Ga. NAACP calls for investigation into ‘Barbie bandits’ sentences

MARIETTA, Ga. — The head of the Georgia NAACP is calling for a state investigation into the sentences given in the so-called “Barbie bandits” bank theft case.

Edward DuBose said he is asking state Attorney General Thurbert Baker to look into why a Cobb County court gave the two white women in the February 2007 bank heist less time in jail than the two black men in the case.

Last month, Cobb County Superior Court Judge Mary Staley sentenced Heather Johnston, 20, to 10 years probation after she pleaded guilty to a charge of theft by taking and cooperated with prosecutors. The judge gave Ashley Miller, 19, two years in jail and eight years probation.

Their accomplices — both black — weren’t as lucky.

Michael Chastang, 28, was sentenced to 10 years behind bars for being the mastermind of the scheme. Chastang’s case went to trial after he pleaded not guilty. Bank teller Bennie Allen III pleaded guilty and was sentenced to five years behind bars after prosecutors said he was not cooperative.

“When four people are involved in the same crime and those who happen to be Caucasian receive much less time than those who are African American, this reflects a problem in the justice system that must be addressed,” DuBose said during an April 7 news conference.
Chastang is also serving 15 years on drug charges not related to the bank case. Allen, 23, was on probation for a drug conviction.

DuBose said he realized that both men had prior convictions for drugs, but maintained the sentences were inequitable.

“This is a case that clearly reflects unequal justice,” he said.
Johnston and Miller — were nicknamed the “Barbie bandits” after they were videotaped wearing sunglasses and laughing as they appeared to rob a Bank of America branch in Acworth of about $11,000.

Xerox settles lawsuit over alleged race discrimination

HARTFORD, Conn. — Xerox Corp. and representatives of current and former black sales representatives have settled a class action lawsuit accusing the office equipment maker of race discrimination.

The settlement, announced last Thursday, won preliminary approval from U.S. District Judge John Gleeson in Brooklyn, N.Y. It would require Xerox to pay $12 million to 1,100 former and current employees and includes legal fees, said Diane Bradley, a lawyer who represented the employees.

The $12 million was put aside in 2006, Xerox said.

The company also agreed to establish a task force of Xerox employees to ensure that black sales representatives are compensated in a nondiscriminatory manner by assessing how sales territories are assigned and other issues.

Xerox denied it engaged in policies or practices of unlawful discrimination or retaliation or other unlawful conduct.

“However, Xerox believes it is in the best interest of its shareholders and employees to settle the lawsuit, bringing to an end the protracted and costly litigation,” the company said in a statement.

The lawsuit, filed in 2001 in federal court in Brooklyn, N.Y., was brought on behalf of black sales representatives from New York, California, Georgia and Texas. Gleeson approved class action status in March 2004.

The workers said they were assigned to less profitable territories than white co-workers or were assigned to territories based on their race. They also contend they were passed over for more lucrative territories, promotions, and were denied commissions they had earned.

The lawsuit cited Frank Warren, a plaintiff in the lawsuit, who was assigned a territory in the New York borough of the Bronx that required a car. When he notified Xerox that the territory would be a hardship because he did not have a car, he allegedly was told by a vice president-general manager that he was assigned to the Bronx because “blacks and the Bronx go hand in hand.”

NYCLU seeks suburban police traffic stop race records

NEW YORK — A civil liberties group filed a request asking a suburban police department to provide records of the race of motorists it has stopped since 2005 to determine whether it has engaged in racial profiling.

“Justice requires that police act on facts and evidence, not racial prejudice,” New York Civil Liberties Union Executive Director Donna Lieberman said. “When a driver in Suffolk County sees a siren in the rearview mirror, he shouldn’t have to worry if he has become a victim of racial harassment. The public has a right to know who’s being stopped and why.”

In a 2006 interview with The Associated Press, Suffolk County Executive Steve Levy said county police were collecting information on the race of people detained for routine traffic violations as part of a study of whether drivers were being profiled.

Levy said the goal was to determine whether the practice occurred and counter accusations with data if it did not.

Citing the AP report, the NYCLU filed a Freedom of Information Law request seeking records that might exist of the racial breakdown of motorists stopped by Suffolk police officers.

Police Commissioner Richard Dormer said the department would respond to the request.

“Whatever we’re allowed to give them, we’ll certainly give them,” he said.

“We initiated this ourselves,” he said. “We’re still analyzing the data, but we need more time to really look at it closely and do it properly.”