Anarchy in a failed city

Back in January, I told you about this. Even built an episode of the Revolution 21 podcast around The Horror of New Orleans.

Well, this is the "criminal-justice system" not working in a failed city, with a non-functional government not working toward the betterment of a deviant civic culture. At least as much as whatever passes for such in Mogadishu on the Mississippi can be termed a "civic culture."

Read the following and be afraid. Either we get a handle on our cultural, educational and socioeconomic demons, or some version of this will make its way to your town.

And yours.

And yours, as well.

Here are the dispiriting details from the Times-Picayune:

Orleans Parish prosecutors on Friday dropped all charges against the teenager accused of murdering the drummer for the Hot 8 Brass Band in December, saying their key witness -- a 15-year-old girl -- refuses to testify.

David Bonds, 18, was charged with the second-degree murder of Dinerral Shavers, 25, a band teacher at Rabouin High School and a Hot 8 Brass Band member who was shot in the head while he drove his wife and two children along the 2200 block of Dumaine Street on the evening of Dec. 28.

Police said a feud between Bonds and Shavers' 15-year-old stepson sparked the fatal shooting -- and that Shavers was not the intended victim.

District Attorney Eddie Jordan's office may re-institute charges against Bonds at a later date under Louisiana law.

"If we can get the witness to cooperate," said Dalton Savwoir, Jr., Jordan's spokesman.

The collapse of the case brought strong reactions from both the police and the family of the victim. New Orleans police spokesman Sgt. Joe Narcisse said Friday that "a beautiful case" had fallen apart.

"Because the witnesses would not come forward, we have a killer loose on our streets," Narcisse said. "This is a perfect opportunity to point out the importance of citizen cooperation. We cannot do it alone."

The newly formed anti-crime group Silence Is Violence also issued a statement, which quoted Nakita Shavers, the sister of the victim, who joined the group after his death.

"My family and I are not satisfied with the investigation and prosecution that have taken place so far. I understand the DA's decision to dismiss today, in that this decision leaves open the possibility of reindictment," Shavers is quoted as saying. "I also understand the reluctance of the young witnesses to testify. It can be very intimidating, especially for someone so young."

The statement from Silence Is Violence called the breakdown in the justice system all too routine.

"Like many of you, we were shocked and disappointed--if not surprised--by the prosecutor's decision this morning to dismiss the case against David Bonds, the accused murderer of Dinerral Shavers," the group said. "While this case has always been particularly close to us, it is not, unfortunately, unique."

Bonds was arrested a day after the killing, Dec. 29, at his Dumaine Street home and later charged with Shavers' murder and the attempted murder of his wife and two children.

But Assistant District Attorney Kimya Holmes announced Friday at criminal district court that the girl who witnessed the killing is unavailable because her mother will not let her testify against Bonds.

Judge Raymond Bigelow accepted the state's motion to dismiss the charges and closed the case.

Prosecutors said they have been unable to even serve a subpoena to the state's witness, whose mother refuses to let her daughter cooperate.

"She will never allow her daughter to testify," said Anthony Satcher, a homicide investigator for the district attorney's office, on the witness stand Friday. "She said she'd rather be in jail."

The girl is not related to the Shavers family, prosecutors said, and is considered an "independent" witness necessary in order to win a conviction against Bonds.

Although the girl apparently testified before a grand jury in order for prosecutors to secure an indictment against Bonds, the 15-year-old's mother has adamantly refused to return her to court.

Testifying before a grand jury, a process led by the District Attorney's office that does not include the defense team, is far different than making a commitment to attend hearings for months until finally appearing in a courtroom to face the accused, his family and a rigorous cross-examination by defense lawyers.

Public defender Meghan Garvey has already filed motions to secure all attendance records and any disciplinary reports on the 15-year-old witness from her New Orleans high school, according to the court record, an example of the kind of scrutiny witnesses for the prosecution can find themselves under.

Since the witness, who was 14 at the time of the Shavers' killing, is a juvenile, it's unlikely any judge would allow the state to take any legal measures in an attempt to force her to cooperate.

The mother repeatedly ignored prosecutors' pleas for cooperation, Satcher testified Friday.

Shavers was shot behind the wheel of his black Chevrolet Malibu. His family was not injured as Shavers continued to drive for about four blocks with the gunshot wound. He died shortly after arriving at a local hospital that night.

The Shavers killing helped inspire some 3,000 city residents to march on City Hall in January, protesting the escalating murder rate and crime wave that has held neighborhoods hostage in post-Katrina New Orleans.

Silence Is Violence and Nakita Shavers called on police and prosecutors to bring new vigor to the investigation, and police vowed to continue working the case.

"This person is not gone from our radar," Narcisse said, of the teenage Bonds.

Bonds, has been a target of law enforcement before, but has thus far eluded punishment on a slew of arrests, according to court records.