Jacksonville, FL – Around three dozen cars joined a Jacksonville Community Action Committee (JCAC) protest on Friday evening, April 24, calling for a mass release of Duval County inmates in the overpopulated Duval County jail. Along with the JCAC, the New Florida Majority, Dignity Florida, Northside Coalition of Jacksonville along with other organizations and community supporters came out Friday evening for a caravan protest to demand that Melissa Nelson and Sheriff Mike Williams #FreeThemAll. The protesters taped signs to their vehicles that demanded the release of prisoners, to avoid the Duval County Jail becoming a death trap during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The protesters demanded: release all nonviolent offenders and the wrongfully incarcerated; constant testing of inmates and staff in the Duval County Jail; release of all inmates with compromised immune systems and those over the age of 60; release of the steps taken by Jacksonville Sheriff's Office to make sure sanitation of facilities is constantly taking place.

Protesters honked their horns and played protest tunes such as Fight the Power as the cars circled around Duval County Jail numerous times.

“Those locked up are subject to the most inhumane conditions and its impossible for them to practice safe social distancing incarcerated,” said Neal Jefferson, activist with the Jacksonville Community Action Committee. “The state attorney and Sheriff Williams should hear our demands and free them all.”

#JacksonvilleFL #OppressedNationalities #Healthcare #PeoplesStruggles #AfricanAmerican #PoliceBrutality #RacismInTheCriminalJusticeSystem #Antiracism #JacksonvilleSheriffsOffice #JacksonvilleCommunityActionCommitteeJCAC #COVID19

Jacksonville, FL – Nearly 100 people gathered to hold a vigil demanding justice for Kwame Jones, January 17. The Jacksonville Community Action Committee (JCAC) joined with community members, along with the family and friends of 17-year-old Kwame Jones, at the intersection of 45th and Moncrief. It was an emotional night for many as the community mourns the loss of this child.

Kwame Jones was a 17-year-old who was pursuing his GED. Officer Lawson shot him multiple times the evening of January 5. In 2018, Officer Lawson was accused of failure to conform to work standards and “bias-based enforcement.” He received informal counseling. Jones’s mother was never notified of his death by JSO, and they have yet to cooperate with the family.

Folks gathered in a circle with candles and flyers while some shared poems, personal thoughts and songs. The people chanted “Justice for KK” as well as “What do we want? Justice. When do we want it? Now.”

Jones’s death is one of many at the hands of Jacksonville Sheriff's Office, most recently being Jamee Johnson who was shot by Officer Garriga in December 2019. Jamee’s family attended the vigil for Jones well in show of support to the family.

The JCAC and family of Kwame Jones will continue to demand answers, the release of all unedited body camera footage from the night along with continuing to fight for community control of the police through a civilian police accountability council.

#JacksonvilleFL #OppressedNationalities #PeoplesStruggles #AfricanAmerican #PoliceBrutality #Antiracism #JacksonvilleSheriffsOffice #JacksonvilleCommunityActionCommitteeJCAC #KwameJones

In 2017 Sheriff Mike Williams and the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office (JSO) received a $4.4 million budget increase to “crack down on crime,” but the returns were insignificant. There was no drop in violent crime. The next year, Williams and the JSO received a $36 million increase granting them approximately 36% of the entire city budget. Not only did the violent crime rate not drop, it actually spiked.

This year, Mayor Lenny Curry’s proposed city budget for 2019-2020 would give JSO an extra $45 million in additional funding for a total police budget of $482 million dollars.

The JSO ranks second-worst in the state of Florida when it comes to solving crime. A staggering 83% of all reported crime and about 70% of homicides go unsolved. Jacksonville indisputably holds the title of Florida’s ‘murder capital' with a rate 51% higher than the national average.

Jacksonville also experiences high police shooting rates, though the number has decreased in the last three years. Ten years ago, JSO officers shot 62 civilians, killing 32 over a three-year period. Within the last three years that number dropped to 23 shootings with 15 fatalities.

There are debates over the reason behind this decrease. Some say new police trainings have been effective. Others, like Jacksonville Fraternal Order of Police President Steve Zona, have denounced this, arguing that “while training can affect and produce different outcomes in certain scenarios, we do not believe that is the driving factor in the reduction of officer-involved shootings. The driving factor will always be the conduct and actions of the person who is committing the crime.”

The far more likely factor is the publicity brought to police crimes within the last three years, both nationally and locally. In May 2016, Vernell Bing Jr., an unarmed Black father, was killed by Officer Tyler Landreville in the largely African-American Springfield neighborhood of Jacksonville. State Attorney Melissa Nelson ruled the shooting ‘justified’ in 2017. In July 2019, less than two years later, Landreville made headlines again for shooting another civilian in the same part of the city. Bing’s mother and community activists continue to host public events demanding police accountability.

Countless examples of JSO’s police crimes have surfaced as Jacksonville’s movement for community control of the police grew. JSO made national headlines in the 2017 ProPublica investigation, “Walking While Black,” which exposed rampant racial profiling and police harassment in the city. Earlier that year, an anti-war protest turned into a vicious example of police brutality televised for the entire city to see. The JSO violently attacked and arrested five activists, dubbed the Jax 5 by supporters, charging them with bogus felonies like ‘inciting a riot.’ A mass movement pressured State Attorney Melissa Nelson into dropping all felony charges, aided in large part by graphic video footage, including live local news coverage, of police beating peaceful protesters unconscious. Incidents like these have made police crimes into a major public concern in Jacksonville.

But even though the number of people killed directly by cops has finally started to decrease, the numbers for violent crime in general have not. It raises the question: Do police prevent crime? The numbers suggest not. Crime has social roots like poverty, joblessness and poorly funded public schools. To address those, the Jacksonville community argues for measures like social and economic rejuvenation – not more police funding.

“Crime exists where conditions are desperate,” says Joshua Parks, organizer with the Jacksonville Community Action Committee. “We can’t out-police crime. We need to create better living conditions for the areas labeled high-crime neighborhoods instead of over-policing them.”

Since the 2017 city budget debate, the Jacksonville Community Action Committee (JCAC) has pushed for police accountability and community reform. The organization has hosted vigils and protests with the families of the victims affected by the 23 police-involved shootings, along with events bringing attention to city spending and the nature of policing in high-poverty neighborhoods. The JCAC believes that Mayor Curry’s proposed 2019-2020 city budget is part of the problem – not a solution.

Under Mayor Curry’s proposed budget, the JSO would receive a $45 million increase – the most in the entire budget by far – bringing their total budget to around $482 million dollars. To put this staggering amount in perspective, Curry’s proposed budget allocates just $157 million for public transportation, $35 million for the Kids Hope Alliance, $35 million for public libraries, $48 million for public works programs.

If the city council – dominated by a Republican supermajority – approves the mayor’s budget, it will mark the third consecutive year they have ignored community needs in favor of JSO budget hikes – with no drop in violent crime.

Jacksonville’s high crime areas have common factors: aggressive gentrification by real estate developers, historical remnants of Jim Crow segregation, poor public infrastructure and the highest poverty rates in the city. The zip codes with the highest poverty rates in Duval County – which is consolidated with the city of Jacksonville – cover Springfield (34.91%), Riverside (26.68%), the Northside (25.88%), downtown (21.87%) and the northwest quadrant (19.46%). All of these areas are either now or historically Black-majority, working class neighborhoods.

The JCAC has proposed an alternative to Mayor Curry’s budget. Known as the ‘People’s Budget’, their proposal calls for reducing JSO’s share of the budget to no more than 25%. This badly needed reduction would yield $134 million city dollars for crucial social and economic programs aimed at the city’s multinational working class and Black community. JCAC organizers say that their proposal would do far more to reduce crime by tackling its social roots than another round of failed police budget hikes.

The People’s Budget Program includes plans to invest in the Northside by directing a portion of the extra funds to the Northwest Jacksonville Economic Development fund while also relaxing restrictions and lowering interest rates for local Black entrepreneurs looking to develop the historically Black areas of town.

The People’s Budget also calls for creating public works programs through the city’s Parks and Recreation sector and hiring workers at no less than $16 an hour to upkeep and rejuvenate the Northside, providing both living wage jobs and safer, cleaner public spaces for children and families.

It states the need for rent control alongside building up these areas of town to avoid gentrification. While the community wants to see these areas flourish financially, it is also imperative that it thrive culturally and not displace the residents.

The program also calls for overall better quality of life for workers in the city with a call to strengthen unions. It demands the implementation of a union neutrality ordinance for all private contractors doing business with the city, meaning employers must take no position for or against a union if their workers want to organize and collectively bargain. It goes further to include ‘City Dollars for City Workers,’ urging officials to pass a local hiring preference prioritizing local businesses for city contracts while also strengthening public transit for the working class.

These vitalization efforts, again, can only be possible if the police are no longer prioritized over the community. With all JSO assets frozen at 25%, and an extra $134 million put back into the budget, the city can see a People’s Budget. This is why police accountability is the other focus of the proposed People’s Budget Program.

The program also calls for community control of the police, stating that the city council should direct its lobbyists in Tallahassee to push for a carve-out amendment to Florida Statute 112.532, which would allow for the creation of an all-civilian, elected council tasked with investigating complaints and allegations of police misconduct. This Civilian Police Accountability Council should have subpoena power of evidence, the authority to rewrite JSO hiring practices, review and revise police procedures and fire officers found guilty of misconduct.

The Jacksonville Community Action Committee hosts public meetings every third Thursday of the month at the Springfield Wells Fargo Center. The group will be attending city council budget hearings to challenge Mayor Curry’s proposed budget starting August 13. Follow the group on social media to stay updated and learn more details about the proposed People’s Budget Program as well as other alternatives to the bloated police budget.

#JacksonvilleFL #OppressedNationalities #PeoplesStruggles #AfricanAmerican #PoliceBrutality #RacismInTheCriminalJusticeSystem #Antiracism #PoliticalRepression #JacksonvilleSheriffsOffice #JacksonvilleCommunityActionCommitteeJCAC

Jacksonville, FL – It was a very violent weekend in Jacksonville. There was a shooting at the Raines High School versus Lee High School football game on Friday, August 24, and the following day, August 25, there was a shooting at the Jacksonville Landing during a video game tournament, leaving families and friends all over the city mourning. The Jacksonville city council typically meets the second and fourth Tuesdays of the month, and although rescheduled due to voting in the statewide primaries, the city council meeting on Wednesday, August 29 was attended by many angry community members and activists that wanted answers.

People from all over Jacksonville attended the meeting to demand accountability from the police. There were over 50 uniformed Jacksonville Sheriff Office (JSO) officers at the Raines v. Lee football game and they did not stop the triple shooting that left one person dead. JSO also failed to protect people at the Landing, where three people were killed, including the gunman, who fatally shot himself after injuring a dozen others – proving more cops isn't the answer. This directly contradicts what Sheriff Williams and Mayor Curry keep telling people will stop violence in the community.

Government officials are already opportunistically using the events of this past weekend to try to push a budget that many residents oppose, allocating yet another $30 million to JSO’s already outrageously overfunded budget. JSO’s budget, encompassing almost a third of the entire city budget, has not put a dent in the over 70% unsolved crime rate here in Jacksonville. Instead, we see JSO and the state protecting the white vigilante murderers of people like Keegan Roberts, whose family has still yet to receive justice. JSO has also failed to make an arrest in the murder of a local musician, Maurice Hobbs, and has not investigated the murder properly.

City Council President Aaron Bowman sought to silence public discussion about these issues by suggesting that any council member who would like to respond to a resident should go into a private room, keeping the information discussed away from the public. Councilman Garrett Dennis proposed an appeal of this decision, that these discussions should be allowed to happen in a public setting. Out of 19 council members, only four voted in favor of the appeal.

Upon seeing the vote results broadcast on the screens around the council chamber, the community decided it had finally seen enough. Leader of the Northside Coalition, Ben Frazier, asked the council “What about the voice of the people?” and as the City Council President Bowman directed JSO officers to harass the audience, many people began to walk out, chanting in unison “No justice! No peace!”, as well as “No new JSO!”

“What a slap in the face to Black and other marginalized communities who see poor roads, zero to little programming for our youth and no public infrastructure,” said Michael Sampson, a lead organizer with the Jacksonville Community Action Committee, adding, “yet we can give another $30 million to JSO? That is wrong and the city council needs to stand against it. That money should go towards creating good jobs, housing, education and programs designed to improve people’s lives and neighborhoods – things that families really need.”

Protesters vowed to continue fighting against over policing and underdevelopment in African American neighborhoods in Jacksonville, as well as the 2018-2019 city budget, which allocates $30 million to the JSO, and which already takes a third of the city’s total operational budget. The activists all agreed that residents want better access to health services, better infrastructure, better jobs and better education – not more police or racist incarceration.

The Jacksonville Community Action Committee is calling on all those who oppose an increased police state in Jacksonville to rally with them outside Jacksonville City Hall this Wednesday, Sept. 5, at 6 p.m. on the National Day of Action Against Police Crimes.

#JacksonvilleFL #OppressedNationalities #AfricanAmerican #PoliceBrutality #RacismInTheCriminalJusticeSystem #JacksonvilleSheriffsOffice #JacksonvilleCommunityActionCommittee #JSO #NoNewJSO

Jacksonville, FL – Around 30 community members gathered in Bruce Park, in Jacksonville, to speak out against police crimes, for community control of the police, and a Jacksonville Police Accountability Council (JPAC).

Members of the Jacksonville Community Action Committee (JCAC) gathered with supporters in the Bruce Park area of Arlington, a working-class African American neighborhood on the Southside of Jacksonville. Just weeks ago, Devonte Shipman was harassed and profiled by Officer J.S Bolen, which sparked national outrage and a grassroots efforts around demanding Officer Bolen be fired for his actions – which took place just down the street from where folks gathered at Bruce Park.

Community members shared their different experiences of dealing with police violence. Members of the crowd spoke about why it's necessary to build a mass movement against police crimes and why community control of the police is necessary.

The crowd chanted, “No justice, no peace, people power over the police,” as well as, “What do we want? JPAC, when do we want it? Now!”

JCAC organizer Connell Crooms talked about his experiences with being attacked by Jacksonville police officers at a protest against Trump's intervention in Syria on April 7.

Devonte Shipman reflected on his experiences with JSO just a few weeks ago and how happy he was with how supportive the community has been to him.

“It's a blessing, because this movement is gonna lead farther then just tickets being dropped; it's gonna lead to JPAC,” said Shipman. “It's gonna take time but we'll get there.”

#JacksonvilleFL #PoorPeoplesMovements #OppressedNationalities #US #PeoplesStruggles #PoliceBrutality #Antiracism #JacksonvilleSheriffsOffice

Jacksonville, FL – On June 20, Devonte Shipman, a young African American in Jacksonville, was stopped and harassed by police officers for simply walking across the street. Claiming to have seen him illegally cross the street, Officer J.S Bolen of the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office (JSO) harassed and badgered Shipman, even threatening him with jail time. Shipman recorded the encounter with his cellphone, a clip that went viral and made national and international news.

Currently, the Jacksonville Community Action Committee (JCAC) is calling for its supporters as well as supporters of the national movement against police crimes to call in to the JSO to demand Sheriff Mike Williams terminate Officer Bolen for his blatant racial profiling and badgering of Shipman. Supporters say that #WalkingWhileBlack is not a crime.

On that day, Shipman got two tickets. One of the tickets was for jaywalking and the other for having a suspended license, although Shipman wasn’t even operating a motor vehicle.

“If I was Caucasian, would he have been so quick to jump out the car and say I’m going to jail?” Shipman asked. According to leaders in the JCAC, the answer to Shipman’s question is pretty clear.

“Without a doubt Devonte was profiled and stopped because he’s Black and JSO is very much racist police force,” said Joshua Parks, an activist with the JCAC. “We have been putting pressure on JSO since last week to fire this officer and we won’t stop until we get some real accountability.”

Just yesterday, Shipman received word from JSO that his ticket involving the suspended license was dropped because it was “made in error,” clearly a move done by JSO, bowing down due to widespread public condemnation and grassroots pressure. But the JCAC has vowed to not stop until there is real police accountability in Jacksonville.

“We are calling for community control of the police, a civilian police accountability council with the power to stop widespread police abuses by police officers like what happened with Devonte Shipman and countless others,” said Michael Sampson, with the Community Action Committee. “The current cornerstone of African American national oppression is police violence, which is why we need a real mass movement in the city against police crimes to address it in a real way.”

The Community Action Committee believes that the people should have the power over the police force, not the other way around. The CAC was recently created by grassroots activists to build a movement against police crimes as well as other issues that face the black and marginalized communities.

They are asking supporters to call into JSO at 904-630-0500 and demand Officer Bolen be fired, and also to demand an end to their practices of racial profiling by police.

#JacksonvilleFL #AfricanAmerican #PoliceBrutality #Antiracism #JacksonvilleSheriffsOffice #DevonteShipman #JacksonvilleCommunityActionCommittee #JCAC

Jacksonville, FL – Four of the five activists beaten and arrested by police at an April anti-war protest spoke out at a press conference, June 5, held outside the Duval County Courthouse. Dubbed the 'Jax5' by supporters, the activists discussed the favorable outcome of their cases and announced a campaign for community control of the police in Jacksonville. It marked the first public statement by the Jax5 since their arrest nearly two months earlier.

The Jax5 all faced felony charges carrying prison sentences if found guilty. But on June 1, State Attorney Melissa Nelson announced her office was dropping the charges on two of the Jax5 – Dave Schneider and Connell Crooms. The next day, June 2, the remaining three activists – Christina Kittle, William Wilder and Toma Beckham – accepted plea deals resulting in no convictions and 25 hours of community service each.

The outcome was a stunning rebuke to the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office (JSO) and the Fraternal Order of Police (FOP). JSO officers and officials tried to privately exert pressure on Nelson to move forward on the charges. Similarly, the FOP publicly attacked supporters of the Jax5, including Leslie Scott Jean-Bart, a well-known Black attorney who criticized JSO’s handling of the April 7 protest.

The Jax5 speak out

With a group of 25 supporters standing behind them, four of the Jax5 spoke about their case, highlighted the central role of mass activism in their victory, and vocally supported the demand for community control of the police.

“Community activism kept us free,” said Christina Kittle in an interview with Fight Back! after the event. Kittle is no stranger to activism, of course, and has organized countless events supporting the victims of police crimes and sexual assault. During the press conference, she added, “We wouldn’t have even had our charges dropped down to misdemeanors if it wasn’t for Jacksonville community organizing. Everybody felt that something was wrong, everybody came together and told the city this is unacceptable.”

Connell Crooms, a deaf Black union worker active in the Teamsters and a lifelong advocate for the disabled community, echoed this sentiment. “The most important lesson here is that this win wasn't fought for by the politicos in either the Democratic or Republican parties, despite constitutional rights being under attack. This was a win organized by the people whom it impacts the most. Direct action by the masses still works!”

Willie Wilder, a 74-year-old veteran and leader of the local Veterans for Peace chapter, said at the press conference, “I want to thank our community. Our community rose up just like that. And it’s carried us to this day where we can all stand here with felonious charges all dropped and all of us ready to return to our activism and take care of business.” Speaking about the April 7 police crackdown, Wilder added, “It was an act of intimidation in order to cause people to not step out and speak the truth. Well, I guess I have this to say: They messed up because now we’re even more inclined to do so.”

At the press conference, Dave Schneider said in a prepared statement, “Let me be very clear: The reason we beat this act of political repression was because of the mass movement springing to life in Jacksonville.” The 27-year-old Teamster union steward and community organizer continued, “Our arrests were acts of political repression, pure and simple. The JSO has had activists – including at least three of the Jax5, including me – under surveillance for over a year before April 7. That’s not us being paranoid, either. That’s straight out of the Florida Times Union.”

Schneider was referencing a series of stories written by Ben Conarck of the Florida Times Union, Jacksonville’s largest newspaper, which exposed JSO surveillance programs on local activists. In a front-page article from March 24, 2017, entitled “Monitoring Dissent: How the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office spied on protesters,” Schneider, Crooms and Kittle were all pictured in screenshots of the video footage taken by undercover JSO officers at events. In an interview with News4Jax less than two weeks before his arrest, Schneider condemned the JSO’s surveillance of himself and other activists and called it a sign that “the powers that be look at that [the growth of activism in Jacksonville] as very dangerous to them.”

April 7 police crackdown in Jacksonville

On April 7, labor and community activists in Jacksonville Florida held an emergency protest against U.S. President Donald Trump’s military attack on Syria and his threats of war on the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea. At the protest, a group of white supremacists led by William ‘Gary’ Snow disrupted the event and attacked several protesters. Snow attacked Connell Crooms, a deaf Black Teamster and well-known community activist.

Rather than arresting the provocateur, five Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office (JSO) officers tackled Crooms to the ground, punching him repeatedly and knocking his hearing aid out. Video footage appears to show one JSO officer, B.D. McEwan, tasing Crooms, who was later hospitalized.

JSO officers savagely beat and arrested three other protesters, who attempted to intervene in fear for Crooms’ life. JSO officer B.J. Langston slammed Christina Kittle onto her back against a wooden platform and dislocated her shoulder. Video shows another JSO officer repeatedly punching 74-year-old veteran Willie Wilder in the face before arresting him. Police also beat Toma Beckham and threw them to the ground.

After the brutal police attack, JSO also arrested Dave Schneider for organizing the anti-war protest. They charged him with a third-degree felony for “inciting a riot,” which carries a penalty of up to ten years in prison.

The people fight back

Jacksonville activists immediately sprang into action. Less than 24 hours after JSO’s brutal crackdown, more than 200 people rallied outside the Duval County Courthouse demanding the release of the Jax5. Prosecutors and Circuit Judge Lester Bass set unusually high bails for all of the Jax5, totaling $157,000. Nevertheless, hundreds of people across the country donated to the Jax5 legal fund, and all five arrested activists were bonded out of jail and back home on April 8.

Video of the incident spread like wildfire on social media and even drew international attention. Over 60,000 people across the U.S. signed a petition circulated by Color of Change, an online racial justice network, calling on State Attorney Melissa Nelson to drop the charges on the Jax5 and investigate the JSO. Hundreds of people around the country called into Nelson’s office on several designated call-in days, and activists in other parts of Florida, like Gainesville, held demonstrations for the Jax5.

In Jacksonville, the fight to get the charges on the Jax5 dropped united people and raised bigger questions about police crimes. Groups like the Jacksonville Progressive Coalition (JPC) and the Northside Coalition held rallies and demonstrations supporting the Jax5 and demanding community control of the police. Student activists at the University of North Florida (UNF) held a forum on ‘Civil Rights in the Era of the Jax5’ and filled the room to capacity during finals week.

On May 1 – International Workers Day – over 200 people rallied outside the Duval County Courthouse calling on Nelson to drop the charges and indict the officers involved in the April 7 brawl, as well as the police killing of Selwyn Hall, an African American man shot by JSO in late April. Hall’s family, along with the families of other victims of police crimes, joined in the May Day protest. The police repression inflicted on the Jax5 brought the city’s activists and organizers together with ordinary working people victimized by JSO and the injustice system.

The Jax5 and the fight for community control of the police

“The police hoped that their brutality on April 7 would crush the people’s movements in Jacksonville,” observed Michael Sampson, one of the leaders of the Justice for the Jax5 campaign and a lead organizer with the newly formed Jacksonville Community Action Committee. “Instead, they united people of all nationalities who are fed up with police crimes and killings into a mass movement. Like never before, people in this city want community control of the JSO and are taking an active role in the fight to make it happen.”

At the press conference, the Jax5 announced their support for a Jacksonville Police Accountability Council (JPAC), modeled after a similar proposal by community activists in Chicago, Illinois. JPAC would consist of a democratically elected body of civilians – no current or former police – with the legal power to hear and investigate allegations of police misconduct, subpoena evidence and witness testimony, rewrite the JSO’s procedures and code of conduct, review and amend hiring practices, and suspend and terminate officers found guilty by the council.

When asked about the impact of the Jax5 victory on the city of Jacksonville, Crooms told Fight Back!, “From this, we can a step towards fighting back against racism. This is a fight long overdue and we all know the issues of police relations with Black communities. We can use this incident as a call for community control of the police and take control over racist cops ourselves. It's long past time.”

#JacksonvilleFL #PoliceBrutality #PoliticalRepression #JacksonvilleSheriffsOffice #Jax5 #Jacksonville5

Organizers of the press conference called upon State Attorney Melissa Nelson to drop the remaining charges on the Jax5 and conduct a full investigation into the brutality and abuses that occurred on April 7. The Jax5 were originally supposed to have their first day in court on May 1, but that date was moved – first to May 10 and again to May 17.

Inside the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office, several important civil rights leaders and activists met with Jacksonville Sheriff Mike Williams and raised the issue with them. They also presented for the first time in Jacksonville an outlined demand for a Jacksonville Police Accountability Council or JPAC, modeled after similar legislation being fought for by the Chicago Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression. Sheriff Mike Williams gave no concrete responses to any of the demands raised.

“The State Attorney needs to drop the charges on the Jax5. The police are in theory supposed to work for the community around them. Holding those officers that commit crimes accountable fosters honesty, justice and transparency,” said Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) lead organizer Monique Williamson. Activists vowed to continue fighting for the charges on the Jax5 to be dropped and begin a citywide campaign for police accountability in Jacksonville.

#JacksonvilleFL #AntiwarMovement #PoliceBrutality #JacksonvilleSheriffsOffice #Jax5 #Jacksonville5

Jacksonville, FL – More than 50 people gathered outside the Duval County courthouse to demand justice for D'Angelo Stallworth, the 28-year-old African American man murdered by Jacksonville police in May. The crowd assembled around noon, carrying signs and wearing t-shirts with the slogan “Justice 4 Dee.”

Stallworth, father of three, was shot six times by two white police officers, who claimed that they thought D'Angelo looked suspicious. He was unarmed at the time of the shooting and an independent autopsy ordered by the family indicates that police shot him in the back as he ran away – in other words, executing him.

“We have no answers, and today, we will not be silent,” said Latrelle Worth, the girlfriend of D'Angelo and mother of one of his children, in a speech during the rally. She continued, “No matter how they try to put us away and try to erase the story, we will not be erased. Today and forever, we are D'Angelo Stallworth, and we will stand at the forefront of this courthouse and anywhere in Jacksonville, Florida to promote justice for D'Angelo Stallworth. We want answers!”

Worth's comments focused on the complete lack of action by State Attorney Angela Corey in the month and a half since the two officers murdered D'Angelo. Corey has not charged either officer, and the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office (JSO) has not released their names to the public.

The high-energy crowd vocally blasted the lack of action by Corey, whose 4th Judicial Circuit leads the state of Florida in the incarceration of juveniles, particularly African Americans. Chants of, “Angela Corey, where are you? We see you!” and “Hey hey, ho ho, these killer cops have got to go,” drew enthusiasm from everyone at the rally.

When asked, many at the rally showed skepticism that Corey will give into the people's demands, because of her close relationship with the police. When she initially won the office of State Attorney in 2008, Corey was endorsed by the Jacksonville Fraternal Order of Police. In pure campaign donations alone, at least 10% of the $534,507.75 she raised came from police officers or their families in 2008, according to research by the Jacksonville Progressive Coalition (JPC) and records from the Florida Division of Elections.

“They want us to stay at home and not ask, 'What is happening? What is wrong with this country today?'” asked Tefa Galvis, a lead organizer with the JPC. She continued, “The only way we are going to get justice is if we stand together, if we get organized and if we unite our community to go outside and demand that Angela Corey and JSO stop these attacks.”

The family and friends of D'Angelo plan to hold further protests demanding justice, including a march on Angela Corey's office in downtown Jacksonville. Details on upcoming actions can be found on the “Justice 4 D'Angelo” Facebook page.

#JacksonvilleFL #AfricanAmerican #PoliceBrutality #JacksonvilleProgressiveCoalition #DangeloStallworth #JacksonvilleSheriffsOffice

Jacksonville, FL – Over a dozen protestors gathered outside the Duval County Courthouse on June 8 to demand Justice for D'Angelo Stallworth. This was the latest action in a series of protests, vigils and rallies since Stallworth was murdered near his home by two deputies of the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office (JSO) on May 12. Stallworth was a supervisor at the Jacksonville UPS hub and left behind three children.

Since the murder, an independent autopsy has refuted the story that the two JSO deputies initially provided. The initial story described officers fearing for their life, but it was later revealed that Stallworth was unarmed and shot in the back up to 40 feet away as he tried to escape.

Protesters carries signs reading “Justice for D'Angelo” while several people handed out hundreds of fliers to those walking to or from the courthouse.

Latrelle Johnson, D'Angelo's girlfriend and mother to one of his children led the spirited rally through most of the day with chants of “Justice for D,” “Hey hey, ho ho, these killer cops have got to go,” “Same thing every time, being Black is not a crime,” and “JSO lied!” She also said, “We're out here for justice for the life of D'Angelo Stallworth. We're just looking for answers. We want the truth. D'Angelo was 40 feet away and shot in the back multiple times. Today we're going to march and fight for what's right.”

The decision to indict the officers rests with State Attorney Angela Corey. Corey is notorious for her over-prosecution of Black youth and her support for ‘tough-on-crime’ police tactics. She has also recently announced her bid for a third term as state attorney in the upcoming election.

Organizers vow to continue the fight with more marches and protests. There is a Justice for D'Angelo Block Party this Saturday, June 13, at Wesconnett Park at 1:00 p.m.

#JacksonvilleFL #PoliceBrutality #AngelaCorey #DangeloStallworth #JacksonvilleSheriffsOffice