Brenton Butler Essay Sample

On the forenoon of May 7th. 2000 the slaying of Mary Ann Stephens occurred. She was a tourer to Jacksonville. Florida along with her hubby. The two were remaining at the Ramada Inn Hotel and had merely came from breakfast when they were approached by a immature black adult male who held them at gunpoint. took Mrs. Stephens’ bag so proceeded to hit her between the eyes. When the constabulary foremost arrived. the aged woman’s organic structure was several inches off from the way on which her and her hubby were walking along to acquire back to their room. Her organic structure was strewn across the grass. covered in blood with the slug and it’s lesion being clearly seeable to the bare oculus. This instance became controversial and it is believed that there was racial favoritism and profiling involved because Brenton Butler. and immature black male. was arrested several hours subsequently by constabularies. Police InvestigationIn the procedure of the apprehension of Brenton Butler. there was no extended probe done by the constabulary. During the test. this fact was admitted by the officers when Pat McGuiness. who was stand foring Brenton. raised the point of them non oppugning neighbors. non look intoing for Deoxyribonucleic acid on the stolen bag etc. When they arrived at the scene. they asked Mr. Stephens to give them a description of the taw. Mr. Stephens described the taw to be tall. scraggy physique. dark shirt and trunkss. a fishing chapeau and black in skin colour. Polices that were appraising the country saw Brenton Butler. who was at the clip walking from his place to Blockbuster to manus out a sketch. a thinly framed. tall. male have oning a dark shirt and dark shorts†¦coincidentally. Brenton Butler was a black male. Officer Williams and Officer Darnell told Brenton there had been a slaying nearby and asked him to come with them to inquire him some inquiries about anythin g he may hold seen. which Brenton agreed to. When they brought 15-year-old Brenton Butler to the offense scene. Mr. Stephens instantly identified Brenton as being the liquidator and asked the officers to convey him nearer. at this clip he positively identified him as being his wife’s liquidator. When brought into the constabulary station. Military officers William and Darnell passed Butler onto Detective Glover. Detective Glover got Brenton to squeal to the slaying. He did this by physically endangering the life of Brenton and stating that for every ten seconds that passed in which Butler didn’t mark the confession. he would ache him. He represented that by demoing Brenton his gun. Detective Glover so brought Brenton out into the forests where the gun had allegedly been hidden and wanted Brenton to demo him where it was. which Brenton did non cognize. Because of this. although there was no sufficient grounds to turn out such actions. Detective Glover punched Butler in the tummy twice and one time in his left oculus. If more investigation would hold been done. they would hold accounted the fact that Brenton was 5 inches shorter and many old ages younger than the adult male that Mr. Stephens reported. Brenton besides had a really noticeable logo on the forepart of the shirt he was have oning. when Mr. Stephens spoke of what the liquidator was have oning he said the shirt had been obviou sly. Besides. when Mr. McGuiness spoke with Brenton’s female parent in their place. he got a expression at Brenton’s hat aggregation. which consisted of 3 chapeaus. none of which were anything remotely near to the â€Å"fishing hat† which Mr. Stephens identified on the liquidator. Mr. Stephens besides neer mentioned the liquidator have oning spectacless. which Brenton wears mundane and would hold been visibly noticeable to Mr. Stephens sing the place of the liquidator at the clip in relation to himself. Neither officers nor investigators felt the demand to oppugn neighbours inquiring if they had seen Brenton at the times specified in their study. they didn’t experience the demand to garner background information on Brenton or see the fact that Brenton Butler had neer been in gaol before that day of the month. therefore he had neer committed a offense in Jacksonville. Florida. Brenton Butler was charged with armed robbery and the first grade slaying or Mary Ann Stephens on May 7th. 2000. Brenton Butler Page 1What about the Forensic Investigation†¦ ?Like the constabulary probe. there was a deficiency of forensic engagement in this instance every bit good. Brenton Butler was entirely charged based on the fact that. an oculus informant. Mr. Stephens identified Brenton as the liquidator. Many will declare this instance to be racial favoritism and racial profiling. due to the fact that Brenton was a black male like the liquidator. Brenton merely happened to be in the incorrect topographic point at the incorrect clip. In the forensic probe. after happening Mrs. Stephens’ stolen bag in a refuse container a stat mi off from the slaying. they should hold tested the bag for DNA and finger prints. If they had done this. they would hold seen that Brenton Butler’s finger prints were in fact non to be found on the bag. alternatively they would hold those of another adult male and Butler would hold been immediately proved inexperienced person. Cardinal people involved in the instance Brenton Butler – the accusedOfficer Darnell – constabularies officer. one of the officer’s that arrested and questioned Butler Officer Williams – constabularies officer. the 2nd officer that arrested and questioned Brenton Detective Glover – investigator and boy of the sheriff. Butler was passed on to Glover to give him a confession. Glover allegedly beat Brenton in the forests and threatened him and forced him into subscribing a written confession Pat McGuiness – attorney. he was the taking attorney stand foring Brenton. after the test he did more investigating Anne Finnell – attorney. she was besides supporting Brenton in his instance Harry Shorstein – State Attorney. decided to prosecute the instance after Brenton confessed Mr. Stephens – retired. he was a tourer sing Jacksonville with his married woman who was shot by a immature black male. he was an oculus informant to the instance. he identified Brenton Butler as be ing the liquidator of his married woman Mary Anne Stephens – retired. held at gunpoint. robbed and murdered Trial ProcedureIn this instance. following Brenton Butler’s apprehension. he taken in for a 12 hr inquiring and so signed and verbally confessed to the slaying after being threatened by Detective Glover. State Attorney Harry Shorstein decided to prosecute the instance. During the test. the chief focal point of the defending attorneies was deficiency of process. deficiency of probe and constabulary ferociousness. All that the prosecution attorney could concentrate on was the fact that Mr. Stephens had reported a tall. skinny. black male have oning dark vesture. which would depict Brenton. and the fact that Brenton confessed to the robbery and slaying. The constabulary and investigators involved in the instance. other than the oculus informant who identified Brenton and the false confession. did nil to garner grounds to turn out Brenton guilty. During the whole procedure. they didn’t state his parents where he was or that he was arrested. which by jurisprudence you have to if the accused is under age. they mislead Brenton’s parents when they showed up to their household place inquiring if Brenton was at that place and stating they merely wanted to speak to him about housebreakings that had been happening in the country. Besides. Officer Darnell had told Brenton he had the right to an lawyer and that if he didn’t have one that he would reach one for him. which he neer followed through with. In respects to the confession given and signed by Brenton. by jurisprudence. a confession must be made on your ain free will. you can’t be pressured into a confession. swayed or otherwise or else it can be deemed unequal to the instance. Brenton ButlerPage 2ResultAfter the shutting statements made by both opposing sides in the tribunal room. the justice told the jury how to do their determination. so they left the courtroom to make their finding of fact. It took the jury less than 1 hr to come to their decision. In respects to the charges against Brenton Butler by the State of Florida for the first degree slaying of Mary Ann Stephens. the jury found him non guilty. In respects to the charges against Brenton Butler by the province of Florida for armed robbery. the jury found him non guilty of that every bit good. So in other words. the jury found him inexperienced person of all charges. After the acquittal. Pat McGuinness. who represented Butler. set out to happen the existent liquidator so he could truly settle the instance. Person had notified him of two possible suspects. He so tested the bag for DNA and found that the prints on the bag matched to one of the names given to him. Jermel Williams pleaded guilty to second-degree slaying and was sentenced to ten old ages in prison. He besides testified against Juan Curtis. who’s fingerprints matched those found on Mrs. Stephens bag. Curtis was found guilty of first-degree slaying and sentenced to life in prison. Although later it was found that because there was no confession. they had denied Curtis’ right to a just test. so they granted him a retrial in which he was found guilty and sentenced to two back-to-back life footings. In February 2001. Brenton’s attorneies announced that they were prosecuting a civil case in which they wanted $ 2. 5 million in amendss against the metropolis. Sheriff’s section and the single officers. Eight months subsequently they refiled the case and wanted $ 8. 5 million alternatively. The Butler household accepted 775. 000 from the metropolis as a colony in 2002. They accepted this sum because of assorted grounds including how long the instance would be d ragged on and how hard it was to turn out the instance under the federal civil rights jurisprudence. Brenton Butler Now Brenton Butler is now 28 old ages old and has written a book about his experience called â€Å"They Said It Was Murder† . The book includes new inside informations about the whippings. his clip in gaol and other unfairnesss in the probe. Besides it discusses the impact the instance had on his household and the near-death of his female parent due to the emphasis of his apprehension. Miscarriages of Justice Brenton Butler spent 6 guiltless months in gaol. His civil rights were violated. They took him to the offense scene under false pretences. didn’t inform his parents of his whereabouts or that he had been arrested ( in the beginning ) and take his parents to believe that they had merely come to their place because they were inquiring the adolescents in the vicinity about reoccurring interruption Immigration and Naturalization Services. Besides. during Brenton’s oppugning. he was threatened and forced into subscribing a confession by Detective Glover and the other two officers and Brenton was taken into a wood and beaten by said investigator. These were all evidently unfairnesss in the instance. Why? Because officers and investigators are supposed to stay by certain Torahs and the rights of the accused and in this instance they did non and they were negligent. Another unfairness was the fact that anyone accused of perpetrating a offense is guiltless until proved guilty. I n Brenton’s instance. every bit shortly as he was spotted walking on the pavement. he was immediately guilty. Brenton ButlerPage 3Personal Chemical reaction Like the Steven Truscott instance. this merely shows us. even though this took topographic point in another state. how flawed our system is. It shows us that even constabularies officers can be racially know aparting and don’t abide by the Torahs. This instance taught us that one second we can be making something wholly normal and accustomed and if you end up in the incorrect topographic point at the incorrect clip. you neer know what could go on. It besides teaches us that we need to be more cognizant of our rights and be more educated on what to make in that sort of state of affairs. In my sentiment. I still trust the jurisprudence and I still trust the constabulary officers will protect me. After hearing about Brenton Butler and what he had to travel through and how ill he was treated it makes me fear the idea of something like this of all time someway go oning to myself. It makes me doubt the judgement of our authorities and our jurisprudence hatchet mans. It besides makes me recognize that society to is really judgmental and racially know aparting. In my sentiment. every bit good as in the sentiment of many others. Mr. Stephens merely identified Brenton Butler as the liquidator because of his race. The deficiency of grounds dorsums this theory up. It’s non merely Mr. Stephens that react in that manner of leap to that decision though. Although the whole segregation coevals has passed us. we still know apart against others. chiefly because they are different from ourselves and we don’t know about their civilization etc. Hearing about Brenton Butler’s instance made me inquire what his household must hold gone through. The emphasis they must hold been under. the anxiousness. the defeat and anger†¦it made me inquire how I would hold handled the state of affairs if I were in it. I besides can’t aid but believe what if Brenton had been a white male†¦he wouldn’t have been stopped by the constabulary that twenty-four hours and wouldn’t have been identified as the liquidator. What if the constabulary and investigators had done more to happen grounds. what if they had tested the bag for fingerprints one time they found it. why didn’t they check the bag for fingerprints†¦cases like this are really thought provoking and do you inquire so many inquiries that can’t be answered. I’m sword lily that he was proven guiltless after everything he went through and I’m sword lily he has been able to travel on with his life and portion with others his experience through his novel.