Keith Burgess-Jackson, J.D., Ph.D.

8-10-90 . . . Marion Barry, the longtime mayor of Washington, D.C., was acquitted on one count and convicted of another of cocaine possession—a misdemeanor. The jury was unable to reach a verdict on several counts of perjury—a felony. The trial, which lasted ten weeks, was a media circus. Barry’s supporters charged the United States Attorney and local media with racism; the judge barred two high-profile black preachers (Louis Farrahkan [sic; should be “Farrakhan”] and George Stallings) from the courtroom, only to have his order overturned by an appeals court; and there was a videotape of Barry smoking crack cocaine with a female friend (Barry is married). It’ll be interesting to see the ramifications of the decision. Will the U.S. Attorney retry the case? Did the jurors believe that Barry was entrapped? What role did racism play in the verdicts, or lack thereof? Will Barry run for mayor this fall? The impression is that Barry “got off” because he had a mostly black (and therefore sympathetic) jury.