Archive for December, 2010

It’s Not Too Late!

Thursday, December 30th, 2010

Dear Friend of Justice,

Many of you have contributed to the National Center for Reason and Justice‘s annual fund drive. Thank you all very much!

I suspect some of you had planned to give, didn’t get around to it, and then decided against it believing it was too late to get a 2010 tax deduction.

You can get your tax deduction in two ways:

1. By going to this web site and donating by credit card.

2. By dating your check (payable to NCRJ) 12/31/2010 and mailing it to The National Center for Reason and Justice, POB 191101, Roxbury MA 02119.  I will keep the 2010 books open for several days to accommodate late contributions.

Whether you’re able to donate or not, we wish you all a very Happy New Year!

-Bob Chatelle

Falsely Convicted Texas Lesbians May Finally Get Justice

Wednesday, December 22nd, 2010

National Center for Reason and Justice

Roxbury MA

www.ncrj.org

December 22, 2010

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact:

Debbie Nathan

Director, National Center for Reason and Justice

naess2@gmail.com

Falsely Convicted Texas Lesbians May Finally Get Justice

New York, NY—December 22, 2010

The four women, all friends, didn’t stand a chance. It was 1994 in Texas. They were young, poor, mostly Latina—and gay. It was easy to falsely accuse them of raping little girls. It was barely harder to convict them.

The National Center for Reason and Justice, a non-profit legal and advisory group for the falsely accused and wrongfully convicted, is much encouraged by an in-depth feature article in the San Antonio Express News documenting serious flaws in the trial and convictions of four lesbians accused of sexually abusing children. The women have steadfastly maintained their innocence.

Three of the women were only 19 and the fourth was 21 when they were accused, in 1994. Elizabeth Ramirez was sent to prison in 1997 and the others were convicted the next year. The medical evidence was invalid and should not have been admitted. The case was poisoned with homophobia and hysteria, including beliefs about non-existent “satanic ritual abuse.”

The NCRJ sponsored this case for over two years and worked with the Innocence Project of Texas, which recently accepted the case for appeal.

“The public has been too long unaware of this grave miscarriage of justice,” said NCRJ Director Debbie Nathan, who has organized support for the women in Texas. “We hope that the exposure in the Express-News will be followed by the national attention the case deserves.”

Read the story: “Did These Women Molest Two Girls?” by Michelle Mondo.


NCRJ (and Bernard Baran) Featured in Slideshow at The Nation

Tuesday, December 21st, 2010

Dear Friend of Justice,

Thought you might like to see this slide show at The Nation‘s  web site.

The National Center for Reason and Justice (the group that got Baran out of prison) is featured in slide number two. It has a photo of Bee taken shortly before his arrest.

http://www.thenation.com/slideshow/157189/slide-show-katha-pollitts-holiday-giving-guide-nation-readers

-Bob Chatelle

Four Lives Lost Press Release

Monday, December 20th, 2010

National Center for Reason and Justice

www.ncrj.org

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact:

Debbie Nathan

National Center for Reason and Justice

naess2@gmail.com

NCRJ Optimistic for Justice in Case of Falsely Accused Gay Texas Women

New York, NY—December 20, 2010

The four women, all friends, didn’t stand a chance. It was 1994 in Texas. They were young, poor, mostly Latina—and gay. It was easy to falsely accuse them of raping little girls. It was barely harder to convict them.

The National Center for Reason and Justice, a non-profit legal and advisory group for the falsely accused and wrongfully convicted, is much encouraged by an in-depth feature article in today’s San Antonio Express News documenting serious flaws in the trial and convictions of four gay women accused of sexually abusing children.

Three of the women were only 19 and the fourth was 21 when they were accused, in 1994. Elizabeth Ramirez was sent to prison in 1997 and the other three were convicted the next year. The medical evidence was invalid and should not have been admitted. The case was poisoned with homophobia and hysteria, including about non-existent “satanic ritual abuse.”

The NCRJ has sponsored this case for over two years and worked with the Innocence Project of Texas, which recently accepted the case for appeal.

The public has been too long unaware of the serious errors that led to this miscarriage of justice. We hope that the exposure in the Express-News will be followed by the national attention this case deserves.

The story was published in the Express-News today and will be available at the paper’s web site on Wednesday.

Katha Pollitt Suggests Donating to the NCRJ

Thursday, December 9th, 2010

Dear Friend of Justice,

From The Nation: http://www.thenation.com/article/156991/spread-joy

-Bob Chatelle