The arrest of Greta Brown-Bully for the murder of Larry "Caveman" Lee rocked Jackson Saturday morning. The alleged murder took place at Mrs. Brown-Bully's liquor store, Toast & Sip on Medgar Evers Boulevard.
To say Mrs. Brown-Bully is well-connected in the Jackson community is an understatement. She is the daughter of long-time Hinds County Constable John Brown. She and her husband own the popular Bully's Restaurant on Livingston Road. Facebook is populated with pictures of her and local dignitaries at Bully's and various functions. Her family is very familiar to law enforcement circles in Hinds County.
There are few details about what took place Friday night. JPD arrested the Ridgeland resident. Records state she was booked at 10:30 PM. Jackson Municipal Court Judge Ali Shamsideen set her bond at $100,000. Online jail records state she was admitted to the jail after 2 AM and was released at approximately 3:40.
Lee was a well-known bum in the area of the liquor store. He usually hung out around the Dollar Store on Livingston Road. Acquaintances describe him as cantankerous but harmless. Supporters of the accused claim she shot him in self-defense. Several conspiracy theories about the shooting and its aftermath are floating around as well.
The question to be asked is why haven't JPD and the District Attorney recused themselves? Her father is a well-known law enforcement officer in Hinds County. She is very good friends with Constable Jerry Moore. There are numerous pictures on social media of her interacting with law enforcement. Mayor Chokwe Antar Lumumba should have turned the investigation over to an outside law enforcement agency.
The accused is known to the District Attorney as well. Mr. Owens is new to the job but he is not new to the ethical concept of appearances. Mr. Owens should recuse himself and his office to avoid any appearance of favoritism or political privilege. Any finding of innocence will be tainted by Mrs. Brown-Bully's social status.
Simply put, there is no reason JPD and the District Attorney should handle this case and that, my friends, is the bottom line.
Kingfish note: Attempts to contact Mr. Owens were unsuccessful.
Meanwhile, there is a vigil for Caveman tonight.
27 comments:
Barr has time to do it.
Yawn ...
When you have ever called for Rankin/Madison DA or law enforcement to recuse themselves because a well connected person was being prosecuted???
You pulled a picture of Facebook where the DA was sponsoring kids to go to Disney World and you call that I inappropriate. Feds can’t take case and 11:12 is spot on. Only blacks have to accuse themselves in your universe. You think this is the first time someone prosecutes someone they may know. Who hasn’t ate at Bullys
KF your post is premature. DA can’t recuse his office from
a case until he gets the case. JPD would have it for several months before turning it over.
The real question is will the DA recuse himself because of his relationship with Constable Jerry Moore not John Brown. It will make sense as the facts roll out.
I hasn't ate at Bully's.
Attn 11:41 Let me take a wild guess. You are a product of the Jackson public school system?
This one biased chalkie ass blog if I ever seen one
I remember you calling Judge Owens to recuse herself when she was assigned a high profile case years back. That family is so big I doubt there is three degrees of separation between anyone in the County. Legal question Can the case have a jury from another County?
Nice try. Show me a case where Guest needed to recuse himself and didn't do so.
Maybe if you posted Hinds convictions like you do from Madison the DA’s office would return your calls. Just saying
That office sends out press releases. Hinds doesn't. It did for awhile when Rebecca Pittman was there but stopped when she left.
All Hinds has to do is send them out or post on social media.
11:41
Who hasn't "ate" at Bullys.
Nice...
I assumed it was who hasn't eaten. But hey I guess to each his own.
Hinds Convict someone? HAHAHAHAHAHA... I needed a laugh today. Hinds county and JPD are the biggest joke in law enforcement.
A black woman charged with murder in Jackson was held for approximately 1 hour and 40 minutes, and released on the order of a black judge between the hours of 2:00 a.m. and 3:40 a.m. on a Saturday morning, and you people scream racism when it's reported and questions are raised about the appearance of impropriety (which is the legal standard for recusal). Unbelievable. Take a look in the mirror.
Um, read the post again. She was in custody for at least three to four hours. I posted the times for a reason. ;-)
I won't be able to sit on the jury. I ate at Bully's!
Was she open carrying?
"you people scream racism when it's reported and questions are raised about the appearance of impropriety (which is the legal standard for recusal)."
First...who is "you people".
Second....no one screamed racism. The question is whether or not the only time this particular website has called for people to recuse themselves is when blacks are involved. A legitimate question.
Third.. please cite your source for the legal standard for law enforcement and district attorneys to recuse themselves is the appearance of impropriety.
KF, do you have any specific reasons you think Jody Owens would need to recuse himself? I have no idea, he may or may not need to, but the accused being "known to" him isn't enough.
It is evident that Kingfish never practiced law and knows very little about ethics or criminal procedure. He can only pontificate.
Sorry KF but recusal is probably a non-issue here. In a rural state like Mississippi some of the Circuit Court Districts are much smaller than Hinds and it's not uncommon for DA's to be personally familiar with many of his/her constituents. Unless they are closely related or have a business or financial relationship why should the DA step aside when a friend is arrested. If the case goes to trial and the DA is uncomfortable he can let someone else try the case. This case is not at that stage yet so what's the problem?
1:07 here. I've been called out on a few things that I think merit a response, so here it is:
KF @1:17: You're right, I was talking about the 1:40 she spend in the detention facility. I should have been more clear on that.
To 2:36, I'll take your points in the order in which they were made:
1) "You people" meant those to which I was referring, i.e., the people who seem to find racial animus in any and all aspects of human affairs. In my opinion, those same people also take offense at the term "you people," as if it's a racial epithet. In other words, apparently you, and also people of like mind. I expected those who fit into that category to self-report upon reading the phrase "you people," and you answered the call.
2) Your "legitimate question" is itself a cry of racism, as it presumes the answer to its own question, which is presumably that this blog has never called for recusal in cases involving white defendants. Also, I direct your attention to the comments at 11:22, 12:05, and 12:26. I realize the only overt cry of racism was @12:05, but the other two certainly implied it.
3) My reference to the legal standard of "appearance of impropriety" only applies to judges, as far as I know. You can find it at In re Miss. Code of Judicial Conduct, 2002 Miss. LEXIS 124 (Miss. April 4, 2002). My point was that this case should be transferred out of the Jackson Municipal Court, and out of the Hinds County Circuit Court, if it ever makes it that far.
As KF's post actually discussed moving the case out of JPD and the Hinds County D.A.'s office, I should have been more clear that I was actually talking about transferring the case to a different court. I have no opinion on whether JPD should keep the investigation. I also have no opinion whether the D.A. should withdraw from the case due to a conflict of interest, which I believe is the standard the governs prosecutors. Wagner v. State, 624 So. 2d 60 (Miss. 1993).
Caveman apparently has a ton of close personal friends and family members according to Facebook. I just have a question. If y’all loved him and cared for him so much , why was he homeless ? I seen several folks who said they took him food everyday. About 30 different people are claiming this on FB. Why didn’t y’all try to get him help or rehab ? Why not pay for his apartment since he was y’all friend and y’all took care of him? I feel that many of you are using this man’s death for social climbing and views and likes. I don’t think any of you really knew him , you just knew of him. Sorry he is dead but stop acting like you cared so much for someone who was homeless. If he was alive today would you take your close personal friend in your home and clean him up and get him on the right track?
12:08 Speaks truth.
Sorta like folks on FB that have 4998 to 5000 (max allowed) "friends'... You know the ones.
I don't want to diminish the comment at at 12:08 because I think it makes some valid points and asks some questions that I need to ask myself on a regular basis. With that in mind, there are people that I care about that I would not take into my home, nor pay their bills, some of whom are family members. Also, I seriously doubt they want to be rescued by me, turned into my project, and changed by me into what I think they should be. That kind of help is really all about me, and most people resist and resent it, which I understand because I do too.
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