back from observing the startup of the Sean Bell demonstrations at Houston and Varick St., in NYC, which began at 3:00. I was there for only a short time, and may go back out there again in about an hour, as the demonstrations head towards a climax and rush hour. As of a few minutes ago, the crowd was about 100 people, there were no disruption to traffic, and the media easily matched the number of demonstrators 1 for 1. Police also had similar numbers. I think there were as many gawkers as there were protesters.

The protesters were marching up and down a segment of the block of Varick Street between Clarkson and Houston. There was a chant of 50 bullets - counting up from 1 to 50. Then, they sang we shall overcome... or at least repeated we shall overcome over and over.

A few signs were present, including one that had nothing to do with the incident considering that race played no role in the shooting - two of the cops involved were black, but when you get pre-printed signs, what do you expect - facts and logic?

I'll post more in the 6pm hour, including photos.

UPDATE:
WCBS880 and 1010wins have stories running about the demonstrations in other parts of the city. Also, a single news helicopter has been hovering over the area hoping for some action.

Sharpton's Plans For Disrupting the NYC Evening Commute

Al Sharpton and his friends are hoping to completely disrupt New York City commutes this afternoon by engaging in demonstrations at key points around the city. He and his group have not obtained the necessary permits, so they are clearly hoping to goad the police into making mass arrests and/or get the police to overreact.

This is all part of Sharpton's plan to put pressure on the City over the verdict in the Sean Bell shooting against three New York City cops. The three cops were acquitted of the charges of

Union officials are meeting with federal investigators to try and stave off a federal civil rights action against the officers. Bell's supporters argue that New York Supreme Court Justice Arthur Cooperman’s acquittal was unjust. Cooperman ruled that Detectives Gescard Isnora, Michael Oliver and Marc Cooper were justified in firing the 50 bullets that killed 23-year-old Bell and wounded his two friends, Trent Benefied 23, and Joseph Guzman, 31.

The locations for the demonstrations are as follows:

LOCATIONS OF BELL VERDICT PROTESTS
Wednesday, May 7 at 3 p.m.

# Third Avenue at 125th Street
# Park Avenue at 34th Street
# Third Avenue at 60th Street
# Varick and Houston Streets
# One Police Plaza
# 415 Atlantic Avenue in Brooklyn

I may get over to the Varick and Houston Street demonstration, which is near the entrance of the Holland Tunnel and a stop on the 1 train. This is also the location where Sharpton, New York NAACP President Hazel Dukes and Bell's relatives will demonstrate. I fully expect a circus atmosphere with the media in full force, to say nothing of the thousands of drivers trying to simply get home. We'll see just how many demonstrators actually show up, but I also expect a significant police presence to keep the intersection clear.

I don't quite understand how and why Sharpton thinks that pissing off commuters is a way to get justice in this case. He's only inconveniencing those who might be sympathetic to the cause and it would appear to be counterproductive. Besides, the feds are looking at opening a possible civil rights case against the officers, and an internal investigation is still pending against the officers.

Verdict Reached In Sean Bell Shooting

The three police officers charged with manslaughter, reckless endangerment, and assault, have been found not guilty by a judge in a bench trial.

Justice Arthur Cooperman delivered the verdict in a Queens courtroom packed with spectators, including victim Sean Bell's fiancee and parents, as at least 200 people gathered outside the building.

The officers, complaining that pretrial publicity had unfairly painted them as cold-blooded killers, opted to have the judge decide the case rather than a jury.

Bell, a 23-year-old black man, was killed in a hail of gunfire outside a seedy strip club in Queens on Nov. 25, 2006 - his wedding day - as he was leaving his bachelor party with two friends.

Officers Michael Oliver, 36, and Gescard Isnora, 29, stood trial for manslaughter while Officer Marc Cooper, 40, was charged only with reckless endangerment. Two other shooters weren't charged. Oliver squeezed off 31 shots; Isnora fired 11 rounds; and Cooper shot four times.

A conviction on manslaughter could have brought up to 25 years in prison; the penalty for reckless endangerment, a misdemeanor, is a year behind bars.

The case brought back painful memories of other NYPD shootings, such as the 1999 shooting of Amadou Diallo - an African immigrant who was gunned down in a hail of 41 bullets by police officers who mistook his wallet for a gun. The acquittal of the officers in that case created a storm of protest, with hundreds arrested after taking to the streets in demonstration.

The mood surrounding this case has been muted by comparison, although Bell's fiancee, parents and their supporters, including the Rev. Al Sharpton, have held rallies demanding that the officers - two of whom are black - be held accountable.

Sharpton and others have said that if the officers were not found guilty that they'd consider taking the matter to the feds.

The Bell shooting was a most unfortunate situation and a tragic series of events led to the shootings.

I also fully expect that the Bell family will seek a civil trial against the officers and the City for millions in damages as is their right.

Some of Bell's supporters stormed out of the courtroom following the verdict.

Much of the testimony focused on whether the officers identified themselves, or whether they were justified in using deadly force. Eyewitness testimony was often contradictory:

The defense, through weeks of often heated cross-examinations, their own witnesses and the words of the detectives themselves, portrayed the shooting as the tragic end to a nonetheless justified confrontation, with Detective Isnora having what it called solid reasons to believe he was the only thing standing between Mr. Bell’s car and a drive-by shooting around the corner.

Several witnesses testified that they heard talk of guns in an argument between Mr. Bell and a stranger, Fabio Coicou, outside Kalua, an argument, the defense claimed, that was fueled by bravado and Mr. Bell’s intoxicated state. Defense lawyers pointed their fingers at Mr. Guzman, who, they said, in shouting for Mr. Bell to drive away when Detective Isnora approached, may have instigated his death.

Detective Isnora told grand jurors last year that he clipped his badge to his collar and drew his gun, shouting, “Police! Don’t move!” as he approached Mr. Bell’s Nissan Altima.

Other witnesses, mostly friends of Mr. Bell, said they never heard shouts of “Police!” Mr. Guzman and Mr. Benefield testified that they had no idea that Detective Guzman was a police officer when he walked up with his gun drawn.

UPDATE:
Live video from outside the courthouse in Queens.

UPDATE:
Gothamist has much more, including that the feds have apparently asked NYPD Commissioner to hold off on disciplinary actions until they've had a look at the case. Sharpton is likely to conduct a venting session on his radio show later today.

It would appear that the judge found the eyewitness testimony from Bell's friends unpersuasive and contradictory.

And One Cop Shot Them All

The New York Post is reporting that the forensic tests have revealed that one cop was responsible for hitting all three victims in the Sean Bell incident.

The disclosure that NYPD Detective Gescard Isnora's 11 bullets apparently missed their mark means the victims - Bell, Joseph Guzman and Trent Benefield - were hit only by Detective Michael Oliver's shots, according to the indictments and sources close to the case.

Oliver, who, like Isnora, was charged with two counts of manslaughter, already faces the legal hurdle of explaining why he reloaded his gun, firing a total of 31 times during the perceived life-and-death shooting.

Ballistics linking Oliver to all three victims could be another burden for him at trial - although cops are instructed to fire until they believe a threat has ended.

Bell and Benefield were each hit three times. Guzman was hit 16 times. "Five or six bullets" remain in his body, said his lawyer, Sanford Rubenstein.

The fact that Isnora's shots seemingly hit nothing but air raises questions about the legal gymnastics employed by the grand jury that indicted him, Oliver and Detective Marc Cooper but allowed two others to go free.

At the heart of the issue is how the grand jury charged Isnora with manslaughter when it turns out that none of the traceable bullets removed from the victims came from his gun.

This raises questions that the grand jury didn't appear to address adequately. Isnora was charged with manslaughter despite the fact that none of his bullets struck anyone. You can be assured that his defense attorney will work that angle to the fullest. Oliver is in serious trouble as his bullets found the mark, including the fatal shots to Sean Bell, who was out celebrating his bachelor party on the night before he was supposed to get married.

Oliver will also have to explain his rationale for reloading his weapon and firing off 31 shots. That's going to be a tough task, and that also helps explain why Detective Marc Cooper has been pushing for a separate trial.

Three NYPD Officers Indicted for Fatal Shooting In Queens

NEW YORK Mar 19, 2007 (AP)— Three police officers surrendered Monday to face charges in a shooting that killed an unarmed groom on his wedding day and stirred outrage around the city.

The officers were accused of firing nearly 50 shots at three young men in a car outside a nightclub, killing Sean Bell and seriously wounding two of his friends. Two other officers involved were not indicted.

The eight-count indictment charges detectives Michael Oliver, who fired 31 times, and Gerard Isnora, a decorated undercover officer who fired 11 shots, with first-degree and second-degree manslaughter, Queens District Attorney Richard Brown said Monday.

Those charges are classified as violent felonies with mandated jail time if the men are convicted. The maximum punishment for manslaughter is 25 years, Brown said.

Detective Marc Cooper, who fired four shots, faces a misdemeanor endangerment charge, Brown said.

"We are a long way from a conviction," said defense attorney Philip Karasyk, who represents Isnora.

The case renewed allegations that the NYPD is trigger-happy, as well as accusations of racism. Bell was black, as are the other victims; three of the officers are black, and two are white.

***

Grand jurors declined to indict on the more serious counts of second-degree murder, and attempted murder, or the lesser charge of criminally negligent homicide.

Bell was killed Nov. 25 as he left his bachelor party.

Police have said the officers were involved in an undercover investigation at the nightclub when they overheard a conversation that convinced them the men were going to their car to retrieve a gun. They have said that Bell's car hit the unmarked police vehicle and that the officers believed someone in Bell's car was reaching for a gun when they opened fire. No gun was found.

This story shows one of the reasons that police work is so dangerous. The cops believed that Bell and his friends were going for a gun. So instead of waiting to see the gun, and potentially have it fired at them, the Officers opened fire and shot Bell first. If they had waited and Bell actually had a gun, we may have been reporting on a cops funeral.

Police are caught between a rock and a hard place. Belligerent, drunk offenders disobey orders to stop. They run from the police to show their "street cred" and put themselves in dangerous situations. Officers, have a target painted on their heads everyday and are understandably on edge.

Was this murder? I don't think so. I think this was a situation where the cops where on edge and one bad decision led to another and a tragedy occurred. I do not think we should be so quick to jump on the NYPD and start prosecuting them for bad judgment. Retrain, demote, restrict their duty, but I do not think this is a prosecutorial offense. It is a shame that the Sharpton crowd has pushed the DA in to a corner and forced this prosecution.

COUNTERPOINT-- Michael Oliver fired 31 times. The average police firearm holds 15 or 17 shots I believe, So he had to have reloaded. Reloaded...WHAT WAS HE THINKING????

A Rally of Stupidity

Who exactly benefits from a rally that would boycott local businesses at the height of the holiday season? It certainly isn't the businesses who would be affected by any such boycott. Many of them are minority owned and operated. Yet, the NAACP thinks that boycotting businesses that had absolutely nothing to do with the police shooting of Sean Bell is a good idea:

At a rally arranged by the state's NAACP chapter, one woman yelled, "Don't shop! That is the money that pays the cops' salary!" amid chants of "Don't shop! Boycott!"

Organizers said the aim was to force the NYPD to soften its tactics.

"We're trying to get a solution, not create more hostility," said NAACP adviser Valerie Cohen.

Shoppers mostly ignored the third straight weekend of protests since five cops fired 50 bullets at three unarmed black men leaving a Queens strip club, killing the groom-to-be, Bell, 23.

The march, from Jamaica Avenue and 168th Street to the shooting scene at Liverpool Street and 94th Avenue, began with some 200 people but picked up hundreds more en route.

Thankfully, most people recognized this rally for what it was - a publicity stunt and continued their patronage of businesses in the area.

Mayor Bloomberg Convicts Cops Without a Trial

In a press conference regarding the shooting of three unarmed men in Queens over the weekend, Mayor Mike Bloomberg has already made up his mind, condemning the police officers involved.

Mayor Bloomberg's response to Saturday's police shooting is dividing black leaders, with some demanding immediate action and others urging patience while an investigation takes place.

Mr. Bloomberg yesterday said it seemed as if "excessive force" had been used in the killing of an apparently unarmed man, Sean Bell, who was leaving a strip club in Queens at 4 a.m. on the day he was to have been wed. The mayor met yesterday for two hours with more than 30 clergy and elected officials in an effort to quell anger over the shooting, in which police fired 50 bullets at a car driven by Bell.

After leaving the meeting, participants staked out varying positions. On one end was the radical City Council member Charles Barron, whose call for Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly to resign faced derision from others who attended the meeting. On the other end stood the city's comptroller, William Thompson Jr., and the incoming state Senate minority leader, Malcolm Smith, who each praised the mayor's initial steps and pledged to wait for the results of an investigation by the Queens district attorney, Richard Brown, before calling for specific changes in police policy or leadership.

At a news conference after the meeting, Mr. Bloomberg deferred to Mr. Brown's investigation while also offering his own impressions. "It is, to me, unacceptable or inexplicable how you can have 50-odd shots fired, but that is up to the investigation to find out how that actually happened," the mayor said as he stood surrounded by many attendees of the meeting, including Rep. Charles Rangel; the City Council speaker, Christine Quinn, and several clergy members.

"I am, to put it mildly, deeply disturbed," Mr. Bloomberg later added. The mayor will travel to southeast Queens to meet with community leaders this morning.

In immediately reaching out to black leaders and the community, Mr. Bloomberg has struck a markedly different tone from that of his predecessor, Rudolph Giuliani, who battled often with the Rev. Al Sharpton and other black leaders. The mayor's response going forward will be a test of what has been one of his administration's top achievements: continuing the steady drop in crime while repairing the fractious relations that developed between predominantly black and Hispanic communities and City Hall. Those tensions peaked with constant protests at police headquarters following the death in 1999 of Amadou Diallo, an African immigrant who was shot 41 times by officers in the Bronx.

So what is so wrong with Mayor Mike's sentiment? Well for starters, the investigation into the shooting has not been completed. So for the City of New York's top Executive to go on the record and call the shooting excessive, well there is no proof of that yet. Wait till all the facts are in and then make your statements.

There are real reasons for the Mayor to NOT make statements like this. First, it only inflames the situation. Activists, such as Rev. Al Sharpton, will use statements like this as "proof" that the NYPD (the greatest police force in the world) is racist. Second, lets suppose that the DA does press charges, did Mayor Mike not just taint the entire jury pool? I can hear jurors now, "Well Mayor Mike thought it was excessive, so it was!" Third, in the eventual section 1983 civil rights law suit that will ensue, Mayor Mike will be the victim's star witness AGAINST the City of New York. How can the City's Corporation Counsel claim that it was not excessive force and therefore did not violate these guy's civil rights when his boss, THE MAYOR OF NEW YORK CITY, said, in a press conference, that it was excessive force. This opened the City up for hundreds of millions in potential liability.

GOOD GOING MAYOR MIKE!!!!