Support the Angola 2
Supporters fear for ALbert Woodfox
By
Cheryl LaBash
On March 15, Albert Woodfox was transferred from the
Tangipahoa Parish jail to the Louisiana State Penitentiary at
Angola. Supporters are concerned for his safety and the
deteriorating conditions in the Angola penitentiary since
control of the prison was returned to the state of Louisiana on
Feb. 12.
A brief history of Woodfox's case shows how real this danger
is.
Albert Woodfox helped found a chapter of the Black Panther
Party at Angola in 1972. He was subsequently railroaded into a
conviction for the murder of Brent Miller, a prison guard.
In both his 1973 trial and 1998 retrial, prosecutors used
Woodfox's membership in the Black Panther Party against
him.
Prison authorities could find no motive for the guard's
murder. No physical evidence linked Woodfox or any other Black
Panther to the crime. But authorities seized the opportunity to
frame the militant Black prisoner.
Woodfox's December 1998 retrial was full of prosecutor
misconduct. He is appealing his sentence.
However, he must return to Angola.
At least five members of Brent Miller's family still work at
Angola. And guards have threatened Woodfox in the past. In the
time it will take for prison authorities to "process" Woodfox
back into Angola, he will be vulnerable to attacks from guards
or inmates hoping to earn favors from authorities.
Woodfox will almost certainly be returned to the solitary
confinement section--where he spent 24 years.
His Black Panther comrade Herman "Hooks" Wallace, who was
also convicted for the 1972 murder of the guard, has been in
solitary confinement there for 27 years.
Twenty-six years ago, Louisiana was forced to allow federal
Judge Polozola to oversee the prison system. This resulted from
a struggle against the inhuman conditions by courageous
prisoners--including Woodfox, Wallace and others--along with
lawsuits filed by prisoners exposing unconstitutional
conditions.
Immediately after federal oversight was ended in February,
conditions in CCR--close custody restriction--worsened.
Hard-earned prisoner privileges have been revoked without
cause. In one incident an inmate was sprayed with tear gas.
In an urgent request for action, the Angola 2 Support
Committee in New Orleans asks supporters to show their concern
for Albert Woodfox and the deteriorating conditions in the
prison by writing, calling or faxing: Richard Stalder,
Secretary, Louisiana Department of Public Safety and
Corrections, P.O. Box 94304, Baton Rouge, LA 70804-9304; phone:
(225) 342-6740 fax: (225) 342-3095.
Also contact Judge Frank J. Polozola, U.S. District Court,
777 Florida Street, Suite 313, Baton Rouge, LA 70801; phone:
(225) 389-3576; fax: (225) 389-3577.
This article is copyright under a Creative
Commons License.
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