I wonder if Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson will rush to his aid again?
Jena Six icon Mychal Bell is in legal trouble again — this time in Monroe.
Bell, 18, who lists his current address as 109 Grayling Lane, Monroe, is free on bond following a Christmas Eve arrest on multiple charges, including shoplifting, resisting arrest and simple battery, related to an incident at Dillard’s in Pecanland Mall.
Bell was arrested less than one month after he completed a sentence for his role in the beating of a fellow classmate, Justin Barker, at Jena High School in 2006.
Al? Jesse? Oh, wait, they aren’t necessary
Louis Scott who has represented Bell in the past said that preconceived notions on the part of Dillard’s employees may have played a role in Bell’s arrest.
“Dillard’s has a tradition of being overly suspicious of young black males,†Scott said.
Scott has not been contacted to represent Bell on the current charges.
“I am predicting that once all the facts are established, he probably will not be guilty,†Scott said. “There has been more put on this young man than anybody can bear — people trying to provoke him, trying to make him react.
Let’s see: security spotted Bell and another male putting merchandise in a shopping bag, followed them, Bell runs, then starts “swinging wildly,” hitting a guard. But, hey, I bet they put the merchandise in the bag just to get Bell in trouble. Morons.
Security is going to tend to be suspicious of groups that are the primary shoplifters. Up at a mall near where I grew up in NJ, they were suspicious of Gypsies (yes, real Gypsies) and older male Orientals, who stole quite a bit. In Raleigh, they are suspicious of young men and women of all races who wear the baggy pants and shirts. It’s called “a profile of the perpetrator.”
