Jailed Black Panther demands retrial

AFP

- Black Panther-turned human rights campaigner Mumia Abu-Jamal has requested a retrial on his conviction of murdering a police officer, after his death sentence was overturned in March, his lawyer said Sunday.

A three-member Philadelphia appeals court on March 27 voted two-to-one to overturn the former radio journalist’s death sentence, while upholding his conviction for the 1981 murder of Daniel Faulkner.

The court said Abu-Jamal, 54, should face a new sentencing hearing or have his sentence commuted to life in jail.

Abu-Jamal, 54, has always claimed his innocence while on death row for 25 years. While in jail, he became a leading campaigner against the death penalty.

In his request for a retrial, Abu-Jamal’s lawyer Robert Bryan asked for a decision by a full panel of 12 judges, not a three-member court like Philadelphia’s.

“Even though the federal court granted a new trial on the question of the death penalty, we want a complete reversal of the conviction,” he said.

“If unsuccessful, we will proceed to the United States Supreme Court,” Bryan added.

Abu-Jamal has argued that he was denied a fair trial in 1982 because the prosecution barred 10 qualified African-Americans from sitting on the jury, which in the end consisted of 10 whites and two blacks.

The Philadelphia appeals court had rejected his arguments on lack of evidence of any racist intent on the part of the prosecution.

Mumia Abu-Jamal’s death sentence in March was automatically commuted to life in jail, which could be overturned if he is granted a new trial.