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Support
Justice,
Support Zolo
Azania!
Pack the Courtroom June 27th!
Zolo Agona
Azania
Contents
Zolo Agona Azania is one of the many persons
of African descent who await execution as a victim of a
racially biased criminal justice system. Politically active
at the time of his arrest, Zolo has been committed to the
struggle for social justice for all peoples since before his imprisonment on death row.
For more than 24 years, since 1981, Zolo Agona Azania has been imprisoned on Indiana's death row and has been fighting for his life. Twice he has been sentenced to die and twice the death sentence has been reversed on appeal due to unconstitutional suppression of favorable evidence by the prosecution, ineffective assistance of counsel, and systematic exclusion of Blacks from the jury pool. Zolo did not receive a fair trial and has always maintained his total innocence of any involvement in the crime.
On May 1, 2005, Indiana Judge Steve David granted Zolo's motion to bar the State of Indiana from seeking the death penalty for the third time. As Judge David's decision points out, it is impossible for Zolo to receive a fair trial on the death penalty, one that guarantees he receive the constitutional protections he is
entitled to, 24-plus years after the crime he is accused of committing took place. Now on June 27th, 2006 Zolo's legal team must argue to the Indiana
Supreme Court that it uphold the ruling.
When the oral arguments before the Indiana Supreme Court take place on June 27th, we will pack the courtroom and let the judges know that people around the world are demanding: No New Death Penalty for Zolo!
We urge people to show
your support for Zolo--and against the death
penalty--and join us. The No Death Penalty for Zolo Committee is
organizing
a car caravan from Chicago and other activists are traveling from other cities. Contact us for more information. If you plan to travel to the
court
house on your own, the address is:
- Indiana Supreme
Court
- 200 W. Washington
- Room 317
- Indianapolis,
IN
For those who are unable to join us at the courthouse, there are other ways to join us in the struggle to prevent a new death sentence for Zolo.
Visit www.zoloazania.org, for more updates and information!
As Indiana Circuit Court Judge Steve David wrote in
May, 2005, "fundamental principles of fairness, due
process, and speedy justice" were violated in
Zolo's
case. Judge David also pointed out that "the State
bears most of the responsibility for the delay
between
the defendant's 1982 conviction and the currently
pending penalty proceeding." In 1993, the Indiana
Supreme Court overturned Zolo's original death
sentence because the prosecution had failed to
turned
over a gunshot residue test. In 2002, the Indiana
Supreme Court overturned Zolo's second death
sentence because "the jury pool selection process
was
fundamentally flawed," including the
unconstitutional
exclusion of Blacks.
The State of Indiana should not continue to seek the
death penalty against a defendant after decades of
obstruction and obfuscation by police, prosecutors
and
court officials. Both the Indiana Constitution and
the
U.S. Constitution guarantee all of us a right to a
fair trial. This is not a "legal technicality," as
Danielle Braff described it in the Post Tribune on June 1, 2006, but
the basis of our justice system.
Contents
Who is Zolo Agona Azania?
Zolo Agona Azania is one of the many Black people who await execution as a result of a racially- biased criminal justice system. Politically active at the time of his arrest, Zolo remains committed to freedom for Black people and to a just world for all. He has defended his own rights and the rights of other prisoners during these many years in prison. He has won the respect of fellow prisoners and jailers alike.
Zolo is a prolific writer and an accomplished artist whose work has been exhibited in many places around the country. His writing and his art reflect who he is: A man who lives his political convictions. Zolo's political commitment dates back over 25 years. In the early 1980s he was rehabilitating his life and working his way out of a childhood imprisoned in extreme poverty and high-crime environments. Zolo was involved in the campaign to make Martin Luther King's birthday a national holiday in his hometown of Gary, Indiana and he designed the button for the campaign. He was the valedictorian of his CETA federal job training class and received a scholarship to Purdue University just prior to his arrest.
Zolo spends much of his time researching the law and fighting his case. His tireless efforts have exposed the unfair and racist way his case has been handled by the authorities. Zolo will turn 50 in December 2004.
Time Line of the Case of Zolo Azania
August 1981
3 men in masks and disguises rob the Gary National Bank. An exchange of gunfire ensues and George Yaros, a white Gary police lieutenant, is killed. Police pursue the suspects, resulting in a long car chase. One of the men jumps out of the car and flees the scene. Zolo is picked up a few blocks away, walking down the street near his home. He is pistol-whipped while being arrested and charged with felony murder. Two others, David North and Ralph Hutson, are also arrested.
After years of being hidden by the prosecution, a police-administered gunshot residue test turns up "inconclusive" as to whether Zolo ever fired a gun.
1982
Prosecution succeeds in changing place of venue from Lake County to Allen County (Fort Wayne) where the Black population is three times smaller.
Zolo Azania's trial was a miscarriage of justice
Zolo is tried amid media and law enforcement hysteria: Police officers surround the courthouse and line the walls inside the courtroom.
Zolo's court-appointed attorney is so intimidated by the police-state atmosphere that he does not sit at the same table as Zolo! He puts on no evidence during the trial or the death penalty phase of the trial.
Instead of proving beyond a reasonable doubt that Zolo is guilty, prosecutors intimidate witnesses into making false identifications, withhold evidence, and keep Blacks off the jury.
A police officer is guilty of tampering with a witness when he threatens and intimidates Black construction worker, James McGrew. Moments before McGrew testifies the officer points to Zolo and tells McGrew to identify him as the person he saw putting incriminating items in the bushes. McGrew later testifies at a post-conviction hearing that he had told prosecutors he could not make a positive identification and identified Zolo only because he "feared for his safety". Two other African-American witnesses also recant their testimony, saying they too were threatened and intimidated. The prosecution also suppresses evidence favorable to Zolo; he is convicted of murder and sentenced to death by an all-white jury.
The prosecution singles out Zolo, focusing their efforts on him; the other defendants receive sentences of 60 years.
1993
The Indiana Supreme Court vacates (throws out) Zolo's death sentence, citing "ineffective assistance of counsel" and "suppression of favorable evidence".
1996
Zolo faces a second sentencing trial and once again is condemned to death; the jury consists of 11 whites and no Blacks. Again, his court-appointed lawyers provide ineffective counsel and present no mitigating evidence about his life and accomplishments.
2002
Indiana Supreme Court overturns Zolo's second death sentence because Blacks were systematically kept off the jury pool for the 1996 sentencing trial. In fact, half of Allen County's Black population had been eliminated from the jury pool for the previous 15 years! Unbelievably, Allen County cites a "computer glitch" as their explanation for this incredible episode of racial bias. (See Azania v. State, 778 N.E.2d 1253 (Ind. 2002))
When oral arguments on Zolo's case were
heard by the Indiana Supreme Court in Indianapolis on May 2nd, 2002, the
courtroom was packed with Zolo's supporters. In the front row were members of
the Indiana Legislature's Black Caucus and the Indianapolis City Council. The
hearings were widely reported in the local press, including The Fort Wayne
Journal Gazette. There were two major editorials in the Indianapolis Star
calling for a new sentencing trial for Zolo comprised of a fair jury
representative of the community in which the crime for which he was convicted
occurred.
2003
Zolo's death sentence was vacated in 2003
after he sucessfully argued that people of African
descent had been systematically excluded from the jury
pool. Zolo's supporters were able to help get his death sentence thrown out by coming to court and showing their solidarity.
But, incredibly, the Lake County District Attorney's office decided to re-try Zolo on the death sentence for a third time!
Zolo's Defense team requested that the sentencing trial be returned to Lake County because Zolo has a constitutional right to be tried there. Lake County is home to three times as many Blacks as Allen County and Zolo would be more likely to receive a fair trial there. Their request was denied.
2005
On May 1, 2005, Judge Steve David granted Zolo's motion to bar the State of Indiana from seeking the death penalty for the third time. This was an incredible victory for Zolo and his supporters and opponents of the death penalty around the world. (See order)
Yet, Lake County Prosecutor Bernard Carter has decided to appeal that decision and yet again seek the death penalty against Zolo.
Five Reasons to oppose the Death Penalty in Zolo's case and every case
We say
NO DEATH PENALTY FOR ZOLO
because:
THE DEATH PENALTY IN THE U.S. IS RACIST.
THE DEATH PENALTY IN THE U.S. PUNISHES THE POOR.
THE DEATH PENALTY CONDEMNS THE INNOCENT TO DIE.
THE DEATH PENALTY IS NOT A DETERRENT TO VIOLENT CRIME.
THE DEATH PENALTY IS CRUEL AND UNUSUAL PUNISHMENT.
You can help by downloading and distributing this flyer:
No Death Penalty for Zolo Azania! 
- The death penalty is racist.
Did Zolo receive a fair trial in front of a "jury of his peers"? No!
A Black person is four times more likely to receive the death penalty than a white person with a similar background and convicted of a similar crime.
A Black person who kills a white person is 11 times more likely to get the death penalty than if the victim were Black or the perpetrator were white.
- The death penalty punishes the poor.
Zolo's death sentence was thrown out the first time because he received "ineffective assistance from counsel"; he had to accept inexperienced court-appointed counsel due to lack of funds.
More than 90% of the defendants charged with capital crimes are indigent and "ineffective assistance of counsel" is usually what they get. In recent years, 20 federally funded centers that aided low-income defendants were shut down.
- The death penalty condemns the innocent to die.
Zolo maintains his innocence. He has been treated in a prejudicial way and the courts will not grant him a re-trial on the facts of the case. Under these circumstances, how can we accept the guilty verdict he received?
Since 1976, more than 100 people who had spent years on death row have been completely exonerated and released from prison.
- The death penalty is not a deterrent to violent crime.
A New York Times survey determined that homicide rates in states with capital punishment are 101% higher than in states without capital punishment.
- The death penalty is cruel and unusual punishment.
Zolo is leading a productive life in spite of being in prison. He writes, paints and communicates with many people on the outside. What a horror it would be to take his life!
The U.S. is the only industrialized nation to still have the death penalty.
updates
On May 1, 2005, Judge Steve David granted Zolo's motion to bar the State of Indiana from seeking the death penalty for the third time. Yet, Lake County Prosecutor Bernard Carter decided to appeal that decision and yet again seek the death penalty against Zolo.
As Indiana Circuit Court Judge Steve David wrote, "fundamental principles of fairness, due process, and speedy justice" were violated in Zolo's case. Judge David also pointed out that "the State bears most of the responsibility for the delay between the defendant's 1982 conviction and the currently pending penalty proceeding." In 1993, the Indiana Supreme Court overturned Zolo's original death sentence because the prosecution had failed to turned over a gunshot residue test. In 2002, the Indiana Supreme Court overturned Zolo's second death sentence because "the jury pool selection process was fundamentally flawed," including the unconstitutional exclusion of Blacks.
The State of Indiana should not continue to seek the death penalty against a defendant after decades of obstruction and obfuscation by police, prosecutors and court officials. Both the Indiana Constitution and the U.S. Constitution guarantee all of us a right to a fair trial. This is not a "legal technicality," as Danielle Braff described it in the Post Tribune on June 1, 2006, but the basis of our justice system.
(Read Judge David's order)
Now on June 27th, 2006 at the Indiana Supreme Court in Indianapolis, Zolo's legal team must argue that it uphold Judge David's ruling.
article from Gary Post-Tribune, June 1, 2006 :
Death-penalty effort renewed against killer
article from Fort Wayne Journal Gazette:
State's high court
bars death penalty in 1981 Gary police killing
Judge David's order barring the state from seeking the death penalty
Despite everything, Zolo remains resilient. He is grateful to the
activists from around the world who have supported him. We need to keep up the
pressure on the Indiana judicial system and prevent a third death sentence. We were able to overturn Zolo's death sentence before when we worked together. Together we can prevent a new death sentence. Together we can win!
Also, visit www.zoloazania.org, for more updates and information!
Zolo would appreciate letters from supporters. He can currently be reached at:
Zolo Agona Azania
#4969
P.O. Box 41
Indiana State Prison
Michigan City, IN 46361
Contact the No Death Penalty for Zolo Committee:
"Even though I am seeking help from anywhere and everywhere I can get it, my
personal freedom campaign is not the Movement per se. Higher progressive efforts
at publicly critical resistance are needed now. We must organize, educate, and
be proactive. I do not have any doubt that We shall overcome, and there is
Victory for us!" - Zolo Azania, in a March 15th, 2004 letter to Presente! (a progressive artists
group in Boston, Massachusetts)
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