Former Black Radical’s Murder Case Goes to Jury

Jurors in Atlanta began deliberations in the trial of Jamil Abdullah Al-Amin--the former radical once known as H. Rap Brown--who is accused of killing a sheriff’s deputy and wounding another.

In closing statements, the defense argued that someone else shot the two Fulton County deputies March 16, 2000, and that the people who know what happened--including Al-Amin--aren’t talking.

The defense says that Al-Amin, now a 58-year-old Muslim cleric, is a victim of mistaken identity and is the target of a government vendetta. Attorney Jack Martin said his client left town because he knew police were looking for him and he was afraid they would kill him.