Liberty and justice for all�does this sound familiar to you? These words once rang true to me but with each passing day I grow more and more resentful toward our government system. I�m about to give you the short version of why I feel this way and with this I send out a plea to anyone who can offer assistance in rebuilding my faith in America. On May 1, 2002 my older sister Melissa Clark Morris was taken in to the Craven County Correctional Facility in New Bern, NC. Around 9AM that morning Lisa Dawn Mckeown, a woman who my sister had a restraining order against, barged through the door of my sister�s home. Fearing for her life and the life of her one year old daughter who was present at the home also, my sister expedited her predicament in the only fashion she saw fit. Melissa used a firearm, shooting Ms. Mckeown in the back of the neck. The day prior to this event, Melissa was advised by a New Bern police officer to use a firearm if Ms. Mckeown was to take any action that could be considered a threat inside my sister�s home. Due to the fact that the bullet struck Ms. Mckeown in the rear side of her neck and that she was found lying in the front yard, the police had no choice but to view this as an attempt of murder by my sister. Witnesses along with my sister say that Ms. Mckeown was shot in the doorway but fell onto the steps outside. Nearby residents who rushed over for assistance moved her from the steps to the ground in order for her to lie flat on her back. Spots of blood were found in the doorway and a large puddle of blood was found on the second step. It makes it seem obvious that my sister�s actions were in self-defense. Well, even I understand that cases like this are never that simple or resolved in haste. Melissa never really had any legal problems before this incident; therefore, she had no lawyer to back her up from day one. She was appointed Attorney James M. Ayers II by the court. Here we are going on five months since the shooting and my sister�s case has not gone to trial yet. Melissa�s bond is still posted at one million dollars. Attorney Ayers stated to my family that he would not push to have the bond reduced until someone comes up with fifteen thousand dollars. ($15,000 being enough to reduce the bond to $100,000). It seems that someone is behind this case with the intent of holding my sister in jail for as long as possible. Maybe they have more negative plans than just such that. Could it be a judge, sheriff, or someone with some other arm of authority? Despite any of that it is blatantly obvious to anyone that justice in this case has yet to be served. Ms. Mckeown is in and out of hospitals but still alive. My sister deserves a fair and speedy trial. It was approximately one month after my sister was taken in that a man in Halifax County, NC admittedly attempted to murder a woman and his bond was posted at one-hundred thousand dollars. In Vanceboro, NC about two months ago, a woman shot and killed her husband. She was given a trial the following week. In Myrtle Beach, SC about one month ago, a man shot a killed another man in a pawn shop. The killer was given a bond of fifteen thousand dollars and then a trial. As you can see, people in all areas around me are getting the rights they are entitled to. My sister�s case without a doubt stands alone. Someone or some group of people inside the judicial system is not giving us what is rightfully ours. I demand justice be served. I will send Melissa�s story out to every point of the Earth until something proper is done. I will see that justice is served. If you or anyone you know can assist my family and I, please contact me immediately.
Robert Cicero Hobbes III |
