Wednesday, December 12, 2012

The A F James MacArthur Case

AF James MacArthur is an independent journalist with "The Baltimore Spectator." He was reporting on police brutality in Baltimore when he was arrested on very tenuous charges. It is evident that police, like most perpetrators of violence, don't like the spotlight to be on them. Was MacArthur arrested because of his hard hitting exposes of police abuse in Baltimore? Is he perhaps Baltimore's Mumia Abu Jamal? (Recall that Mumia was arrested following his extensive reporting of police brutality by Philadelphia  cops.)

Why should indy journalists like MacArthur, who serve as a bulwark to abuse of power by all three branches of government, given the yellow journalism spouted by the major (corporate) media outlets, be targets for harassment, abuse, and detention--as if this were a Third World Country? These are some of the questions to be tackled at this event.

On Thursday, December 20, friends of MacArthur will vigil outside the detention center where he is being held during rush hour, to draw attention to his plight. A brief press conference will also be held.

Please bring candles and signs saying "Free MacArthur" (or other relevant signs of your choosing).

MacArthur's Baltimore Spectator may be viewed here:

 http://baltimorespectator.com/

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Case details:

MacArthur was reporting from the scene of various police brutality incidents. He used very rudimentary equipment, including a laptop, a microphone, speakers, and maybe one or two other pieces of portable equipment. But his radio program, which can be accessed through his webpage (http://baltimorespectator.com/) had garnered a large audience, partially in response to concerns about and dearth of reporting on police brutality. (MacArthur's past programs are still archived there, and the most recent one, which he recorded just prior to his recent arrest, appears on the main page). In the process, he earned the wrath of the police. As he explains in his last broadcast, he experienced a break-in at his house (around 3:00 AM) one day. He called 9-11 (after getting the situation under control with a firearm he legally owned). The police arrived, did not pursue any suspect, but instead arrested him on gun charges. This occurred despite the fact that he was in his own house for the duration of that incident.

Resultant from this concocted incident, there was an outstanding warrant for MacArthur's arrest. He learned of the warrant as a result of an anonymous tip (he frequently received anonymous tips). As he said in his last broadcast, he had--upon receiving the tip--planned to surrender to the authorities, but given his role as muckraking journalist and the concomitant past gross violations of his rights by police, he wanted to make sure he informed the right people (and enough of them) to look out for him while he was gone--prior to making his surrender.

Before he could surrender, SWAT teams surrounded his house. In fact, they cordoned off the entire block where he lived, creating a situation so volatile that he feared for his life. Somehow, he remained calm, speaking via telephone to them from inside his house, all the while broadcasting the negotiation of his freedom over the Baltimore Spectator. He criticized police mis-use of resources, pointing out that while his house and block were cordoned off as if he were public enemy no. 1, drug running, rapes, robberies, and the like continued unabated in the area. He told them they were blackballing him to his neighbors, that his neighbors would never trust him again, and that they (the police) were ruining his life, as they have done to so many other innocent Baltimore natives.

They asked him why--if he were aware of the outstanding warrant--he didn't voluntarily surrender on his own terms to prevent the current situation. He reminded them it was a Saturday night, that it was next to impossible to reach counsel on the weekend, and that he would rather not spend the weekend locked up. After a few hours of this, he surrendered and was taken to Central Booking.

The police did not have a warrant to enter his house, and he made very clear that he did not want them there, out of fear that evidence would be planted to incriminate him. This may be exactly what happened, because they entered, searched the premises, and claimed to have found a sawed off shotgun there. MacArthur supporters say the weapon was planted there. Some go to the extent of saying it was the same gun which was confiscated from him in the earlier incident, but sawed off and then returned to his property to incriminate him (since a sawed off weapon carries a heavy penalty). He remains in custody at Baltimore's infamous Central Booking, and is being denied bail. Attempts are being made by local corporate media and others to paint this courageous, cutting edge journalist as mentally unstable--although his broadcasts clearly indicate otherwise--and it is likely he will be sent for psychiatric evaluation at Springfield or another detention facility for the mentally afflicted. He is scheduled for a hearing January 4.