FAMILY OF TYRONE MASON
SUES TROOPER FOR
“INEXCUSABLE” ACTIONS
By Cash Michaels
Contributing writer
The family of a black man who died in a single-car crash after being chased by a state Highway Patrol trooper for allegedly speeding in Raleigh last October 2024, has filed a lawsuit against that officer.
“We filed a lawsuit last week,” civil rights attorney Bakari Sellers told reporters during a rally on the steps of the Wake County Judicial Center in Raleigh May 29th. “That lawsuit will speak for itself and we’re actually filing a notice of claim against the Raleigh Police Department to add them as well because we had no idea how grossly negligent the Raleigh Police Department had been.”
Sellers, along with nationally known civil rights attorney Benjamin Crump, was part of a rally held by the family of Tyrone Mason, 31, the victim of the October crash where bodycam video showed Trooper Garrett Macario chasing Mason until he crashed on Raleigh’s Capital Blvd., then lying to Raleigh police officers, at the direction of his supervisor, when they came to the scene of the accident to investigate.
Macario initially did not report the accident, or his part in it, to Raleigh police, first telling them only that he came across the accident during his patrol.
"The fact that we saw with our own eyes officers lie, [and] conspired to cover up their lie, should trouble you all,” attorney Sellers told reporters.
Mason died as a result of his injuries from that crash. Macario reportedly never sought to get medical attention for him, leaving that to responding Raleigh police officers.
Wake County District Attorney Lorrin Freeman, while calling the actions of Trooper Macario “inexcusable,” has none-the-less refused to criminally charge him or his supervisor, Sgt. Matthew Morrison, sparking outrage from Mason’s family and supporters.
Macario’s bodycam recording captured Morrison’s alleged coverup instruction:
"I wouldn't mention anything to them about you trying to stop him," Morrison told Macario. "I won't," Macario replied."Just say, hey man, I drove up on this and leave it at that," Morrison added.
“While their dishonesty violates the standards to which law enforcement officers must adhere, the district attorney is not pursuing criminal charges as the evidence would not support a successful prosecution,” D.A. Freeman’s office said in a statement.
“Within a few minutes of initially having lied, [Trooper Macario] told the truth to other Raleigh police officers. That keeps this from being a criminal matter," the statement added.
While they won’t face criminal charges, Macario and Morrison may face internal agency sanctions. Both officers are currently on administrative leave since January. D.A. Freeman added that neither trooper will be allowed to perform their duties in Wake County from now on, and because their credibility has now been called into question, some 180 previous cases they were involved in have now been dismissed.
Still, Tyrone Mason’s family and their attorneys and supporters believe that the troopers are culpable in Tyrone Mason’s death. Mason’s family wants the troopers immediately fired.
D.A. Freeman responds that “What people hear is somehow we think the behavior is okay or we condone the behavior,” she said. “That’s not what we are saying. We are saying based on this evidence and these facts, do we think we can get a conviction for these individuals? We don’t, so we have closed the criminal matter.”
Freeman adds that the Chief Medical Examiner’s Office confirms that Tyrone Mason died on impact as a result of injuries sustained from the crash. She adds, however, that the victim of an accident is not assumed deceased until officially pronounced dead.
-30-
JUSTICE ANITA EARLS
ANNOUNCES 2ND TERM
RE-ELECTION CAMPAIGN
By Cash Michaels
Contributing writer
Despite being the only African-American, and only one of two Democrats on the North Carolina Supreme Court, who, more times than not, is at odds with her Republican colleagues, Justice Anita Earls is game for a second term, and has announced her reelection campaign for 2026.
Elected to office for her first eight-year term in 2018, Justice Earls made her May 30th announcement during a fundraiser in Durham.
“Our courts are the last hope as the guardians of our democracy — and that is no exaggeration,” Earls said, making clear that she’s not only fully invested in keeping her seat, but seeing the 5-2 Republican majority on the High Court overturned in 2028 when Democrats have their next chance of challenging the three Republicans up for re-election.
Thanks to the recent certification of Democrat Justice Allison Riggs’ November 2024 election victory after a 6-month protracted post-election battle against Republican challenger Appellate Court Judge Jefferson Griffin, if Justice Earls can win a second term in 2026, that means Democrats could win back the majority in 2028 they lost on the seven-member court.
Thus, the state Democratic Party is starting to fundraise and push Justice Earls’ reelection campaign now, months before most campaigns for the 2026 midterm elections begin.
With the Republican-led state legislature maintaining it’s control for the foreseeable future, regaining control of the state Supreme Court is an imperative for the NC Democratic Party, especially with issues like the 2030 redistricting maps looming shortly after the 2028 elections.
Justice Earls, who had a distinguished record as a civil rights attorney prior to being elected to the NC Supreme Court in 2018, said that beyond the dismissive way she has been treated by her Republican colleagues on the court, the fact that four of those colleagues were willing to help fellow Republican Jefferson Griffin defeat her Democratic colleague Justice Allison Riggs by tossing out legitimate votes in their race is more than enough reason to see as many of them as possible replaced.
“Four members of my court were willing to throw out the legitimate ballots of voters who voted in accordance with the laws in effect at the time,” Earls told the Raleigh News and Observer newspaper, “And these include military people who serve our country at great sacrifice to themselves overseas.”
Thus far, Justice Earls has one announced Republican challenger for her seat. Nine-term House member and attorney Rep. Sarah Stevens from Surry County.
Justice Earls says even though she has been in the minority most of the time, she is proud of her record on the court as the only African-American, and the perspective that she brings to her dissenting opinions.
“I will always endeavor to make sure that I speak in a way that never causes the courts to be called into disrepute,” Earls said Friday. “But as a justice, I’m allowed to write dissents and I’m allowed to tell the public what those dissents say.”
-30-
No comments:
Post a Comment