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Postponed Again: Lawton-Gardner Trial

By VVAW

The trial of Gary Lawton (VVAW/WSO member) and Zurebu Gardner has again been postponed until Aug. 26th. Lawton and Gardner are two black men facing their third trial on trumped-up charges of killing two Riverside, California policemen in April, 1971. The first two trials ended in hung juries, with the majority of votes cast for acquittal.

The reason for this recent trial delay is that the government has refused to comply with court orders. In a court decision of early June, the judge ruled that state information must be made available to the defense. To date, this order has been ignored by the District Attorney. Because of this, the defense, on July 12th, asked that the charges against Lawton and Gardner be dismissed. The judge refused this motion, and instead postponed the trial. Along with the postponement, the judge made no further provisions concerning the DA's handing over of government evidence, so even though times had been given to review the evidence, it is uncertain that is till ever appear. This fits right in with the state's continual harassment of these brothers. This time hold-up could occur again and again if the DA continues to refuse to release, the evidence, putting the defense in the position of having to settle for delays. Lawton and Gardner have been forced to deal with the courts and "justice" system for nearly 3-1/2 years for the simple reason that the government has been unable to get a conviction. These delays, which are the fault of the government, can only be seen as increase harassment of Gary and Zurebu.

The state of California has not only been about the business of making things as difficult as possible for Lawton and Gardner, but the defense team has also been attacked. The most recent example relates to defense attorneys Franklin Glenn and Leonard Hold. In early June, Glenn and Holt issued a statement calling on DA Morton to drop all charges against Gary and Zurebu by saying: "It's undisputed that for three years Morton has had total resources... and has not been able to convince two predominantly white juries... (Morton should) abandon this three-year long need to make scapegoats of Gardner and Lawton, when the real kisser are roaming the streets of Los Angeles." The DA's response to the above was to subpoena Glenn and Holt to appear before a Grand Jury. The lawyers could not have testified because it would have been a breach of client-attorney privilege; thus, the only recourse would have meant facing a jail sentence for contempt. This move to take the defense attorneys out of action failed when Judge Dales declared the DA's subpoenas to be illegal. Though this one attempt at persecution was stopped, it still shows that the government will go to any lengths to convict the brothers.

The series of trail postponements will have to be suffered through, and the continual harassment will have to be put up with. And in the meantime, the movement in support of these brothers grows. The recently formed Los Angeles Committee for the Defense of Lawton and Gardner is planning a major demonstration for Sep. 7th in front of State Attorney General Younger's office. Along with this, the Riverside Political Prisoners Defense Committee asks everyone to telegram or write, immediately, the following people and demand that the charges be dropped: Presiding Judge Richard March, Riverside Superior Court, PO Box 1748, Indio, CA 92201; Byron Morton, District Attorney, 3535 10th St., Riverside, CA 92501; and Norton Younglove, Riverside County Board of Supervisors, 4050 Main St., Riverside, CA 92501. Also, petitions calling for the freedom of Lawton and Gardner are available through the VVAW/WSO National Office. Copies of telegrams, letters, and completed petitions, as well as the much needed defense funds, should be sent to: RPPDC, PO Box 244, Riverside 92502.

DROP THE CHARGES!
FREE LAWTON & GARDNER!