Commentary

Petition Seeks to End Practice of Charge Stacking

NNPA NEWSWIRE — Turning one crime into many is easily done, and with this in mind a prosecutor can easily circumvent laws of double jeopardy in order to lump, for example, drug offenses with conspiracy – some laws like this are broad and easily manipulated to fit many cases – gun use, money laundering, and a laundry list of other charges together.

Published

5 years ago

February 25, 2019

Oakland Post

By Stacy M. Brown, NNPA Newswire Correspondent
@StacyBrownMedia

Charge Stacking is a term in the legal system that’s usually understood when it’s too late.

As noted by the organization, Seeking Justice for the Innocent, the sheer power it carries can be catastrophic, and thus should be a prime fear of all defendants who enter to the mercy of the courts.

Quartavious Davis (Photo: Broward County Sheriff’s Office)

Charge Stacking has ravaged the lives of so many. For example, Quartavious Davis was 20 years old in 2012 when he committed his first offense and received a staggering 1,941 month (162 years) prison sentence without the possibility of parole.

Davis was convicted of participating in a string of armed robberies in the Miami, Florida, area in 2010. His accomplices testified against him, saying he carried a gun during their crimes and discharged it at a dog that chased them after one of their burglaries.

But Davis was not convicted of hurting anyone physically, including the dog.

The practice of charge stacking is a simple and terribly effective method for prosecutors looking to win cases.

As broken down by Seeking Justice for the Innocent, the technique entails finding as many possible criminal counts to “stack” against the defendant in order to strengthen the core case of the prosecution.

This strategy is made wide open to prosecutors, because the main deterrent against stacking charges is the law of double jeopardy.

In Blockburger v. United States, the Supreme Court said the government may separately try and punish the defendant for two crimes if each crime contains an element that the other does not.

Therefore, double jeopardy is so weak a deterrent that a person can be convicted of ten counts of perjury when they were perjuring about one thing on ten different days.

Turning one crime into many is easily done, and with this in mind a prosecutor can easily circumvent laws of double jeopardy in order to lump, for example, drug offenses with conspiracy – some laws like this are broad and easily manipulated to fit many cases – gun use, money laundering, and a laundry list of other charges together.

At first glance this may not seem so bad. After all, the criminal who gets taken down for serious drug crimes is often guilty of these other charges and probably deserves punishment for them.

When charge stacking is without limit, however, lesser criminals may suffer under the weight of this exorbitant practice.

Because many victims of charge stacking are individuals of color, a petition has emerged on colorofchange.com that calls on the Department of Justice, Supreme Court, FBI, Congress, Mayors, District Attorneys, Sheriffs and Chiefs of Police to make it a felony to stack false and fabricated charges against all races.

The petition seeks 200 signatures and those who’ve signed thus far have voiced their concern with charge stacking.

“The corruption must stop,” said one signer identified only as “Betty C.”

“Innocent people are victimized by stacking false and trumped up charges,” Betty C. said.

Col B. wrote: “It’s time for action or we will lose all our human and civil rights. We the people have the power.”

To view the petition, click here.

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Oakland Post: Week of April 24 – 30, 2024

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of April 24 – 30, 2024

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April 26, 2024

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Oakland Post: Week of April 17 – 23, 2024

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Commentary

Opinion: Surviving the Earthquake, an Eclipse and “Emil Amok.”

Last Friday, a 4.8 magnitude earthquake shook New York City, reported as the “biggest earthquake with an epicenter in the NYC area since 1884” when a 5.2 quake hit. A bit bigger. The last quake similar to Friday’s was a 4.9 in 1783.Alexander Hamilton felt it — 241 years ago. That’s why New Yorkers were freaking out on Friday. They were in the room where it happens.

Published

2 weeks ago

April 17, 2024

Oakland Post

In New York City, the eclipse was about 90 percent visible. Good enough for me. Though a full solar eclipse is a celestial rarity, blockages of any sort aren’t generally celebrated. My one-man play is about growing up with the eclipsed history of American Filipinos and how I struggle to unblock all that.

By Emil Guillermo

I’m a Northern Californian in New York City for the next few weeks, doing my one-man show, “Emil Amok, Lost NPR Host, Wiley Filipino, Vegan Transdad.”

I must like performing in the wake of Mother Nature.

Alexander Hamilton felt it — 241 years ago.

That’s why New Yorkers were freaking out on Friday. They were in the room where it happens.

And it just doesn’t happen that often.

Beyonce singing country music happens more frequently.

When I felt New York shake last week, it reminded me of a time in a San Francisco TV newsroom when editors fretted about a lack of news an hour before showtime.

Then the office carpeting moved for a good ten seconds, and the news gods gave us our lead story.

On Friday when it happened in NYC, I noticed the lines in the carpeting in my room wiggling. But I thought it was from a raucous hotel worker vacuuming nearby.

I didn’t even think earthquake. In New York?

I just went about my business as if nothing had happened. After living near fault lines all my life, I was taking things for granted.

Considering the age of structures in New York, I should have been even more concerned about falling objects inside (shelves, stuff on walls) and outside buildings (signs, scaffolding), fire hazards from possible gas leaks, and then I should have looked for others on my floor and in the hotel lobby to confirm or aid or tell stories.

Of course, as a Californian who has lived through and covered quakes in the 4 to 6 magnitude range, I tried to calm down any traumatized New Yorker I encountered by taking full responsibility for bringing in the quake from the Bay Area.

I reassured them things would be all right, and then let them know that 4.8s are nothing.

And then I invited them to my consoling post-Earthquake performance of “Emil Amok, Lost NPR Host…”

It was the night of the eclipse.

ECLIPSING THE ECLIPSE

For example, did you know the first Filipinos actually arrived to what is now California in 1587? That’s 33 years before the Pilgrims arrived in America on the other coast, but few know the Filipino history which has been totally eclipsed.

I was in Battery Park sitting on a bench and there was a sense of community as people all came to look up. A young woman sitting next to me had a filter for a cell phone camera. We began talking and she let me use it. That filter enabled me to take a picture of the main event with my iPhone.

For helping me see, I invited her and her boyfriend to come see my show.

Coincidentally, she was from Plymouth, Massachusetts, near the rock that says the year the Pilgrims landed in 1620.

In my show she learned the truth. The Pilgrims were second.

History unblocked. But it took a solar eclipse.

Next one in 2044? We have a lot more unblocking to do.

If you’re in New York come see my show, Sat. April 13th, 5:20 pm Eastern; Fri. April 19, 8:10 pm Eastern; and Sun. April 21st 5:20 pm Eastern.

You can also livestream the show. Get tickets at www.amok.com/tickets

About the Author

Emil Guillermo is a journalist and commentator. He does a mini-talk show on YouTube.com/@emilamok1. He wishes all his readers a Happy Easter!