National

Cop Guilty of Assault, but Will Justice Prevail?

Published

11 years ago

June 17, 2015

by Charlene Muhammad
Special to the NNPA from The Final Call

LOS ANGELES (The Final Call) – An 11 woman, one man jury unanimously convicted LAPD Officer Mary O’Callaghan of assaulting Black South L.A. mother Alesia Thomas.

While the verdict issued in a packed courtroom June 5 was better than allowing Ofc. O’Callaghan to walk away without any accountability, justice has yet to be served, said Ms. Thomas’ grandmother Ada Moses, legal experts, and activists interviewed by The Final Call.

Ofc. O’Callaghan could get three years in jail or be released on probation. She is being held without bail until she is sentenced on July 23.

“I think that they did the right thing, but she should have gotten more time. Three years, that’s nothing,” Ms. Moses told The Final Call.

She said if she could speak to Ofc. O’Callaghan directly, she’d ask her, “If you think about what you did to my granddaughter, how would you feel if that was your daughter, and tell me what would you think or say about it.”

“What would you do about it, and what do you think I should do about my granddaughter,” Ms. Moses continued.

Although Ms. Thomas, 35, died July 22, 2012, following a struggle with the officers who attempted to arrest her at her home after she left her children ages 12 and three outside a police station at 2 a.m., Ofc. O’Callaghan was only charged with felony assault, but nothing remotely indicating she caused a death. Ms. Thomas, who struggled with mental health issues brought her children to police because she could no longer care for them.

Human rights Attorney Nana Gyamfi said she preferred Ofc. O’Callaghan be found guilty than not guilty, but argued she was grossly undercharged. “She was not found guilty of a crime that indicates the truth, which is that her actions caused Alesia Thomas’ death, not even an involuntary manslaughter,” she stated. But Mary O’Callaghan committed a felony and that felony caused a death, Atty. Gyamfi pointed out.

“If it was any other Black person in this city or in this state, that person would be charged with felony murder, first degree murder. Again, better guilty than not guilty, but she has gotten away with murder,” Atty. Gyamfi told The Final Call.

“Our family is pleased that the officer was convicted on the charge that was brought by the Los Angeles District Attorney; this is another step in the continued struggle to obtain full justice for her children,” read a statement by Ms. Thomas’ family.

“For the past 34 months, we have fought for America to see how our loved one, Alesia Thomas, died in the custody of L.A.P.D. Our family prays that the unedited video will be released soon,” the statement continued. Attorney Benjamin Crump released the statement on Twitter moments after the verdict.

Ofc. O’Callaghan could also be terminated from the LAPD if her conviction is not overturned on appeal, according to her attorney Robert Rico. He told reporters during a press conference outside the courthouse he’d be petitioning the judge for a new trial after sentencing.

Atty. Rico said jurors’ emotional reactions to what they saw on dash cam video and not the evidence undergirded their decision to convict. The footage depicted Ofc. O’Callaghan laughing and smoking a cigarette after she’d struck Ms. Thomas in the neck, verbally berated her and stomped her in the stomach and groin.

With the civility and humanity she and fellow officers denied Ms. Thomas during her arrest, Sheriff deputies handcuffed Ofc. O’Callaghan and took her into custody.

When asked by The Final Call if Ofc. O’Callaghan expressed remorse for what she did to Ms. Thomas, Atty. Rico said no, because Ms. Thomas was facing criminal charges.

“The force that was used by Ofc. O’Callaghan she’s always felt has been reasonable and necessary under the circumstances,” he said.

He said his client is far from callous. “Mary O’Callaghan is the type of officer that the residents in the housing projects will tell you buys children Halloween costumes at Halloween when she finds out they didn’t have a Halloween costume,” he said. He also said she’d bring children in the projects candy to pass out at Halloween and gifts at Christmas.

Such actions should be viewed through a lens of certain skepticism some activist point out.

“When we see these videos of a cop giving a Black child a hug, and these videos of these cops playing basketball, picking up a pick-up game with young Black men in the neighborhood, it’s like all of that is something that we need to stop in our community,” said Atty. Gyamfi.

“We’ve got to stop teaching our children that these police officers are benign and that they care about them and that they love them because they pass them candy, because tomorrow they can pass them candy at 4 o’clock and at 5 o’clock, they’re kicking their mom in the genitals … killing them and getting away with it,” she added.

“It’s ridiculous, but it goes to and is a reminder for those who have forgotten for some reason … a reminder to us Black people, really how we’re being looked at and what is happening,” said Atty. Gyamfi.

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Oakland Post: Week of July 1 – 7, 2026

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of July 1 – 7, 2026

Published

3 days ago

July 5, 2026

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To enlarge your view of this issue, use the slider, magnifying glass icon or full page icon in the lower right corner of the browser window.

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NPRC Joins National Grand Jury Proceedings Seeking Accountability, Constitutional Restoration

Organizers state that testimony will explore historical and political developments that they believe have contributed to the expansion of corporate influence over public institutions and governmental decision-making. Participants are expected to discuss concerns regarding constitutional governance, individual liberties, property rights, and the protection of vulnerable populations, including seniors and persons with disabilities.

Published

2 weeks ago

June 26, 2026

Oakland Post

Photo by Billie Powers.

Special to The Post

The National Probate Reform Coalition (NPRC) has joined Toll and Roll and a growing coalition of advocacy organizations, victims, whistleblowers, and citizen groups in support of a nationally broadcast People’s Grand Jury proceeding scheduled for July 1 and July 7.

Organizers describe the event as a public forum designed to examine allegations of government abuse, judicial misconduct, legislative failures, and the erosion of constitutional protections affecting millions of Americans.

The proceedings will feature testimony from victims, families, advocates, and organizations from across the country who contend they have experienced harm through government actions, institutional neglect, and failures of oversight.

According to organizers, the People’s Grand Jury will focus on concerns involving probate courts, guardianships, conservatorships, child welfare systems, property rights, civil liberties, and what participants view as a growing disconnect between government institutions and the constitutional rights of the people they are sworn to serve.

NPRC is participating because many of the issues being examined mirror the concerns raised by advocates, victims, and families who have participated in its monthly town halls. For years, families have reported cases involving exploitation of elders, questionable guardianships, estate depletion, denial of due process, and a lack of meaningful oversight within probate court systems.

“This proceeding gives victims and advocates an opportunity to place their experiences on the public record,” said Tanya Dennis, lead facilitator of NPRC. “For too long, families have struggled to have their voices heard regarding elder abuse, probate exploitation, and government inaction. This forum allows those stories to be shared before a national audience.”

In keeping with principles of transparency and fairness, invitations have been extended to legislators, members of the judiciary, law enforcement representatives, and other public officials who may wish to respond to concerns raised during the proceedings or defend actions taken by their respective institutions.

One of the primary outcomes sought by organizers is public consideration and support for the People’s Remedy and Restoration Act, a proposed legislative framework that advocates believe would strengthen oversight, increase accountability, provide remedies for victims of governmental abuse, and restore constitutional protections.

The proceedings are expected to be broadcast nationally, providing citizens throughout the United States an opportunity to observe testimony, review evidence presented, and participate in an ongoing conversation regarding government accountability and the protection of individual rights.

Advocates hope the hearings will encourage meaningful dialogue, legislative reform, and renewed public engagement in the democratic process.

Individuals, organizations, public officials, and members of the media interested in attending or obtaining access information may contact the organizers at tollandroll2025@gmail.com.

As Americans continue to debate the future of constitutional governance, judicial accountability, and the protection of vulnerable citizens, the July proceedings are expected to serve as a significant forum for public testimony and civic engagement. For more information, go to https://tollandroll.com

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50 Years Later, ‘Wake Up Everybody!’ Still Resonates During Black Music

The words of the song, “Wake Up Everybody,” debuted by Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes in 1975, still resonate today as those words are just as relevant more than a half century later.

Published

2 weeks ago

June 26, 2026

Oakland Post

iStockphoto.

By Hazel Trice Edney, Special to The Post

Hazel Trice Edney

“Wake up, everybody, No more sleepin’ in bed

No more backward thinkin’. Time for thinkin’ ahead

The world has changed so very much from what it used to be.

There is so much hatred, war, and poverty.

“The world won’t get no better If we just let it be.

Naw, naw, naw, naw, naw, naw, naw.

The world won’t get no better. We gotta change it, yeah– just you and me.”

The words of the song, “Wake Up Everybody,” debuted by Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes in 1975, still resonate today as those words are just as relevant more than a half century later.

In a rare, nearly somber moment, the group’s celebrated lead singer, Teddy Pendergrass, introduced the song on Soul Train, the weekly dance and live performance TV show that aired roughly between 1971 and 2006. Pendergrass told the attentive live audience and thousands watching by television that Wake Up Everybody, the title tune of their most recent album, was intended to inspire people to take action with a goal to change America for the better.

“I’m sure that you will all agree that there are things that need to be done in this country today,” he said. “So, what I’d like for you to do is listen very carefully to see what you can do to lend a hand.”

The song’s appeal worked.

“I played that song over and over and over again because it was a constant warning to keep ourselves prepared for the society that we were living in,” says A. Peter Bailey, then a 37-year-old former aide to Malcolm X.

When “Wake Up Everybody” hit the airwaves, Bailey was working as an associate editor of Ebony Magazine. “It was a call to be aware of what we were dealing with in the country that we lived in, the world we lived in, the neighborhood we lived in, the cities that we lived in,” Bailey said in an interview with the Trice Edney News Wire.

He concluded that during Black Music Month 2026, such songs should be recalled and celebrated as a key to changes for the good across America; especially because such songs successfully encouraged people to deal with the issues that might otherwise denigrate the promises of America, including the promise that “All men are created equal,”as stated in the Declaration of Independence.

“The rhythms and blues expressed our joys, our sorrows and our fears,” Bailey recalls. “It was those songs and the singing of those songs by our people that attracted us to the campaigns for justice.”

With his life inspired by that song and others, Bailey, now 88, went on to establish and teach a Black Press class at Virginia Commonwealth University. Also, he has since written three books, including a memoir, “Witnessing Brother Malcolm X, the Master Teacher,” in which he expounded upon successful principles of social justice, some of which are reflected in “Wake Up Everybody.”

Long before the term “woke” became associated with campaigns for justice, Pendergrass led the song that reverberated across America and still holds deep meaning.

The ‘wake up’ call exhorts teachers to ‘teach a new way,’ doctors to heal elders, and builders to ‘build a new land… we can do it if we all lend a hand.”

The song concludes:

“The world won’t get no better if we just let it be. Naw, naw, naw, naw, naw, naw, naw. The world won’t get no better. We gotta change it, yeah – just you and me.”

Hazel Trice Edney wrote this story as part of a four-part series powered by AARP in commemoration of Black Music Month, June 2026.