New Black Panthers

New Civil Rights Commission Suspends Printing Of New Black Panther Report

Ryan J. Reilly | February 14, 2011, 1:05PM

Members of the New Black Panthers Party outside a polling place in Philadelphia, PA during the 2008 elections.

Newly appointed members of the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights closed their investigation of the New Black Panther Party voter intimidation case and suspended publication of hard copies of the report at a meeting last week.

Read more »

New Black Panthers

Poll Watcher To New Black Panther Party Videographer: 'Don't F**k Up The Story' (VIDEO)

Ryan J. Reilly | January 28, 2011, 11:10AM

Stephen Robert Morse was a freelance journalist and videographer working as a poll watcher for the local Republican Party in Philadelphia in 2008 when he got the call of his lifetime.

Members of the New Black Panther Party, he was told, were standing outside a polling place in an overwhelmingly African-American section of the city.

Read more »

U.S. Commission on Civil Rights

New White House Picks (Almost) Rebalance Civil Rights Commission

Ryan J. Reilly | January 27, 2011, 11:45AM

Roberta Achtenberg and Marty R. Castro

President Barack Obama on Wednesday appointed two new commissioners to the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights, a federal agency best know recently for its partisan focus on investigating the New Black Panther Party voter intimidation case. The White House's move will rebalance what was intended to be a bipartisan panel which came under conservative control thanks to a move during the Bush administration to "game" the system.

Read more »

Curtiss Reed Jr.

Civil Rights Commission Ousts VT Chair Over Anti-Bush Comments, Nazi Comparison

Ryan J. Reilly | December 7, 2010, 4:08PM

Curtiss Reed

The conservative-controlled U.S. Commission on Civil Rights ousted the chairman of the agency's Vermont State Advisory Committee last week over an October column in which he wrote that the Republican gubernatorial candidate's "Pure Vermont" slogan "raises the specter of Hilter's Aryan Nation and the Khmer Rouge, where the purifying agent was genocide."

The commission voted not to reauthorize the reappointment of Curtiss Reed Jr. as chair of the Vermont SAC, though he had the unanimous support of the rest of the Vermont committee. In an interview with TPM on Tuesday, Reed said his remarks were not intended to imply that former gubernatorial candidate Brian Dubie was a racist.

Read more »

New Black Panthers

Conservatives Approve Interim Report Slamming DOJ On New Black Panther Case

Ryan J. Reilly | November 19, 2010, 12:16PM

The conservative majority of the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights today voted to approve what they are now calling an "interim" report on the Justice Department's handling of the voter intimidation case against members of the New Black Panther Party.

Commissioners voted 5-2 along ideological lines to approve the report on their investigation, which started back in the summer of 2009. The vote came after talks between DOJ and the Commission to allow officials to testify on the case broke down because, the Justice Department says, of the "unilateral" terms set up by the Commission.

Michael Yaki, a Democrat on the Commission, said his colleagues had lost focus and were engaged in a "Beltway game" over an isolated incident that took place at a polling place in Philadelphia on election day in 2008.

Read more »

New Black Panthers

DOJ Scraps Black Panther Depositions Over Commission's 'Unilateral' Terms

Ryan J. Reilly | November 16, 2010, 10:01AM

Members of the New Black Panther Party, with Todd Gaziano (top) of the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights and Justice Department lawyer Loretta King (bottom).

Justice Department lawyer Loretta King was supposed to be deposed at 10 a.m. today by the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights on the Department's handling of a voter intimidation case against members of the New Black Panther Party. But the Justice Department said late Monday that it "will not agree to the unilateral conditions" set forth by the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights for depositions of three DOJ employees.

The conservatives who dominate the Civil Rights Commission had accused the Justice Department in a letter sent yesterday of "smothering" their report on the New Black Panther case by requiring the commission share information as a condition of the DOJ employees' testimony. That civil voter intimidation case was filed in the waning days of the Bush administration after an incident at a Philadelphia polling station in which a member of the New Black Panther Party held a nightstick.

Read more »

New Black Panthers

Civil Rights Commission: DOJ 'Smothering' Black Panthers Probe

Ryan J. Reilly | November 15, 2010, 4:07PM

Members of the New Black Panther Party, with Todd Gaziano (top) of the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights and Justice Department lawyer Loretta King (bottom).

The conservative-controlled U.S. Commission on Civil Rights on Monday accused the Justice Department of "delaying and smothering" the agency's investigation into the handling of a voter intimidation case against members of the New Black Panther Party.

Late last month, commissioners subpoenaed four Justice Department staff members as part of their probe into DOJ's handling of the voter intimidation case which stemmed from an incident in Philadelphia on Election Day in 2008. In a letter sent last week, the Justice Department agreed to allow the testimony of three Justice Department officials, so long as their testimony would be reflected in the Commission's report.

Read more »

New Black Panthers

Philly Officials: New Black Panther At Philly Polls 'Doing Nothing'

Ryan J. Reilly | November 2, 2010, 3:35PM

Members of the New Black Panthers Party outside a polling place in Philadelphia, PA during the 2008 elections.

A member of the New Black Panther Party was spotted by a local Fox station today at the same polling location at which he was videotaped two years ago. His presence at that facility in 2008, along with a nightstick-wielding colleague, led to a controversial voter intimidation case that has dogged the Obama administration for over a year and a half.

Fox provided a photo of the individual and reported that he was seen outside the polling place "wearing a pin that indicated his party affiliation, along with a black hat, sunglasses and leather coat." The polling location, Guild House West, is located in a majority African-American neighborhood in northern Philadelphia.

The individual appears to be Jerry Jackson, who had a poll-watching certificate back in 2008 and was originally named in the civil voter intimidation case bought in the waning days of the Bush administration. The Obama administration did not pursue the case against Jackson or the national party, but did obtain an injunction against fellow NBPP member King Samir Shabazz, who carried a nightstick.

Read more »

New Black Panthers

Dem Prevents Civil Rights Panel Vote On New Black Panther Report (VIDEO)

Ryan J. Reilly | October 29, 2010, 11:52AM

The U.S. Commission on Civil Rights was unable to reach a quorum today to vote approve a report critical of the Justice Department's handling of the civil voter intimidation case once brought against members of the New Black Panther Party. Democratic Commissioner Michael Yaki, who would have allowed the panel to reached a quorum, walked out of the meeting.

"This process for this entire investigation has been a farce from the beginning and done in a way to diminish the opportunity of those who oppose this investigation to participate," Yaki told reporters.

What one conservative member of the commission did discuss, however, was how TPMMuckraker was able to obtain a draft copy of the report.

Read more »

New Black Panthers

Conservatives' Draft Report Slams DOJ Over Black Panther Case

Ryan J. Reilly | October 28, 2010, 12:28PM

Members of the New Black Panther Party, with Todd Gaziano (top) of the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights and Justice Department lawyer Christopher Coates (bottom).

The conservative-controlled U.S. Commission on Civil Rights will vote tomorrow on a report -- obtained by TPMMuckraker -- slamming the Justice Department's handling of the case against the New Black Panther Party for a 2008 incident in Philadelphia in which a member showed up at a Philadelphia polling place and brandished a nightstick.

Read more »

U.S. Commission on Civil Rights

Conservative Civil Rights Commission Spent $173K Exclusively On Black Panther Query

Ryan J. Reilly | October 25, 2010, 11:25AM

Members of the New Black Panther Party and Todd Gaziano of the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights

The conservative-controlled U.S. Commission on Civil Rights says it has spent $173,653 investigating an incident involving voter intimidation by members of the New Black Panther Party -- a case in which no voters have alleged they were intimidated.

That's according to data provided by the Commission on Civil Rights in response to a Freedom of Information Act request by TPMMuckraker. As of Sept. 30, the obligations for the project stood at $173,653, up from $141,357 as of Aug. 2.

But given that entire 2010 Statutory Enforcement Report -- the biggest project of the year for the Commission -- centers on the incident in Philadelphia on Election Day 2008, the actual dollar amount spent is likely higher. Several meetings of the Commission have centered exclusively on the New Black Panther Party case -- and the commission's budget for 2010 totals in at $9.4 million.

Read more »

U.S. Commission on Civil Rights

Former DOJ Lawyer Objects To Bush-Era Voting Section Chief's Testimony

Ryan J. Reilly | October 19, 2010, 12:22PM

Christopher Coates

A former Justice Department lawyer, Robert Kengle, has written the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights to object to the testimony of the former head of the Voting Section, Christopher Coates. Coates accused Kengle of being leery of the Bush-era Noxubee, Miss. voter intimidation case, which was the first time that the federal government used the 1965 Voting Rights Act to allege racial discrimination against whites.

As Adam Serwer reports, Kengle wrote the conservative-controlled U.S. Commission on Civil Rights with his complaint. The Commission is examining the enforcement of the Voting Rights Act as part of their inquiry into DOJ's handling of the voter intimidation case against members of the New Black Panther Party.

Read more »

Civil Rights Commission

Dem: Civil Rights Commission Went 'Completely Overboard' With Holder Letter

Ryan J. Reilly | October 8, 2010, 12:17PM

Todd Gaziano (far right) is pressing forth on the New Black Panther Party issue.

The conservative majority of the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights today approved two letters addressed the Attorney General Eric Holder, alleging that the Justice Department is not enforcing civil rights laws in a race-neutral manner.

Expected to hit the press just weeks ahead of the midterm elections, a draft version of the commission's 2010 enforcement report -- focusing on DOJ's handling of the New Black Panther Party case and the alleged culture of hostility to pursuing cases against African-American defendants -- is circulating amongst the commissioners. They were asked at Friday's meeting to have their comments in by Oct. 11 to allow a revised report to be sent out Oct. 15. The commission will vote to approve the report on Oct. 22.

Read more »

U.S. Commission on Civil Rights

Conservatives' Draft Letter: DOJ Hostile To 'Race-Neutral' Civil Rights Enforcement (VIDEO)

Ryan J. Reilly | October 7, 2010, 4:48PM

Todd Gaziano

The conservative block of the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights has prepared two letters to Attorney General Eric Holder, one of which charges that the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division is hostile to the "race-neutral enforcement of the civil rights laws."

While the conservative-dominated Commission's original goal for their 2010 Enforcement Report was to only focus on the Justice Department's handling of the civil voter intimidation case against members of the New Black Panther Party, they have now expanded the report they are preparing to focus on the "culture" within the Civil Rights Division.

Read more »

Civil Rights Division

DOJ: New Black Panther Investigation 'Thin On Facts' But 'Thick On Rhetoric'

Ryan J. Reilly | September 24, 2010, 3:25PM

Attorney General Eric Holder

A Justice Department spokeswoman is hitting back at allegations made today at a U.S. Commission on Civil Rights hearing on the New Black Panther Party Case that the department is politicizing the enforcement of voting rights laws.

"[T]his so-called investigation is thin on facts and evidence and thick on rhetoric," Tracy Schmaler, a DOJ spokeswoman told TPMMuckraker in an e-mail. She added it was important to place Coates' testimony in the context of the "politicization that occurred in the Civil Rights Division in the previous administration."

Read more »

Civil Rights Commission

Bush-Era Voting Section Chief: DOJ Biased Against White People

Ryan J. Reilly | September 24, 2010, 12:32PM

Christopher Coates

The former chief of the Voting Section of the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division says it was a "travesty on justice" for the DOJ not to allow attorneys to fully pursue a civil case against members of the New Black Panther Party.

Christopher Coates, now an assistant U.S. attorney in South Carolina, testified Friday at the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights hearing on the handling of the New Black Panther Party case. The conservative-dominated commission is preparing a report on how the DOJ handled the case and whether officials pursue the race-neutral enforcement of voting laws.

In his prepared testimony, Coates says there is a "hostility in the Civil Rights Division (CRD) and Voting Section toward the equal enforcement of some of the federal voting laws."

Read more »

New Black Panthers

Former Voting Chief Set To Testify As Conservatives Wrap Up New Black Panthers Report

Ryan J. Reilly | September 24, 2010, 9:55AM

Tom Perez, J. Christian Adams, and Christopher Coates

It's been 689 days since two men affiliated with a fringe group called the New Black Panther Party, one of them carrying a nightstick, stood outside of the a polling place dressed in military garb in an overwhelmingly African-American community in Philadelphia.

The conservative majority of the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights had been prepared today to approve a report that observers expected would blast the Obama administration for the decision to drop the civil case against all but one of defendants, which was brought in the waning days of the Bush administration.

But mid-afternoon Wednesday, the former chief of the Voting Section of the Civil Rights Division who signed off on the case, Chris Coates, sent this letter to the commission chairman stating that -- in defiance of the Justice Department's order -- he would like to appear before the panel.

Read more »

U.S. Commission on Civil Rights

Civil Rights Commission Chairman: We're Still Relevant

Ryan J. Reilly | September 15, 2010, 11:02AM

Gail Heriot of the United States Commission on Civil Rights

About 60 people gathered at the National Press Club Tuesday afternoon for a panel on the future of the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights as part of the agency's annual conference.

The question over whether the commission should continue to exist was brought up for discussion by the conservative members of the agency who planned the conference.

But two conservatives commissioners -- one who moderated the panel and another who serves as chair of the commission -- indicated they believe the agency still serves an important purpose. Commissioner Gail Heriot, an independent who has served as a GOP delegate, moderated the panel and sung the praises of the agency.

Read more »

U.S. Commission on Civil Rights

Democratic Commissioner Says Civil Rights Conference Will Cost $100K

Ryan J. Reilly | September 14, 2010, 9:47AM

Michael Yaki, a member with the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights

Today, the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights will be holding its national conference at the National Press Club in D.C. As we told you yesterday, the conservative-dominated Commission is under fire from civil rights organizations for ignoring important issues, and many organizations wouldn't be attending the conference at all.

Late yesterday, Commissioner Michael Yaki, who was appointed by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), issued a statement slamming the conservatives on the commission for keeping him and two other commissioners out of the planning of the conference, which he called "woefully short on civil rights."

Read more »

DOJ Civil Rights Division

DOJ Inspector General Will Investigate Civil Rights Division's Voting Section

Ryan J. Reilly | September 13, 2010, 7:02PM

DOJ Inspector General Glenn Fine and Rep. Frank Wolf (R-VA)

Justice Department Inspector General Glenn A. Fine says he will examine the Civil Rights Division's enforcement of voting rights laws after being pressured by GOP House members to examine DOJ's handling of a case against members of the New Black Panther Party.

Read more »

U.S. Commission on Civil Rights

U.S. Commission On Civil Rights To Debate Its Own Existence After Promoting Conservative Values

Ryan J. Reilly | September 13, 2010, 3:18PM

Wade Henderson (bottom) told TPM that the conference being hosted by Commission on Civil Rights Chairman Gerald Reynolds (top) is a "sham."

The U.S. Commission on Civil Rights is hosting its national conference tomorrow in D.C., but don't expect a big turnout of civil rights organizations.

"I'm not attending the conference. I think it's a sham," Wade Henderson, president of The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, told TPM.

Read more »