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Police Harassment Continues: Third Trial To Begin

By VVAW

The trial of Gary Lawton (VVAW/WSO member) and Zurebu Gardner has been postponed until June 17th. Lawton and Gardner are two black men facing their third trial on the trumped-up charges of ambushing two Riverside, California policemen in April, 1971 (the first two trials ended with hung juries). The decision for the postponement was made because of a number of motions recently filed by defense attorneys and co-counsel, William Kuntsler. A motion for a dismissal of the charges against the brothers was made, and denied. This decision of denial is being appealed, thus resulting in the trial's postponement.

The judge who ruled on the dismissal motion also denied a motion asking that the cases of Gary and Zurebu be severed and tried separately. However, the judge did rule in favor of one of the defense motions which asked that the information and evidence held by the prosecution and State of California be turned over to the defense. Some of the state's information will be made available to defense attorneys, while some of the information and evidence will require individual rulings by the judge before being released. The granting of this one motion may be considered as a partial victory with the third trial approaching.

At the time these motions were being filed, Gary traveled to New York to participate in a VVAW/WSO sponsored speaking tour there. He spoke in cities around New York, taking this frame-up case to people and building support for the defense. One of the high points of the tour was a rally held in Buffalo. Approximately 500 people demonstrated in Buffalo on April 27th in support of Gary and Zurebu, the Attica Brothers, Martin Sostre and Wounded Knee. Gary said: "We must push harder and harder in behalf of the Brothers and in behalf of the Wounded Knee defendants...Unless you relate in the communities to the murder of our people, even though they are not prominent, you can't relate to me and my co-defendant thousands of miles away." As Gary said, the key to victory is the daily struggle against our enemies on every front.

Gary's words are particularly applicable as we view the situation of increased police repression going on in the community of Riverside. In the streets, another un-armed Chicano youth was gunned-down by Riverside Police--the 7th such murder in as many years. In the courts, William Palmer (member of the riverside Political Prisoners Defense Committee) was convicted of "assaulting a police officer with a rusty hub-cap." He is soon to stand trial again for yet another assault charge brought against him as a result of the March 24th courthouse attack on defense committee members. This attack was literally an ambush initiated by the Riverside Police Department, when they attacked Palmer, Chukia Lawton, Gardner, and other defense committee members following a court hearing relating to Palmer's first assault trial. With this attack and the charges that resulted from it, the number of people in and around the defense committee who have been brought up on bogus charges was brought to nine.

This type of harassment being waged against Gary, Zurebu and the Riverside Political Prisoners Defense Committee is largely a result of the fear the Riverside Police and State of California feel as support for Lawton and Gardner continues to grow in the Riverside community and around the country. The blatant disregard of the judicial system and basic human and legal rights employed by the Riverside County hierarchy cannot tolerate being exposed; thus the harassment must continue. With the growth of solidarity, so grows the attempts to discredit these two brothers. Recently, the Riverside press has attempted to tie nearly every unsolved crime in the County to the case of Gary and Zurebu. But "sear" campaigns and increased police harassment will not work. Support is continuing to build daily. On May 19th, there will be a major demonstration in support of Lawton, Gardner, and all political prisoners. A march will begin at the Courthouse and proceed through the streets of Riverside. A rally will follow the march and speakers will include Big Black, one of the indicted Attica Brothers.

This type of support is integral to the defense of Gary and Zurebu, as is the support of people throughout the U.S. This "Outrage in the Desert" is a symbol of the increased heights that political repression is reaching in this country as the government tries to silence all those who disagree, organize against or struggle to fight back.

People can help support these brothers by informing themselves and others about the Lawton/Gardner frame-up. A 16-page history of the case has recently been published and is available through the defense committee. Also, the brothers desperately need financial support as the third trial approaches. For information about the trial or for the needed contributions, contact: Riverside Political Prisoners Defense Committee, P.O. Box 244, Riverside, California 92502.

FREE LAWTON & GARDNER

"FREEDOM FOR ONE IS NOT ENOUGH, FREE US ALL, SAY ON!"
Gary Lawton