BY BILL SCHEER
PITTSBURGH - Hundreds of people of all ages and nationalities rallied here November 1 demanding justice for the killing of Jonny Gammage, a 31-year-old Black man, as an inquest into his death while in police custody began.
Chanting "No justice, no peace," "What de want? Justice! When do we want it? Now!" and "Racist cops you can't hide, we charge you with homicide," 50 demonstrators set up a picket line outside the court house where the inquest was held. Dozens more filled the court room and overflowed outside into the hallways. The picket line was called by the Million Man March Mobilization Committee.
Gammage was killed by the cops October 12, after being pulled over by five police officers in a routine traffic check in a predominantly white neighborhood. The autopsy determined that he died of "compression to the neck and chest," contradicting a police account that he passed away of a heart attack. After viewing the coroner's photographs of his body, Gammage's family said emphatically he was beaten and choked to death.
On November 3, a coroner's jury unanimously agreed. It recommended that all five cops be charged with homicide in the death of Gammage. It is the first time that an inquest jury here has recommended the maximum charge against police officers. The multi-racial jury deliberated for 70 minutes after hearing more than two days of testimony, mostly from the cops involved.
"We felt the police officers lied in trying to cover it up," said Beth Beeler, one of the jurors, in an interview with the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, the city's largest daily. "We felt we needed to send a strong message this type of behavior would not be tolerated. We really felt this was done because he was a Black male," said Beeler, who is white. Beeler said she would have had the same opinion if Gammage had a criminal record or had drugs in his system, which he didn't.
The verdict was seen as a victory by activists who showed up every day for the hearing. Khalid Raheem, a leader of the Million Man March Mobilization Committee, described the jury decision as "a very, very major step for us Black people."
"We are pleased with the verdict," said Eugene Beard, of the NAACP. "Now we hope the District Attorney's office adheres to the recommendation."
District Attorney Bob Colville said that "It's not likely at all" he will disregard the jury's recommendation, but he may decide to reduce the charges against some or all the cops.
The sustained mobilizations throughout the inquest, which demanded that the cops be prosecuted appeared to have had an impact on the outcome of the case.
In addition to the pickets at the courthouse, a downtown rally of 300 people took place October 31. Participants included union members, professionals, political activists, and Black and white students from several campuses.
Gammage's death has generated widespread outrage among working people in the area. In a poll conducted by the Post- Gazette, only 10 percent of those asked said they believed the cops acted properly. "Overwhelming majorities of both white and Black respondents said they believed the police acted improperly," said the Post article on the poll's results.
The police are finding it harder to blame the victim in this case. "Jonny Gammage is squeaky clean," Sala Udin told the Post. "They can't use the excuse he was a drug addict or a gang member. He was unarmed and had no police record," he stated.
In the wake of this case, other victims of police abuse have come forward, and talked about the racist and brutal conduct of the cops.
The killing of Gammage by the cops has received nationwide media attention as well, in part because his cousin and business associate was Ray Seals, a professional football player for the Pittsburgh Steelers. Seals hired an attorney and an investigator to find witnesses immediately after the killing. Normally, all the witnesses and testimony at a coroner's inquest are provided by the police.
The hearings were conducted by the District Attorney and the coroner. Lawyers for Gammage were not allowed to cross- examine witnesses.
The first two days of the inquest were dominated by the police officers giving their side of the story. They maintained that Gammage was out of control and that they only used necessary force to subdue him. Gammage was physically smaller than every one of the five cops on the scene. Officer Michael Albert testified that he applied pressure to Gammage's neck for only 20 seconds.
Two eyewitnesses contradicted the police testimony. Richard Brennan, a security guard, testified that he saw one of the cops kneeling on Gammage's back for four to five minutes.
Before the inquest began many doubted the jury would return a guilty verdict. "I think, by and large, an open inquest is nothing more than an opportunity to put a stamp of approval on police activities," stated attorney Gary Zimmerman, who represented the late Lee Morris.
Morris was fatally shot by an off-duty cop in 1994. Since 1980, 21 open inquests have been held into deaths of people involving police officers here. Only twice charges were filed, and in both cases the cops were acquitted.
Activists in the Million Man March Mobilization Committee, the local coalition to demand freedom for Pennsylvania death-row inmate Mumia Abu-Jamal, supporters of Socialist Workers candidates Malcolm Jarret and Edwin Fruit, members of the Young Socialists, and others argued that street mobilizations are the best way to put pressure on the authorities to prosecute the cops.