To: United States Attorney/Department of Justice

PETITION TO INDICT CORRUPT LUZERNE COUNTY OFFICIALS

We, the members of Dallas 6, family, friends, and supporters, ask the people of the United States of America and the people of the world at large to sign your names on a petition for a true bill of indictment to be presented to the United States Department of Justice for prosecution of all involved in the railroading of the Dallas 6. We accuse the defendants with abuse of the court process and for maliciously and vindictively acting to assist one another in depriving the Dallas 6 of the right to be heard, the right to compulsory process for obtaining witnesses and other evidence on behalf of the Dallas 6. We accuse the defendants of acting to assist one another to criminalize the Dallas 6 for exercising our constitutional and fundamental rights to protect ourselves against harm, to life, liberty, and property, for exercising our constitutional rights to petition the government for redress of grievances and for acting to assist one another to retaliate against the Dallas 6.

Why is this important?

Facts Which Support Grand Jury Indictment

On April 29, 2010, members of Dallas 6 covered their cell windows and doors with bedding in order to protect themselves from impending physical harm because officers were beating prisoners who submitted information to an outside abuse report. Defendants, Dallas guards acted to assist one another in viciously beating the Dallas 6 on video tape and acted to cover up these assaults by creating false official reports to conceal the abuse. On or shortly after 4-29-2010, members of Dallas 6 received misconducts for refusing to obey an order. Dallas 6 by and thru the Human Rights Coalition in May of 2010 filed a criminal complaint against the Dallas guards in relation to the events.

On June 14th, 2010 a member of the Dallas 6 filed a civil action against Luzerne County District Attorney and Dallas prison officials for turning a blind eye to assaults and refusing to investigate criminal violations committed by guards in solitary confinement. Dallas prison lawsuit was printed in “Wilkes-Barre Times Leader” newspaper on June 17, 2010. On June 19th, 2010, the District Attorney’s office sent SCI Dallas a letter to investigate the assault claims of the lawsuit against Dallas and Luzerne prosecutors. June 2010, Dallas prison appointed Lieutenant John Martin to investigate claims within the lawsuit, and in the process of Martin being appointed to investigate the lawsuit, Lieutenant Martin sent reports of April 29th, 2010 to state trooper C.J. Wilson and in turn fabricated riot charges.

State police and the district attorney waited until Judge Wetzel denied injunction on civil action in July 2010 and immediately fabricated “riot” and “aggravated harassment” charges. In April 2010 there was no mention of a riot at Dallas prison in any of the prison reports, however after civil and criminal complaints were filed against them they retaliated and changed the incident into a “riot.” Lieutenant John Martin knew there was no riot, so he waited until a lawsuit and criminal complaint was filed against Dallas and sent reports to state police and the district attorney.

In early August of 2010, the Human Rights Coalition released a report about the incident, describing a protest and bloody assaults by guards. On August 2nd, 2010 Human Rights Coalition attended a House Judiciary Committee hearing on solitary confinement and mentioned the reports of cruel treatment at Dallas prison involving the Dallas 6. On August 18th, 2010, Judge Tupper sent Dallas 6 riot charges by registered mail. The Dallas 6 were not read their Miranda rights and furthermore the complaints did not mention who was allegedly “assaulted” or “harassed” in this incident, even though one of the Dallas 6 was charged with assaulting six officers whose names are not mentioned in the complaint or affidavit of probable cause.

Without being arraigned or given minimum disclosure of the witnesses or victims in this case, the Dallas 6 were taken to two separate preliminary hearings and denied the right to call “witnesses” on their behalf (September and November 2010). The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania had 180 days to bring each defendant to trial. The Commonwealth claims to have initiated these charges in July 2010. This would mean the Commonwealth had until January 2011 to bring each defendant to trial, at the very latest February 2011. President Judge Thomas F. Burke has been notified of all violations mentioned herein and has not acted to correct these violations of law. As President Judge, per PA Rules of Criminal Procedure Rule 116, Judge Burke has the authority and the duty to bring his judicial district officers in compliance with the law. It is a legal maxim that he who condones a bad act conditions it. Here we are nearly 4 years later and the court, DOC and state police are still pressing on with a case illegally and without regard to the law or proper criminal procedures. Even though the Kid for Cash Scandal has come to an end, the corruption in Luzerne County remains.
The defendants are acting above the law and should be properly reprimanded. Luzerne county courts, the state police and the DOC should be on trial, not the Dallas 6.

To learn more about the Dallas 6 story please visit:
http://scidallas6.blogspot.com/p/about-dallas-6-resistance-and.html

To read the entire summary in support of the petition to indict please visit:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B5YaRM54BmAaWUo5RnQzUERUWGs/edit?usp=sharing

Supporting Documents:
Misconduct for Refusing to obey an order. No mention of group activity or “riot”

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B5YaRM54BmAaZ3FCM0gxV2lfeU0/edit?usp=sharing