A Texas prosecutor has blasted by Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor for using racist remarks during a case. James Thilman has reported for NewNowNext on Feb. 25, 2013,
Justice Sonia Sotomayor Slams Prosecutor’s Racist Remarks. The clearly reckless choice of words a Texas prosecutor used during cross-examination of an African-American defendant in a drug case left some people speechless. This shocking lack of judgement has also gotten the attention of Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor,
The nations first hispanic Supreme Court Justice, Sonia Sotomayor, has written the prosecutor, “tapped a deep and sorry vein of racial prejudice that has run through the history of criminal justice in our nation.” She continued, ”It is deeply disappointing to see a representative of the United States resort to this base tactic more than a decade into the 21st Century." The defendant in this case, Bongani Calhoun, was arrested and charged with taking part in a drug conspiracy, in a crime for which he was subsequently convicted. The defense had argued that although Calhoun went along on a road trip with friends, he actually did not know of their plans to buy cocaine. Calhoun was convicted and received a 15-year prison term. The Supreme Court ultimately denied to hear Calhoun’s case. Although Sotomayor agreed with the refusal, she clearly remained troubled by what had happened in Texas.
Todd Beamon has reported on this story for Newsmax, Sotomayor Slams Prosecutor for Racist Remarks. On Monday Justice Sonia Sotomayor said that the prosecutor's remarks about an African-American suspect were “an affront to the Constitution's guarantee of equal protection of the laws.” The prosecutor, who was identified in a trial transcript as Assistant U.S. Attorney Sam Ponder, is quoted as having said during cross-examination in a drug-conspiracy case, “You've got African-Americans, you've got Hispanics, you've got a bag full of money. Does that tell you —light bulb doesn't go off in your head and say, This is a drug deal?” Sotomayor said this was clearly an attempt to substitute racial stereotype for evidence. She commented, “I hope never to see a case like this again."
