
From The Huffington Post:
MONTICELLO, Miss. -- It's Friday, July 1, 2011, a little past 8:15 a.m. when I arrive at the Lawrence County, Mississippi, courthouse. As I walk toward the building, I run into Dorothy Maye, the mother of Cory Maye. She's beaming.
"I thought you'd be wearing a smile today, Miss Dorothy," I say. She gives me a quick but firm embrace. She scolded me years ago when I tried to shake her hand. "I don't shake," she said. "I hug." Later that day, she expects to hear Judge Prentiss Howell tell the courtroom that after 9 and a half years in prison -- including two on death row and another three in Parchman Penitentiary's notoriously violent Unit 32 -- her son will soon be coming home.
Cory Maye, now 30, was convicted in 2004 of shooting and killing Prentiss, Mississippi, police officer Ron Jones, Jr. during a botched drug raid on Maye's home on the day after Christmas in 2001. Maye says he was asleep as the raid began at 12:30 a.m. and had no idea the men breaking into his home were police. The police say they announced themselves. Maye had no prior criminal record, and police found all of a marijuana roach in his apartment, which under other circumstances would garner a $100 fine.
Read more here.


Comments: (3)
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By: lexx on 7/06/2011 5:49PM
how many of our brothers hav to go though this im prayin for cory and his mom may god bless them both and return him home safely .i love u black brother
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By: DPS on 7/06/2011 6:53PM
Evans was initially assigned to Maye's case in 2001, immediately after the raid. But Maye's family instinctively recoiled at entrusting their son's fate to a public defender. That would prove to be a mistake. Instead, they pooled their resources to hire Cooper, a black attorney in Jackson who they say played to their (well-founded) racial insecurities about the case. Contrary to what Maye's family says she told them, Cooper had no experience trying a capital case, a deficiency that was more than apparent at Maye's trial.
And still, the cause of all of this pain, the "drug war" -- a metaphor that's increasingly literal -- marches on. As do the increasingly militaristic tactics police departments use to fight it. At least 11 innocent people have been killed in drug raids since the December 26, 2001 raid on Maye's home. At least nine more nonviolent drug offenders have been killed. At least 17 police officers have been shot, four of them fatally. There have been dozens of other mistaken raids on the wrong home, as well as over-the-top raids on medical marijuana clinics and doctors' offices suspected of over-prescribing painkillers. Just last month police in Hampton, Virginia, shot and killed 69-year-old William Cooper during a drug raid on Cooper's home. Police had received a tip that Cooper was selling prescription drugs. When they forced their way in, Cooper pulled a gun, and they killed him. They found two bottles of prescription painkillers, hardly unusual for a man who suffered from arthritis, heart ailments and a number of other medical conditions.
The system is screwed up and that attorney Rhonda Cooper is a joke. But eventually Mayes family figured that out. We all hear the horror stories about public defenders but in Mayes case the public defender was actually their savior versus the black high powered attorney Rhonda Cooper whom never had a capital case prior to Mayes. They spent their hard earned bucks on attorney Cooper only to see her botch Mayes case. Mayes should’ve been able to tell the jury that he was just defending his baby girl. He didn’t know the guys who busted down his door were police officers. Sadly, the jury never heard that. Also the trial should’ve stayed in the county of the raid. Cooper wanted it moved and it was moved to a demographically unfavorable location.
The only negative thing I’ve to say about Mayes is that he shouldn’t have had any weed in the house even if it was a roach. A roach always starts off as a joint so somebody was smoking but we will never know what type of father he would’ve been to his children prior to getting arrested. There also was a drug dealer living next door, and that person was the actual target of the HORRIBLY BOTCHED STING OPERATION and maybe he was also Mayes supply.
Mayes is right about leaving Mississippi because those cops won't ever let him live peacefully after he killed one of their own.
Usually I look suspiciously at women who become pen pals and eventually wives of men who are on death row but Mayes was right for defending his daughter and he did what anybody would if someone bust down their door without yelling police first, especially in Mayes neighborhood. Stickups and murders was the norm.
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By: DPS on 7/06/2011 6:57PM
Evans was initially assigned to Maye's case in 2001, immediately after the raid. But Maye's family instinctively recoiled at entrusting their son's fate to a public defender. That would prove to be a mistake. Instead, they pooled their resources to hire Cooper, a black attorney in Jackson who they say played to their (well-founded) racial insecurities about the case. Contrary to what Maye's family says she told them, Cooper had no experience trying a capital case, a deficiency that was more than apparent at Maye's trial.
And still, the cause of all of this pain, the "drug war" -- a metaphor that's increasingly literal -- marches on. As do the increasingly militaristic tactics police departments use to fight it. At least 11 innocent people have been killed in drug raids since the December 26, 2001 raid on Maye's home. At least nine more nonviolent drug offenders have been killed. At least 17 police officers have been shot, four of them fatally. There have been dozens of other mistaken raids on the wrong home, as well as over-the-top raids on medical marijuana clinics and doctors' offices suspected of over-prescribing painkillers. Just last month police in Hampton, Virginia, shot and killed 69-year-old William Cooper during a drug raid on Cooper's home. Police had received a tip that Cooper was selling prescription drugs. When they forced their way in, Cooper pulled a gun, and they killed him. They found two bottles of prescription painkillers, hardly unusual for a man who suffered from arthritis, heart ailments and a number of other medical conditions.
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The system is screwed up and that attorney Rhonda Cooper is a joke. But eventually Mayes family figured that out. We all hear the horror stories about public defenders but in Mayes case the public defender was actually their savior versus the black high powered attorney Rhonda Cooper whom never had a capital case prior to Mayes. They spent their hard earned bucks on attorney Cooper only to see her botch Mayes case. Mayes should’ve been able to tell the jury that he was just defending his baby girl. He didn’t know the guys who busted down his door were police officers. Sadly, the jury never heard that. Also the trial should’ve stayed in the county of the raid. Cooper wanted it moved and it was moved to a demographically unfavorable location.
Mayes should never had any weed in the house even if it was a roach. A roach always starts off as a joint so somebody was smoking but we will never know what type of father he would’ve been to his children prior to getting arrested. There also was a drug dealer living next door, and that person was the actual target of the HORRIBLY BOTCHED STING OPERATION and maybe he was also Mayes weed supplier.
Even though he didn't get off scott free because he's still on record as killing someone, Mayes is right about leaving Mississippi because those cops won't ever let him live peacefully after he killed one of their own.
Usually I look suspiciously at women who become Pen Pals and eventually wives of men who are on death row or who have been on death row but Mayes was right for defending his daughter and he did what anybody would do if someone bust down their door without yelling police first, especially in Mayes neighborhood. Stickups and murders was the norm. Hopefully, he gets married in Florida, settles down and began a positive relationship with his children.
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