Amber Riley was a normal teenage girl who had just turned 16. She was
working part time, attending school and just hanging out with her friends
and dog
Burkage. She states her nightmare began when a friend of hers, JasonLamar Harris murdered another friend of hers, Terry Ray Taylor in a brutal
stabbing back in 2003, in Perris Hill in San Bernardino, California. Amber
was also charged with the murder of Taylor.
It was a gruesome murder that received much media attention due to the fact
that the two allegedly recited the words of a song by heavy metal band,
SlipKnot called "Disasterpiece" which has lyrics
Amber stated she never liked this kind of music and that Jason was the one who
listened to SlipKnot.
Amber claims she had no part in the murder and that her codefendant Harris,
who has already been sentenced to 50 years acted solely alone. She claims
her being interrogated for long hours, alone without a lawyer, or her
parents present landed her in prison awaiting trial for nearly six years.
She was coerced into signing away her rights for a speedy trial she states.
The interrogating police
lied, coerced,
frightened, induced sleep
depravation and
hunger all to get a confession, whether it be true or not.. The Doctors
stated at one point to Amber's parents that "she was not capable of murder"
and one detective told her parents "that he knew this was not her crime
but that she will
now have to convince a jury"
Amber's mother states that her and her husband were never allowed to see
her, and were never given details about why their daughter was being
detained and arrested for murder. They were told they should go home,
despite the fact that Amber had asked for her parents throughout the
interrogation. Both parents were detained in their own living room and not
allowed to place or receive phone
calls keeping them
separated from Amber while she was interrogated for hours. According to page
5 of the police a
report the interrogating officer stated that at 6:08 PM Amber said "she felt
like killing herself.." He stated "she is a danger to herself and others,
and is a gravely disabled minor," and thinking this he had her sign a
Miranda waiver at 7:10 PM, just one hour later.
Amber's mother claims that after 8 hours of interrogation Amber was then
admitted to Ward B at Arrowhead Medical center where she was then handcuffed
to a chair in the hallway, and left there all night and denied the use of a
phone
to call her
parents, according to her mother. She was diagnosed with Post Traumatic
Stress
disorder
and in shock. She was then placed in San Bernardino Juvenile hall without
the knowledge of her parents. Her father searched for her and found her 3
days later. Amber's mother stated an intake worker told her and her husband
"she entered juvenile hall in worse shape of any kid they have ever seen."
Amber was given what her mother calls "dangerous psychotic drugs" that
caused her to have nightmares and hallucinate.
Amber's parents have compiled a list of violations and injustices about
their daughters case and she forwarded them to me. The list is lengthy and I
have included links to further understand the violations. Amber's rights
were clearly violated, and she should never have signed away her rights to a
speedy trial. Her ignorance of the law, and manipulation by her
interrogators have changed her life into a six year nightmare. Our hopes are
that someone will read her story and help her in her fight for freedom.
According to Amber's mother, when Amber was first picked up by the police,
and taken into custody
she was never
allowed her two completed phone
calls, within an
hour. (seeCalifornia Welfare & Institutions Code 627
Her 14th Amendment
Rights were violated when she was denied counsel during questioning. ( See
Welfare & Institutions Code 30.23
Other issues
include her mental condition was very important, since Amber had a history
of depression
and "separation anxiety" from her parents. A young scared girl was alone
with adult male police
detectives which
infringed on her 5th, 6th, and 14th Amendments of the Constitution
concerning due process.
Amber's mother also states that failure of telling Amber that her father was
at the place of interrogation was a direct violation of The Welfare &
Institutions Code 30.11
Other violations
include she was deprived of rights and privileges and US Code 1414la was
violated.
Amber's mother also claims that when Amber could not understand the DA the
Judge would not allow him to be replaced which was a violation of rule #1.14
in the rules of professional conduct, but one month later the DA was asked
to be taken off the case due to a conflict of interest that was never
explained to them. She states that Amber was tried as an adult with no
psychological witnesses, no juvenile hall witnesses, no defense witnesses,
and no character witnesses. Amber was asked by the DA to sign papers she did
not understand, and her parents never saw.
Minors are not allowed to sign legal contracts and documents, yet a young
girls legal rights were taken away from her in a matter of hours. She is a
loving and caring young woman who will always be scarred by the events that
happened in her life. She has already served six years for a crime
she maintains she
never committed.
Prison activist and advocate, Carol Leonard, founder and owner of The
PrisonReformMovement
has authored a petition to help free Amber, please take a moment of your
time to sign this petition
@change: At Age 16 She Faced Life In Prison http://chn.ge/hqiZMp
,
SlipKnot called "Disasterpiece" which has lyrics
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tFW997qJSUE
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