Wednesday, March 27, 2013

Robert H. King responds to Louisiana Attorney General James Caldwell

Watch MSNBC's Melissa Harris-Perry tell AG Caldwell to "lay off the Angola 3 already." 
 


(The statement below from Robert King was released as part of the March 27 issue of the A3 Coalition newsletter, which you can read in full here.)

Many thanks to all of you who have aided our cause and added your voices to our quest to free Albert from an obviously unjust imprisonment of more than 40 years. Please continue to make your voices heard and your dissent known, especially in light of the recent email response by Louisiana's Attorney General, James Caldwell. One wonders: Why in the face of so many mitigating facts and circumstances would the Attorney General persist in his unethical efforts to pursue the persecution of Albert Woodfox and Herman Wallace? Is it really justice he seeks, or is there something else he wants? The following may add some light to the subject.

Monday, March 25, 2013

Amnesty International responds to AG James Caldwell: "Louisiana's 'justice' keeps man locked up in isolation for over 40 years"

Reprinted below is a statement from Amnesty International, made in response to an email released last week by Louisiana Attorney General James Caldwell, where among other things, he claimed that the Angola 3 "have never been in solitary confinement." Please support Amnesty's campaign urging Caldwell to not appeal last month's ruling that overturned Albert Woodfox's conviction for a third time. Take action here!


Louisiana’s “justice” keeps man locked up in isolation for over 40 years

By Amnesty International

March 26, 2013

Albert Woodfox has spent more than half his life in a cell just three paces wide and four paces long.

The 66-year-old man was convicted in 1972 of the murder of Brent Miller, a prison guard.

He claims he is innocent and organizations including Amnesty International have said his case raises serious legal and human rights concerns.

Saturday, March 23, 2013

Robert H. King: End 41 years of cruel and inhuman solitary confinement for Albert Woodfox of the Angola 3

Photo of Robert H. King
**Please support Albert Woodfox by sending an email to Attorney General Caldwell, via Amnesty International's online action page!

My name is Robert H. King. I was released on February 8, 2001 after spending 31 years in prison - 29 of them in solitary confinement at the infamous Louisiana State Prison also known as 'Angola'.

Confined there with me were Albert Woodfox and Herman Wallace, the other two friends who make up 'the Angola 3'. Herman and Albert have now spent 41 years in prison. And though they are no longer housed at Angola, both remain in solitary confinement at another prison - a punishment Amnesty has described as 'cruel, inhuman and degrading'.

Thursday, March 21, 2013

Solitary Watch on today's statement by AG Caldwell that the Angola 3 "have never been in solitary confinement"

A sketch by Herman Wallace of his solitary confinement cell

(March 21, 2013 article by James Ridgeway and Jean Casella, reprinted from Solitary Watch)
 
James “Buddy” Caldwell, attorney general of the state of Louisiana, has released a statement saying unequivocally that Herman Wallace and Albert Woodfox, the two still-imprisoned members of the Angola 3, “have never been held in solitary confinement while in the Louisiana penal system.”

In fact, Wallace, now 71, and Woodfox, 66, have been in solitary for nearly 41 years, quite possibly longer than any other human beings on the planet. They were placed in solitary following the 1972 killing of a young corrections officer at Angola, and except for a few brief periods, they have remained in isolation ever since.

Monday, March 11, 2013

Amnesty International Launches New Online Campaign for Albert Woodfox --Please Take Action


Please take action here!
 
Today Amnesty International launched an online campaign asking Louisiana Attorney General James Caldwell to not appeal the District Court's ruling to either release or retry Albert Woodfox, declaring: "After decades of injustice, let the Angola 3 ruling stand!"

Please support Albert by taking action, forwarding it to your email list and asking your networks to spread the word. Now is a critical time in the fight for Albert's freedom. We want Caldwell's office to be inundated with emails so he hears it loud and clear that the cycle of injustice and cruelty must end.
 
Introducing their online action campaign, Amnesty writes:

Albert Woodfox has spent nearly 41 years in solitary confinement in conditions that are cruel, inhuman and degrading. In 1972, he and two others were convicted of murdering a guard at Angola prison. The "Angola 3" were sentenced to life imprisonment - although no physical evidence linked them to the crime and serious legal flaws came to light.