In Jena, La., let the justice system be just

I believe Aria Branch's Sept. 11 column, "Jena, La.-another cross to bear," raised some very important issues that affect almost all of us whether we'd like to realize it or not.

What's happening in Jena, La., is downright terrible; it is as if we're looking back on a scene from 1954. There is no way a high school fist fight should get someone a second-degree attempted murder charge while assaulting someone with a beer bottle and jumping him should get another person a simple battery charge (although there are no records of any charges being filed). The motivating factor behind both situations seems to be the race of the accused and the race of the victim.

Now I hate to be the one to examine old wounds, but it was a mere year and a half ago when some of our fellow Dukies were being put in a similar and equally terrible situation. That story received national attention, and the whole world was quick to rush to one side or another on the lacrosse situation. In the end it turned out that the Durham district attorney, Mike Nifong, had acted improperly and unethically while pursuing charges against the former Duke players.

Now Mike Nifong is public enemy No. 1 while another district attorney is about to make the same reprehensible actions by pursuing false charges. While from my understanding of the Jena 6 situation the individuals involved in the assault were more culpable than the lacrosse players were in their alleged rape case, both groups of individuals were/are being wrongly prosecuted.

It was an outrage when upper middle class white Americans were being railroaded by the legal system, so there should be an equal if not greater outcry of foul play for the young black students accused of attempted murder, especially considering the fact that the justice system has proven to be unfair to minorities time and time again.

The justice system should be just. The race of the defendants and the victim should not matter. There is no way that a tennis shoe can be a deadly weapon against anybody or anything except an insect or something of that size. And while the lacrosse guys were acquitted of all charges due to lack of evidence and inconsistent testimonies, I believe the same thing should happen in Jena, La., because we're all in America and fair is fair, right?

Jeremy Fuller

Trinity '07