OFFICIAL UPDATE: On Monday, November 5th, activists, educators, friends and supporters of GRAMMY Award-winning Reggae star Buju Banton (née Mark Anthony Myrie), will gather for a press conference on Capitol Hill in Washington D.C. to officially announce the filing of a petition for a Writ of Certiorari.
“Hundreds of thousands, if not millions of people are convinced that Mark Anthony Myrie was unjustly targeted and convicted in the United States court in Florida,” explains Banton’s new attorney, Chokwe Lumumba. “We request that the highest court of the land review this injustice and overturn it.” He adds, “We are determined to fight for Myrie’s freedom until he is vindicated.”
Lumumba, in association with the Buju Banton Defense Support Committee and the Gargamel Music Family, is organizing the press conference. Guest speakers will include national head of the NAACP, Ben Jealous; civil rights activist, actor and comedian Dick Gregory; Dr. Carolyn Cooper, author and lecturer at University of the West Indies in Kingston, Jamaica; Brother Aula Sumbry, a radio host and Chairman of the NAACP Prison Committee in Trenton, New Jersey; GRAMMY Award-winning Reggae artist, Stephen Marley, and many more.
The icon Banton was convicted last year for “conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute” and “using the wires to facilitate a drug trafficking offense,” federal offenses that together carry a 10-year penalty. A third conviction, “knowing and intentionally carrying a firearm to further a drug offense” (5 year minimum), was thrown out at his sentencing hearing. The U.S. Court of Appeals reversed that decision, however, and Banton will be re-sentenced in a Tampa courthouse early next week.
The Free Buju Press Conference will be held at The Methodist Building (100 Maryland Ave. N.E.) — located across the street from the Supreme Court — at 1pm sharp. Fans in the Washington Metropolitan Area are welcome to come and show their support.
