Bell’s Release Lauded by Activists; Jackson Says Other Jena Six Trials Need Change of Venue After being locked up for 10 months in a Louisiana jail, the first thing Mychal Bell wanted to do Thursday evening was pray. The second thing the teen wanted to do was eat barbecued ribs.
The Rev. Al Sharpton, one of several national leaders calling for justice in the case of the teens known as the Jena Six, prayed with Bell, his parents and supporters outside the LaSalle Parish Courthouse in the tiny town of Jena. Sharpton jokingly told the crowd Bell’s mother would “have to take care of the ribs.”
Bell’s release from jail came just one week after thousands from across the country converged on the town calling for the equal justice in the case of six teens charged with beating a white schoolmate. Bell is the only who has been tried and convicted, but that conviction was overturned two weeks ago when an appeals court judge said the matter should have been handled in juvenile court, given Bell’s age at the time of the Dec. 4. 2006 incident.
Wednesday, Bell’s parents and civil rights leaders met with Louisiana Gov. Kathleen Blanco and asked her to intervene. Blanco, a Democrat who had said she could do nothing because of the state’s separation of powers, called LaSalle Parish District Attorney Reed Walters with the group in her office and asked him not to pursue an appeal of the ruling. Walters had indicated he would indeed pursue the appeal, but announced Thursday that he would not.
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