THE NATIONAL BAR ASSOCIATION CALLS FOR A DAY OF ACTION IN SARASOTA, FLORIDA RELATED TO POLICE SHOOTING DEATHS IN FLORIDA, NEW YORK, OHIO, TEXAS AND CALIFORNIA WHO: National Bar Association WHAT: National Bar Association Day of Action in Sarasota Know Your Rights Because It Could Save Your Life Town Hall WHEN: Saturday, October 4, 2014, 1 p.m. - 4 p.m. WHERE: Bethlehem Bible Church 1680 18th Street Sarasota, Florida 34234 BACKGROUND: In light of the recent incidents involving police officers use of deadly force which has caused the deaths of Rodney Mitchell ( Sarasota, Florida); Michael Brown (Ferguson, Missouri); Eric Garner (Staten Island, New York); John Crawford (Beavercreek, Ohio); Marquise Jones (San Antonio, Texas); Clinton Allen (Dallas, Texas); Ezell Ford (Los Angeles, California) and a number of other unarmed individuals, the National Bar Association (NBA), along with its affiliate chapter the Isaac Anderson Bar Association and A.N.S.W.E.R Coalition, are hosting a “Know Your Rights Because It Could Save Your Life Town Hall Meeting” in Sarasota, Florida to educate the community and call for Justice in the death of Rodney Mitchell and seven other individuals killed by the Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office. “During the Town Hall Meeting, attendees will learn how the Fourth Amendment (“Search & Seizure”) of the United States Constitution applies to them, whether it is legal to record police activity, and how citizens should behave/respond if and when they interface with police officers. In addition, panelists will address issues of inequality and racial bias in policing, the justice system, and violence against members of minority communities,” stated Pamela Meanes., President of the National Bar Association. Sarasota citizens who attended a Town Hall meeting after Rodney Mitchell’s murder indicated that in response to a question from Rodney’s mother, Sarasota Sheriff Thomas Knight stated, “your son was not the only one we killed, we have killed seven others.” “If true, such a callous disregard for life and a mother’s pain is unacceptable and does not give the community confidence that the Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office can or will conduct a complete and thorough investigation into the tragic killing of 23 year old Rodney Mitchell, who was shot to death by the Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office deputies on June 11, 2012,” stated Pamela Meanes. “Accordingly, the National Bar Association is headed to Sarasota to call for a full and independent federal investigation into the Mitchell case. The family deserves a full and fair investigation and we plan to stand behind them until one is conducted. The National Bar Association renews its call for the U.S. Department of Justice to conduct a fair and impartial investigation into deaths involving police in Staten island, New York; Dallas, Texas; San Antonio, Texas; and Beavercreek, Ohio. # ABOUT THE NATIONAL BAR ASSOCIATION The National Bar Association was founded in 1925 and is the nations oldest and largest national network of predominantly African-American attorneys and judges. It represents the interests of approximately 60,000 lawyers, judges, law professors and law students.The NBA is organized around 23 substantive law sections, 9 divisions, 12 regions and 80 affiliate chapters throughout the United States and around the world. For more information, visit: nationalbar.org ABOUT The A.N.S.W.E.R. (Act Now to Stop War and End Racism) The A.N.S.W.E.R. (Act Now to Stop War and End Racism) Coalition formed on September 14, 2001. It is a coalition of hundreds of organizations and prominent individuals and scores of organizing centers in cities and towns across the country. Its national steering committee represents major national organizations that have campaigned against U.S. intervention in Latin America, the Caribbean, the Middle East and Asia, and organizations that have campaigned for civil rights and for social and economic justice for working and poor people inside the United States. Copyright © 2014 National Bar Association, All rights reserved. D.C. Media Our mailing address is: National Bar Association 1225 11th Street Northwest, Washington, DC Washington, DC 20001 Add us to your address book update subscription preferences
Posted on: Thu, 02 Oct 2014 17:59:52 +0000