Father and Son Who Tried to Lynch Black FedEx Driver Let Off Easy by Uncle Tom-Led Police Department

     I've covered the story of Ahmaud Arbery extensively, from the trial to the sentencing to the hate crimes trial that recently began in federal court. Many are familiar with the fact that this young man was brutally lynched in broad daylight while his three white killers, including father and son Gregory and Travis McMichael, went almost three months without being arrested. This is because one white DA called police and ordered them not to make an arrest while another failed to properly recuse himself in spite of an obvious conflict of interest. DA Jackie Johnson has been charged, and I'm still holding out hope that DA George Barnhill will be charged next. 

     Well, now, almost exactly two years later, a similar incident is playing out. Thankfully, Demonterrio Gibson, 24, survived to tell his story. Ahmaud Arbery's "crime" was jogging as a black man. Gibson's "crime" was working as a FedEx driver while black in Brookhaven, Mississippi. While delivering packages, the media has been quick to point out that he was not in a FedEx van or truck while delivering packages. That's correct. If you've ever received a package in your life, ever, you probably know that a good chunk of FedEx drivers, especially in less-populous areas, don't. He was, however, in a FedEx uniform. 

     While Gibson was walking back to his vehicle after leaving a package on the porch on January 24th, 2022, 35-year-old Brandon Case and his father, 58-year-old Gregory Case, got in their white pickup truck and chased him down. Brandon stood in the middle of the street with a gun while Gregory chased Gibson in the truck. When Demonterrio swerved onto the grass to avoid hitting Brandon, the younger Case emptied his firearm into the side of the truck. As Gibson kept driving, the father-son duo chased him all the way to the interstate.

     When Demonterrio Gibson tried to report the incident to the police, a white police officer asked him if he was doing anything to make himself look suspicious. Placing the blame on the victim because he's black so he must be up to something? Real nice. People always claim that all it takes to make it in the U.S. is a job and a good work ethic, but here's an example of a man almost dying at work because of the color of his skin.

     Brookhaven Police Chief Kenny Collins seemed more interested in defending the perps and the police than he did showing any concern for the victim. The father and son were guilty of attempted murder, assault with a deadly weapon, false imprisonment, conspiracy, and a hate crime, and the only charges they got were conspiracy for Gregory and aggravated assault for Brandon. With these charges, they'll plead guilty and get off with probation. Probation for an attempted lynching; Gibson's attorneys have stated the obvious in saying that they are grossly undercharged and that the police department is downplaying this.

     Collins, who treats Martin Luther King, Jr. Day like a white Republican would (as if Dr. King's main goal was to get people to clean up litter along the highway), went off on a rant when confronted with the comments of his officer and the inappropriate charges. He claimed that his town was not a racist one and that people couldn't just "go around saying stuff like that" while also saying, "If somebody is hurt or killed by what you post on social media, you will be charged, too." What's that supposed to mean: "Don't call our town the backwards, Jim Crow hellhole it is or I'll put you in prison?" Great way to calm things down and make yourself look like a concerned, compassionate human being, Uncle Tom.