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This morning, I need to address a lefty hit on @kamalaharris that didn't come into clear view until I watched her speech accepting VP running mate role. She mentioned her work as district attorney, working to provide families with justice and a ton of experiences hit me. 1/
It is lazy/easy to say "district attorney" in a context that feels pejorative, but lets tell the truth, when someone gets injured they want help to get justice, THAT is the role of the district attorney. If your family or friend is harmed, that's where you go. 2/
For the necessary caveat, my experiences are based in one of the most frustrating counties in America, Harris Co of Houston, death penalty capital of the US, home 4.713 million residents, 1,777 mi² and a history of abuses and few great stories. 3/
Harris Co. has a story that resembles many small towns in injustice including the railroading of Frances Newtown who was executed Sept 14, 2005. Roe Wilson was the nemesis in this case along with disgraced "defense attorney" Ron Mock. 4/
Wilson played the Ass DA role to Mock's Public defender role - ''I think Ron did a competent job. By law you are not guaranteed perfect or excellent counsel. You're guaranteed competent counsel" - This line said it all. I was jaded forever after these unjust comments. 5/
So, I get the jaded view of district attorney. Until, I had to help a neighbor get justice against another neighbor and again had to turn to Harris Co DA. "She's 85yrs old and if nothing is done, his dogs will kill her" was my regular demand of officials to deaf ears 6/
I finally contacted the DAs office after another citation was issued to a local neighbor who owned 6 pits who frequently got loose and attacked my friend's pets and rummaged in her yard for dead cats. "It's not just about cats, she'll be next" 7/
"There's nothing we can do" said the animal control. But the DAs office was the place to go and finally we got an ear but only after one of the pits came for her, 85, walker bound and unable to move quickly, they almost killed her if not for a screen door. 8/
After laying out the case, the DA assured us they'd put their best into the case and the neighbor was found guilty of negligence and issued a heavy fine that...FINALLY caused him to get the right confinement for his dogs. 9/
But that story doesn't compare to the pain of a dear friend who made national news over the murder in the 80s of her twin aunts. It was a cold case story that was picked up by Paula Zahn and bring back old pains I barely knew about when we were young. No Justice, no relief. 10/
Though her mother had died, she still fought on for justice for her two aunts and as my dear friend, I was glued to every ounce of justice she needed and reminded of all the people who never get closure for such crimes. 11/
In many communities, cold cases are so common they simply adapt to lack of justice. When a "pretty blonde lady" is murdered, the news never shuts up about it. Nancy Grace made a name for herself relentlessly pushing these stories. But in my activist community... 12/
The story of missing women, girls, minorities and the forgotten is more common than justice and the appropriate jaded view of the "justice system" is warranted. As activists, we got tired of the injustice and developed a deep cynicism of the DA 13/ https://www.afro.com/our-black-women-and-girls-have-gone-missing-but-few-seem-to-care/
Yet, that jaded view of the DA is compounded by the stories like Ron Mock/Roe Wilson who worked hand in hand to send Gary Graham (June 22, 2000) and Frances Newtwon (Sep 14, 2005) to their deaths through MUTUAL violations of the justice system. 14/ https://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-texas/houston/article/Harris-County-crime-lab-faces-heavy-backlog-of-7465797.php
That's a long caveat above to demonstrate how much it bothered me that the county I called home could care less about justice for anyone but the WASPy voter base they pandered to with "tough on crime" rhetoric and the "bleeds it leads" voices on local TV news at night. 15/
I was once dismissed from jury duty after the judge asked if we had biases towards the participants in a case, I initially had no intention of raising my hand, feeling committed to impartial justice in principle, the wording caused me to, look at the DA with leery contempt. 16/
I had no choice but to admit, tainted evidence labs, bad actions by Roe Wilson, rush to convict without reasonable examination gave me pause as I had just suspended my bias against a guy who just admitted drinking/driving then killing a woman with his car... 17/
Even though I felt it was crazy to even hear a case starting with admission of drinking, driving, and killing a woman, real justice means you give them a fair trial anyway, but with Harris Co. such justice might not exist. 18/
I'm sure the same was felt for people who have strong criticisms for another Harris, though not a county. Stories of ambition, blind eye, and cynicism feel strangely familiar as I hear them from the "woke" millennials who now say "I don't trust". 19/
But I've looked at the situation of the county I grew up in and the stories around the now VP pick and the more I hear about Kamala Harris and now look at the attacks against her for "leniency"...I'm reminded of that tight rope a DA walks 20/ https://www.foxnews.com/politics/harris-record-prosecutor-despite-law-and-order-rep-repeatedly-hit-for-leniency-during-prosecutor-years
Wait, so "top cop" Kamala Harris was "too lenient" says the rabidly racist FoxNews as she's announced VP? The Woke crowd, "she was horrible" says it all. In an age of intense scrutiny, these are excellent examples of the dichotomy faced by such officials. 21/
Which brings me back to the words of @KamalaHarris two days ago, "fighting for justice for families" is always the core of any murder case. Somewhere, there's a family with dead loved ones and a demand for justice. 22/
We then have to look at what a "progressive prosecutor" would look like, tough on crime while strong on justice. We can see one example in @kamalaharris when she was too tough, the left hits her and now FoxNoise hits her as "too lenient". Which is true? 23/
The truth of @kamalaharris record shows she tended to listen to the voices of activists MORE often than others in her role and this should be recognized when the left criticizes her blindly. They merely discredit themselves as absolutists without concern for crime victims. 24/
The fact that @kamalaharris did not seek the death penalty in the case against David Hill in the killing of officer Isaac Espinoza shows the "top cop" argument of the left is misplaced. This is nearly unheard of in prosecutor land. They nearly ALWAYS seek death penalty 25/
The push to have bias training is another example of trends under @KamalaHarris that get ignored by the left. The right wing typically dismisses any effort to such training as interference and unnecessary when we know it is not only warranted but overdue. 26/
Programs to mitigate incarceration rates were also pushed under @KamalaHarris including drug treatment and back to work programs. Again, being a progressive prosecutor sounds like the term 'military intelligence' to many, but if you're a progressive, you need to spell it out 27/
Progressives have a unanswered question to deal with, what do you want? Do you want a world of only defense attorneys, no justice for crime victims? What does a responsible district attorney look like to you? What is too lax? What is too far? 28/
The old adage, you can't please all people all the time is true for a position like prosecutors. We can hope for perfect, but we have to work to achieve it and progress indicates a pattern short of perfect by definition. 29/
Fact: @kamalaharris record is up for scrutiny like any other person running for office. It should be. It is part of the job hiring for VP or POTUS. But to be accepted as credible, it should be rooted in a clear picture of what is demanded of the role and context. 30/
There is one context to @kamalaharris record being ignored by many millennials that concerns me most, they don't remember the pre-1992 crime trends because they weren't born or were infants. The speech/writings reflect that lack of awareness. 31/
This thread was written because of an article in DailyBeast yesterday saying @kamalaharris pandered too much to white fears and there is a truth in that argument. But there is also a failure in the writer to address the context at the time, crime was skyrocketing before 92. 32/
What I've seen repeatedly in several "never Biden/Kamala" arguments are voices often too young to remember the 80-90s that led to the "tough on crime" pandering of politicians of that era that subsided as we moved into the 2000s-2010s. But...wait... 33/
Trump is now pitching the "tough on crime", his minions "the out of control criminals in the street" and at the opposite end is an actual prosecutor who has pointed her finger at Trump and said, "you're next". This is important as we evaluate the next 3 months. 34/
When the votes are tallied and Harris sits next to Biden in DC, remember to tell Congress and your state officials your dedication to REAL JUSTICE where only the truly guilty are convicted, the innocent set free and the victims aren't forgotten. This demand is reasonable. 35/
Critics on the left, you'll get nowhere when the argument about justice is more unicorn chasing of perfection that blatantly ignores the pain of victims of crime. This happens way too often in the lefty blathering in some circles that is high on being woke vs right. 36/
Last, I know what I've stood for my entire life, real justice for all and a system that both protects the interests of the innocent and care of victims. I've fought against mass incarceration, death penalty, police abuse and torture. There is no rest without justice.
