Beating the Rap Beaters

Justice has yet to be served in the Pierson case, but accusations still fly.

by Brian Hickey

I'd like to share an e-mail I received Monday night in all of its unedited glory:

"u know u r trying 2 get this story as much media as u can. why! is it because u r a racist ur self? well,i think so.i saw the articles u posted on more than one of those white power black bashing websites! what do u have 2 say about that? it wasnt u? yeah right!! can we get a jury in here!"

And, the contents of one sent Aug. 10 in response to a piece written by an intern on the same subject:

"NOBODY TRIED 2 TALK 2 MY FAMILY,I WONDER WHY.COULD IT B BECAUSE WE R BLACK & U WANT THIS STORY 2 GET AS MUCH MEDIA AS IT CAN? LIKE BRIAN HICKY?"

These missives purport to be from a "Tiffanie McCall," aka "Q's Big Sis," from 29th and Jefferson. Q, it would seem, is short for Quinzell McCall, the now-18-year-old North Philadelphia "man" who was found not guilty last month of murdering Fairmount teen Robert Pierson.

I say "purport" only because it's impossible to confirm whether, in fact, "Tiffanie" is Q's real big sis. Though she's posted similarly themed responses on numerous stories and Clog posts about the case, the nature of online comments makes it essentially impossible to confirm a person's identity. (This, of course, is why we shouldn't give blind credence to anonymous bloggers and commenters, lest we continue to sully any debate and cheapen the art of legitimate newsgathering.)

So for the sake of fairness, let's just assume that somebody who is pleased that the murder of a 17-year-old will forever be labeled "cold" was behind the e-mail.

Normally, I'd write off such correspondences as the ramblings of a grammatically challenged superbrain that deems justice overrated and likes throwing baseless accusations around to make themselves feel better about their lot in life. (Especially if they're coming from a family that rejected a half- dozen entreaties to comment publicly.) But considering the litany of responses we've gotten to the Pierson case, it's important to respond openly, publicly and legibly.

First, some background: Pierson was shot at 27th and Parrish streets on March 16, 2006 [Cover, "The Wrong Place," May 4, 2006]. He died several weeks later, having never regained consciousness. Six youths from North Philadelphia were arrested and, when the lights got hot, five of them started snitching; they said they set out that night to rob some folks over in the white neighborhood. (Easier pickins'.) They told homicide detectives that McCall was the triggerman.

At trial, they repeated that claim but, on Aug. 16, two jurors told me there wasn't enough evidence to persuade them to convict on more than throw-in weapons charges. Not one to question a jury's decision, I wrote a column concluding that had a group of white youths gone to a black neighborhood to successfully play the game of "Who can catch the most bodies?" the uproar would go national [Philly Blunt, "Murder in Black and White," Aug. 16, 2007]. But since the roles were reversed, the city's collective reaction was a shrug.

I stand by that and if you disagree, well, sorry, but you're wrong. What I don't stand by, however, is some of the reaction that the column garnered. As in the fact that some dirtbag white supremacists linked to the stories on Web sites that will go unnamed so as not to drive up their hit counters. Seems that, for once, a logical conclusion meshed with their self-serving desire to pit white against black. Tragically, it may have worked in pitting the grieving people in Fairmount ("i cannot believe that nobody is being held accountable for what happened to my little cousin") against those rejoicing in North Philly ("FREE Q. MAC SOON HIS LIFE IS WAITING AND SO AM I!!!!!!!!!!")

Back and forth these comments went. Some were heartfelt and legit; others made me wonder whether anonymous bigots were chiming in with the expressed purpose of stirring the racial pot. Disgusting.

But if you sift through all of the emotion, innuendo, opportunism and name-calling, one thing is clear: Justice has still not been served in the Pierson case. And chances are, it never will be because, if anything, it exposed everything that's going wrong on our streets, something that's on display at the Criminal Justice Center much more often than we'd care to admit. (Want to walk free? Here are five simple steps to confuse any jury with conflicting versions of an event!) So, to "Tiffanie," I respond:

"ure right. i am trying to get this story as much media as i can. why! is it because ur 'little brother' either a) got away with murder because word's out on a formula of how to beat the rap, or b) knows who actually pulled the trigger but refuses to speak up? well,i think so. because this has nothing to do with race; it's about doing the right thing. so until that happens, don't expect the story to go away. now let's get that jury in here, shall we?"

(hickey@citypaper.net)