“The officer who fired the fatal shots at the 16-year-old, however, was cleared of all charges by a grand jury.”
W T F
There is absolutely no justice in this. First of all why is he being tried as an adult?
basically the reasoning behind this bs is that he was an accessory to murder because he was involved in the robbery, which “caused” the officer to have to fire his gun. laiketh was offered 25 years if he plead guilty, 65 if he took it to trial. (long sentences like this are basically used to scare people into pleading guilty.) he decided to fight (because, you know, he didn’t actually shoot anyone) but he lost. it’s so sad and stupid.
“I don’t think Mr. Smith will be smiling long when he gets to prison,” District Attorney C.J. Robinson said. “We are very pleased with this sentence. Because the sentences are consecutive, it will be a long time before he comes up for even the possibility for parole, at least 20 to 25 years.”
This adult is speaking with joy about sentencing a 15-year old kid to prison for the rest of his life, knowing full well the kid isn’t guilty for the crime he’s being punished for, because it was proven to be the police who murdered his friend.
there is no grain in this that isn’t the most absolute form of evil , and C.J Robinson deserves to die
Update as of five days ago (5/17/18), Lakeith Smith’s lawyer
Jennifer Holton, “says she is exploring all legal avenues to fight for another chance at acquittal. Holton doesn’t believe the circumstances of the crime fit the statutory requirements for felony murder”
He tried to get a new trial on 5/17 and was denied by a judge, but according to the court documents Holton plans to file an appeal
It looks like the legal angle she’s going to argue is that you can’t charge someone as an accomplice to a murder (essentially how Lakeith Smith was convicted – it was under Alabama’s version of felony murder laws) when no murder took place. the officer was cleared of all charges, the death was ruled a “justifiable homicide,” so it seems like Holton will be arguing that the state can’t meet the requirements for felony murder when there legally wasn’t a murder
there’s no saying if Lakeith Smith will get the new trial that he deserves, but at least his lawyer is still fighting
How… Was this ever considered to be a legal possibility anyway? Like, at least in German law, the first thing you learn about accomplices is that there has to be a crime you can be an accomplice to in the first place! Weird translational issue, the crime in the first place has to have been intentional and in opposition to the law, and if the officer was ruled to have been justified, his murder was not in opposition to the law, so no one can participate and get a sentence linked to the main felon’s sentence. WHAT EVEN IS YOU LEGAL SYSTEM OH MY GOD.
Overdressed & Underappreciated 