July 16, 2006

War on terror: Black group takes hits

Wayne State University Law School professors Robert Sedler and David Moran commented about a case involving a man who was held in the Wayne County jail for 106 days, 25 without arraignment. Jerry King, Jr.-El, who is a Moor, was charged with assaulting two Michigan state troopers after being stopped for a traffic violation. Sedler, whose specialty is constitutional law, said state troopers and the courts may have violated King, Jr.-El's First Amendment rights under the U.S. Constitution if they targeted him as a Moor, as well as his constitutional right not to be subject to summary punishment. Moran, an expert in criminal procedure, said that King, Jr.-El should have been arraigned in 48 hours. "I've never seen a case where anybody's not been arraigned for such a long period of time," he said. "There either has to be some reason or his due process rights have been violated."

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