$250,000 Bail For a 12-Year Old?

$250,000 Bail Set in Boston for Boy, 12, Found With Gun

I saw this headline on the front page of the Boston Globe this morning and thought to myself, "The judge is white, and the kid is black."

This article in the New York Times confirms half of my suspicion -- the Times runs a photograph of Judge Lewis, and he is white. None of the articles mentions the race of the boy, perhaps because he is a juvenile.

In a similar vein, Bob Hebert reports that the Bush administration has fired the head of the Bureau of Justice Statistics, Lawrence Greenfield. Greenfield objected to the administration's attempts to cover up data showing that Hispanics and blacks are treated more harshly by police during traffic stops: Truth-Telling on Race? Not in Bush's Fantasyland

I have personal experience with racial discrimination, which favored me, the white chick with the Irish surname. I got a ticket 5 years ago on my way home after a long day in court. It was a bogus ticket -- I turned right on a green right arrow, and a motorcycle cop was waving over everyone going through the light. The two cars ahead of me and the one behind me must have been familiar with this scam, because they ignored the cop & kept going. Me, sucker, law abiding lawyer, I pulled over. The guy gave me a ticket for going through a red light! I was mad, so I appealed. Plus, under Massachusetts law such a moving violation would stay on my insurance for 7 years, costing me hundreds if not thousands of dollars.

I appeared in court on the scheduled date about 3 months later. The cases were heard by the white clerk-magistrate, a woman. A white male police officer sat at the table with a pile of tickets in front of him. Names were called in alphabetical order, so I got to see 20 or so cases before I was called. As a lawyer I was keenly interested in the process, and wanted to figure out the best way to make my case. As it turned out, I brought my game with me. I was white and polite, and that was all that mattered.

There were three types of cases. First, polite white people. They denied the offense, were treated with courtesy, and found not responsible. Their ticket was ripped up, & they walked out home free.

Second, the clueless angry liberals. At least three of these people used the phrase "jack booted thug" in referring to the arresting officer. That just infuriated the clerk-magistrate, and these people were found responsible & had to pay their tickets.

Third, people of color. Didn't matter whether they were polite, or angry. All were questioned harshly, and almost all were found responsible.

I was shocked by this, but found myself with a dilemma. Would I protest the obvious discrimination going on here? Or would I just submit, be polite, and get out of my ticket?

Of course I took the coward's way out. I stepped up, denied the offense, was cautioned (with a smile) to drive more carefully, and walked out absolved. Not a proud moment.

Racism, alive & well in the 21st century.