Saturday, May 06, 2023

There's no forgetting the death of Banko Brown

Our cop-endorsed D.A. Brooke Jenkins tried to shove the killing of the young unhoused trans man down the forgetery, but the ploy is not working.

Apparently there's still plenty of resistance in San Francisco to the notion that shoplifting should be a capital crime.

• Under questioning by the Police Commission, Chief Bill Scott affirmed that Banko Brown did not have any weapon when he was shot outside Walgreens on Market Street on April 27. 48 Hills

• According to a witness, the rent-a-cop killer had ejected Banko Brown from the store -- and only then followed the young man outside and shot him. The security guard was about 6'2"; Brown was 5'4" and weighed some 155 pounds.  Mission Local

• It emerged that Banko Brown had made off with $14 worth of candy when he was shot. SF Chronicle

• Banko Brown was not utterly alone living on the streets. The Young Women’s Freedom Center was his community. They did what we do in this city -- they organized to pressure the system.

• Banko Brown had blood family. They have hired John Burris, a Northern California attorney famous for winning judgements in wrongful death suits against cops. 

• The LGBTQ community is unusually unified in pursuing justice for Banko Brown -- and the D.A. is antsy enough about the case that she's giving defensive interviews to gay media. Bay Area Reporter

• Local pols are swinging into line seeking better for Banko Brown, despite having done so little for people like him in life. Supervisor Aaron Peskin is fronting a Board resolution demanding that the D.A. release the video record around his death. 48 Hills

This city feels becalmed in a sad post-pandemic doldrums, but we can still be aroused  to demand justice. 

2 comments:

Brandon said...

Does this parallel in some ways what happened to Jordan Neely?

janinsanfran said...

Hi Brandon: there are some similarities. Both were Black men who seem to have needed a lot more acceptance and kindness than they encountered in the world. The settings are somewhat different and the possible legal outs for their killers also aren't really parallel.