refusal to testify against him in the sentencing phase of the trial, saying that his silence on the shooting bespoke a lack of emotion. This being a definitive violation of Jamal's fifth Amendment right to silence. Once again, Judge Sabo, "a vacation for prosecutors" (Philadelphia Inquirer), didn't see things this way. Aside from the courtroom fiasco that passed for trial, the city of Philadelphia engaged in the suppression of pivotal evidence, the intimidation of witnesses, and offered bribes to prospective witnesses who would testify against Mumia Abu-Jamal. Veronica Jones, an eyewitness at the scene, has testified that the police threatened her with arrest if she didn't comply with fellow prostitute Cynthia White's testimony. She also stated that the Philadelphia police department offered her a deal similar to the one they offered Cynthia White, namely unimpeded reign of the streets as a prostitute and police protection while turning tricks. Eyewitness Robert Harkins originally stated that he could identify the shooter but failed to identify Jamal in a photo line-up. Harkins has since testified that after failing to identify Jamal in the photo array he was told by the police to refrain from speaking to the defense and the incident regarding the photo line-up was not uncovered for years. Another witness, Dessie Hightower, passed a polygraph examination wherein he swore that he saw the shooter flee the scene. Discovery of this important piece of evidence was not disclosed to the defense until years later when Hightower himself told Mumia's attorneys about it. Another witness, William Singletary, reporter seeing a man other than Mr. Jamal shoot the officer and flee the scene. According to Mr. Singletary, police falsified his interview report, forced him to sign a false report, and then through threats drove him out of town so he wouldn't be available for trial. The most damning suppression of all though involves hundreds of pages of in...
