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Protesters Want State Attorney Off St. Pete Police Shooting Case

News Channel 8 Photo by KATY HENNIG

The International People's Democratic Uhuru Movement demonstrated in response to State Attorney Bernie McCabe's indications that he intends to have a grand jury determine whether there should be criminal indictments against the St. Petersburg police officer who shot and killed Javon Dawson this month.

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By GALINA TISHCHENKO

News Channel 8

Published: August 7, 2008

CLEARWATER - An Uhuru Movement-backed group called the Justice for Javon Dawson Committee gathered outside the Pinellas County Criminal Justice Center this morning to protest State Attorney Bernie McCabe's role in the investigation of a police shooting of a St. Petersburg teenager two months ago.

The protesters want McCabe out of the picture. They say the long history and close association of McCabe and Officer Terrence Nemeth, who shot the teen, create a conflict of interest.

Nemeth, a St. Petersburg police officer, killed Dawson, a 17-year-old sophomore at Gibbs High School, on June 7 at a graduation party. Dawson was shot twice in the back while brandishing a pistol, authorities said.

Nemeth is on administrative leave pending completion of the investigation by McCabe's office, said St Petersburg Police Department spokesman Bill Proffitt.

The case is winding down, Proffitt said, and McCabe might decide in the next week or two whether to put it in front of a grand jury.

"The investigation is not complete," said Bruce Bartlett, chief assistant of the state attorney. "As a result, he hasn't made a final decision whether he'll utilize the grand jury or not."

Bartlett expects the investigation to wrap up in a week or so after evidence analysis is complete.

"We don't want McCabe or his jury," said Deanne Lewis, a member of the Justice for Javon Dawson Committee.

Lewis is the sister of TyRon Lewis, who was shot in 1996 by white Officer James Knight. Police said TyRon Lewis repeatedly moved a stolen car toward Knight, who was standing in front of the vehicle. Days of rioting broke out after the shooting.

Diop Ulugbala, political coordinator for the committee, said committee members will go to Tallahassee on Wednesday to present a petition to Gov. Charlie Crist. Ulugbala said the petition has about three thousand signatures. It seeks to have McCabe removed from the investigation.

Ulugbala made a reference to the TyRon Lewis shooting during the news conference.

"St Petersburg needs to check its own history books and understand that its actions are responsible for the resistance that occurred in 1996."

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