MacClenny, FL – On April 21, around 150 community members and activists, as well as the family of Dominic Broadus II, marched to the Baker County Courthouse to call for justice.

On Feb. 3, Broadus II was found murdered execution-style with three bullet wounds to his head on property that belongs to the Fraser family, a very powerful family in Baker County. Gardner Fraser, who was well known in MacClenny for his violent behavior, was terminated from North East Florida Hospital for breaking a patient’s jaw. Fraser is the son of a former Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office (JSO) Deputy Ryan T. Fraser, who was fired for shooting an unarmed Black man, and then rehired by the Baker County Sheriff’s Office, from which he eventually retired. Ryan T. Fraser, before joining the JSO, was forced to resign after hitting a car, leading to the death of a young woman. Gardner Fraser is also the grandson of Edwin Fraser, who the MacClenny hospital is named after. These connections are the main reason why protesters say there has been no arrest, given how politically connected the main suspect is.

“If the main suspect was Black, that person would already been in jail, but since the killer is white and connected to the sheriff’s department and a politically powerful family, you see this injustice,” said Joshua Parks of the Jacksonville Community Action Committee, one of the march leaders.

Protesters met at the Emmanuel Church oh God and Christ and marched to the Baker County Courthouse a mile away, where a rally was held in front. Protesters’ chants included, “All night, all day, we gonna march for DJ,” “No Justice, no peace, Gardner Fraser off the streets,” “All eyes in Baker County,” as well as “Justice for DJ.”

At the courthouse, clergy, other victims’ families and the mother of Dominic Broadus II spoke to the crowd. She thanked everyone for their participation and urged everyone to keep up the fight to get justice for her son.

“This was very constructive,” said Hakeem Balogun, a community member who came from Jacksonville to protest. “The sheriff knows and the people know what is happening and they, the justice system, need to do what’s right before it gets worse for them.”

The community vowed to keep protesting and pressuring the State Attorney William Cervone to file charges against Gardner Fraser as well as rid the Baker County Sheriff’s Department of its racial bigotry, corruption and nepotism.

Be sure to follow the campaign on Facebook at “Justice4DjBroadus” for more updates on the next steps in this important struggle against the national oppression of African Americans in the Deep South.

#MacClennyFL #PoliceBrutality #JacksonvilleCommunityActionCommittee #JSO #DominicBroadusII

MacClenny, FL — On March 1, the family of DJ Broadus II, an African American man brutally murdered in north Florida, called for and rallied at a second town hall meeting here, at Emmanuel Church of God in Christ. About 80 people showed up to a town hall meeting which was led by Dominic Broadus Sr., the father of the slain Dominic “DJ” Broadus II. Participants included Michael Sampson II and Joshua Parks. Sampson and Parks are members of the Jacksonville Community Action Committee, a local Black-led organization that has been helping lead the effort to get #Justice4DJ, along with other organizations such as the Dream Defenders, Color of Change, and the Black community in MacClenny. MacClenny is on the western outskirts of Jacksonville.

Broadus II was found murdered execution-style with three bullet wounds to his head on property that belongs to the Fraser family, a very powerful family in the MacClenny. Gardner Frazier, along with one other undisclosed person, were the only people on the property at the time of the murder and made the 911 call. Gardner Fraser, who was well known in MacClenny for his violent behavior, was terminated from North East Florida Hospital for breaking a patient’s jaw. Gardner Fraser is the son of a former Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office Deputy who was fired for shooting an unarmed Black man, and then hired by the Baker County Sheriff’s Office, where he eventually retired. Gardner Fraser is also the grandson of Edwin Fraser, who the MacClenny hospital is named after. Edwin Fraser served in the Florida State Senate and the Florida House of Representatives for several years between 1937 and 1963.

At the townhall, community members chanted “Justice for DJ,” as well as “What do we want? Justice. When do we want it? Now!” Community members talked about their own experiences with the racist criminal justice system in the rural county with a population of just around 27,000.

The family and community had four demands directed toward the Baker County Sheriff’s Office (BCSO), the Florida Department of Law Enforcement and State Attorney Bill Cervone of the 8th Judicial Circuit:

1. Instruct the BCSO to make an immediate arrest and charge Gardner K. Fraser for the execution of Dominic Jerome Broadus II.

2. Release the State Medical Examiner's complete autopsy report to the family's independent pathologist so they can complete their analysis.

3. Explain why Gardner K. Fraser has been allowed to roam free for over three weeks without charges for DJ's murder.

4. Petition the FBI’s Public Corruption division to conduct an immediate investigation into Baker County Sheriff’s Office as it relates to procurement of evidence and nepotism within this law enforcement agency.

On March 5, there will be a call-in day to State Attorney Bill Cervone of the 8th Judicial Circuit (at 904-259-3137) to demand an arrest for DJ’s murder and for the FBI to investigate BCSO for public corruption.

The community will continue to rally and demand justice until these demands are met and justice is served for Dominic Jerome Broadus II.

#MacClennyFL #PeoplesStruggles #PoliceBrutality #AntiRacism #Florida #Injustice #DJBroadus