FEDS ASKED TO HELP

Minority Officials' Letter Asks Ashcroft To Step In As Effort Begins In
Earnest To Attract National Attention

A plan to move the death of Kenneth Walker to the national forefront went
into action Monday.

The Minority Elected Officials Coalition of Columbus wrote a letter to U.S.
Attorney General John Ashcroft requesting his involvement in the case.

Civil rights leaders and clergymen from Columbus and Atlanta met with
District Attorney Gary Conger seeking answers in the case and announced
upcoming national rallies.

"What began in Columbus... can no longer be held locally,"
Interdenominational Ministerial Alliance President Wayne Baker said.

Walker, 39, was shot and killed Dec. 10, 2003, by then-Muscogee County
Sheriff's deputy David Glisson during a traffic stop that was part of a
drug investigation. After 41 minutes of deliberation, a state grand jury
decided not to criminally indict Glisson. Last week, the sheriff's
department released the tape of the incident and transcripts of Glisson
interviews during the department's internal investigation.

The letter to Ashcroft, dated Dec. 6, reads: "We, the Minority Elected
Officials Coalition do not feel justice has been served. We need someone to
restore our faith and confidence in the justice system. Therefore, we are
requesting that you exercise jurisdiction in the case pursuant to violation
of the civil rights of Kenneth Walker due to the excessive brutality shown
by Sheriff Deputy Glisson and others to Mr. Walker."

State Rep. Calvin Smyre said the letter was written in hopes of adding some
weight to the issue.

"We felt that we had to go above the head of local officials," Smyre said.
"We are not getting any response from them."

Smyre signed the letter on behalf of Sen. Ed Harbison; Rep. Carolyn Hugley;
Municipal Court Clerk Vivian Bishop; State Court Solicitor Ben Richardson;
Tax Commissioner Lula Huff; councilors Evelyn Pugh, Nathan Suber, Julius
Hunter Jr. and Mimi Woodson; and school board members James Walker, Naomi
Buckner and David Ebron.

In January, the same people called for a number of reforms following
Walker's death, including an evaluation of the sheriff's departments'
on-the-street activities and greater diversity in law enforcement
administration.

"We had hoped that this would be resolved one year later, but we are doing
all we can to assist and facilitate in bringing this issue to a close,"
Smyre said.

Copies of the letter were handed out while about two dozen church,
political and civil rights leaders announced at Fourth Street Baptist
Church their intentions to hold national demonstrations in an effort to
bring justice to the Walker family and the citizens of Columbus.

Rev. Darrell Elligan, president of Concerned Black Clergy of Metro Atlanta,
represents a coalition of 150 churches with 150,000 members.

"We are bringing Atlanta to Columbus to make sure justice prevails here,"
he said. "The system did not produce the justice and righteousness it
should have."

Elligan said that local Rainbow/PUSH Coalition president William Howell
came to Atlanta to solicit their help and involvement.

"This is just the beginning of the movement," said Gerald Rose, founder of
human rights organization New Order of Marietta, Ga.

Baker, who is spearheading the movement, called Walker's death a "malicious
murder." He described Glisson as "a pit bull" that had been "unleashed" on
Walker.

He also called Conger a "wimp" for disqualifying himself from the case. The
case was then assigned to Dougherty County District Attorney Kenneth B.
Hodges III by Georgia Attorney General Thurbert Baker.

Hodges mishandled the case, Baker said. He cited the unsworn sympathetic
testimony that Glisson was allowed to give before the grand jury and that
only law enforcement officials were called as witnesses.

"There are so many loopholes in there that Hodges should be ashamed of the
r eport he turned in," Baker said.

The group also met Monday with Conger. The group asked questions concerning
the Walker case and if Conger could send it back to a grand jury.

Conger said he met with the group for about 45 minutes, but could not
answer most of their questions.

"On that case, the disqualification is permanent and I don't have any
authority to step in," Conger said.