 "Photo: Jada F. Smith")
Keeping in line with the pattern of race-driven controversies, Houston erupted in outrage yesterday after a white resident was not charged for shooting and killing two Hispanic residents at his home.
A grand jury in Harris County did not indict Joe Horn even though he was on record with a 9-1-1 operator saying he was preparing to shoot two men who he suspected were robbing his house.
In lieu of this controversial trial, outraged civil rights groups marched in front of Houston's Criminal Justice building on Thursday, hoping that justice will one day be attained for all citizens of the greater Houston area.
The march was mainly focused on raising awareness of the "messed up" criminal justice system, according to Dloyd Parker, founder of the organization that led the march, S.H.A.P.E. - the Self Help for African People through Education Community Center.
The three points of focus for the march were the District Attorney's office, the jury selection process and the over crowded county jails.
Parker said that the jury selection process is extremely flawed and prejudicial. "The people that can afford to take the time off work to participate in a jury are not poor people," Parker aid. "The poor are being judged by the rich."
"We do not believe that murdering two people in broad daylight is acceptable," said Stephanie Swartz, a rally participant. "It's outrageous that he won't even be charged."
The two-hour rally also called for the racial make-up of the jury to be opened in order to reflect the racial diversity of Harris County. The Joe Horn case was the first in Houston where the racial make-up of the jury was not made public.
This protest comes after a string of race-driven events, mainly coming from District Attorney Chuck Rosenthal.
The district attorney was exposed for sending and receiving hundreds of racist and sexually explicit emails on government computers, as well as other allegations of criminal activity, according to the Houston Chronicle.
One email was a picture of an African-American male who had suffered a "fatal overdose" of fried chicken and watermelon. Another was a picture of "5th ward Babrie" with a stroller, an infant doll, a GED and a bus pass. The fifth ward is Houston has a high population of blacks.
In March, the district attorney was found in contempt of court for destroying 2,500 emails subpoenaed in a federal court case.
In another Houston Chronicle report, a defense attorney accused Rosenthal of not disclosing forensic test results in the case of accused murderer Anibal Sanchez. The results were later found to have severely undermined the state's case. Sanchez was sent to death row and later died of natural causes in prison.
At Thursday's rally, those who did not oppose the county judiciary system showed up and spoke out.
"Today I'm here to support Joe Horn, not necessarily as a hero, but as a courageous man for taking the burden upon himself to protect his family, his neighborhood and to do what hundreds of thousand of Texans believe they would want to do in similar circumstances," said John Sneed.
The rally ended with the crowd demanding interim District Attorney Kenneth Madgison to place the case of Joe Horn before another grand jury.
