Posted on 08/27/2014 6:45:33 PM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet
TWO US lawyers who represented the family of slain teen Trayvon Martin and police shooting victim Michael Brown have joined the legal team of Mario Deane, a Jamaican construction worker who died three days after being beaten by inmates in his cell.
Justine Rand and Benjamin Crump agreed to join the team after hearing about the tragic circumstances that led to the death of the 31-year-old.
In an email to The Gleaner’s news centre, Rand said human rights violations cannot be tolerated in the USA or Montego Bay, Jamaica.
She added humanity in itself is universal and what happened to Trayvon Martin, who was shot and killed by neighbourhood watchman George Zimmerman, affected Jamaicans, while the death of Deane affected Americans.
And Benjamin Crump, the president-elect of the National Bar Association, says injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.
"We must fight police brutality and misconduct that ravishes the poor and oppressed in every nation" he said.
Meanwhile, Attorney at Law Michael Lorne, who is representing Deane’s family, says he hopes that Jamaicans and international community will listen to the cry for justice.
Lorne is to depart the island today as he seeks enlist support from the international community to help hold the Jamaican authorities responsible for the death of Mario Deane.
According to Lorne, the case clearly resulted from police brutality and or misconduct.
Deane died in hospital on August 6 from injuries he received from an alleged beating at the Barnett Street Police Station in Montego Bay, St James.
Like in the case of Trayvon Martin and Michael Brown, Deane’s death has sparked national outcry and days of street protests.
The police have maintained that Deane was beaten by cellmates but that has been disputed by his family.
Two inmates have since been charged with Deane’s murder.
At the same time, one police corporal and two constables have been interdicted and three district constables suspended while the police inspectorate continues to probe the matter.
Arising from Deane’s death the Government has implemented a new policy for arrests for small quantity of marijuana.
A Cabinet sub-committee has also been established to develop a strategic response to the issue of treatment of persons in lock-ups and correctional facilities.
This is turning into quite the scalable little business model.
The New Justice Brothers.....
Best of luck winning this in Jamaica.
Must be some deep pockets somewhere. Start with the construction company.
“The police have maintained that Deane was beaten by cellmates but that has been disputed by his family. “
Based on the cases these lawyers already represented, that must mean the police are correct.
In MoBay? I blame white privilege.
“At Rand and Crump we like it when our clients are dead. It’s just one less person to split the kitty with.”
“Justine Rand and Benjamin Crump agreed to join the team after hearing about...”
...another big civil rights payday.
This was in Jamaica ?
Well.... maybe the cops did do it. They have different policies than we do here.
I think money is incidental; these guys wanted a free vacation in a nice place and they’re getting it!
They're probably suing stateside and hoping to recover damages from the Jamaican government via American juries. Apart from massive class actions that suck in significant amounts of ambulance chaser talent, it's a tough sell, and Crump doesn't strike me as a capable litigator
The article doesn't mention anyone suing anywhere yet, but there are a dozen or so reasons they couldn't sue the Jamaican government in the U.S. (foreign sovereign immunity, lack of personal jurisdiction, forum non conveniens... I could keep going). And the U.S. lawyers can't sue in Jamaica. So they were probably hired (if they were at all) just to drum up some publicity.
One of the many,many,*many* reasons why reasonable,respectable people do their best to avoid jail time is because while in jail some psychopath with nothing to lose may come to dislike you.
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