Following comments made by a juror in the Michael Dunn murder trial who insisted the shooting death of Jordan Davis was not racial, Jordan’s mother, Lucia McBath, is speaking up.
During an interview with Melissa Harris-Perry on Sunday, McBath said the role of race “cannot be denied.”
“We know that race is an element of our case,” McBath said.
Jordan, an unarmed 17-year-old, was killed in Florida by Michael Dunn during a verbal altercation fueled by loud music. Dunn’s fiancée, Rhonda Rouer, told the jury that he categorized the music Jordan and his three friends were playing as “thug music.” Later, Dunn denied that statement, saying he would have called it “rap crap” instead.
That information was given to the jury, however, racially-charged letters obtained by the state and written by Dunn in jail were withheld. In them, Dunn descriptively wrote about his disdain for “thugs” and African-Americans.
“The more time I am exposed to these people, the more prejudiced against them I become.” And in audio of phone calls released days later, he described himself as in a room with three black guys and commented, “I guess it would be better than being in a room with them animals.” He also called himself both the “victim” and the “victor” and analogized himself to a rape victim.
But the jury, including Juror 8 Creshuna Miles, could not come to a decision on the first-degree murder charge, leading to a mistrial. Miles, however, told CNN that she believed Dunn was a good guy.
“I honestly think he is a good guy,” Miles said. “I don’t think he hates everyone and wants to shoot everyone.”
When asked about the juror’s comments, the mother of the slain teen said that while she “can’t personally speak for those jurors,” it is her “belief that at some point in time, there had to be some thought of race.”
Ron Davis, Jordan’s father, also does not believe Miles was being genuine when she did not consider race to be a factor in the shooting.
“For her as an African-American female to go into this case, with this type of evidence, with this type of rage, with [Dunn] saying, ‘Thug music’? How can you as a juror not think that this was about race?”
To watch McBath’s interview on Harris-Perry’s show, check out the video above.
SOURCE: Think Progress, MSNBC | VIDEO SOURCE: MSNBC
