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CHILDREN'S DEFENSE FUND FILES AMICUS BRIEF SUPPORTING MARCUS DIXON'S APPEAL TO GEORGIA SUPREME COURT |
Washington, DC - The Children's Defense Fund (CDF) has filed an amicus brief with the Georgia Supreme Court supporting the appeal of a 19-year-old Black male who was sentenced to prison under a state aggravated child molestation statute after a jury acquitted him of rape. The court will hear oral arguments tomorrow in the case of Marcus Dixon, a high school football star with a 3.9 grade point average and 1200 SAT score who was headed to Vanderbilt University on full scholarship before his conviction. An Atlanta law firm, outraged by the case, is appealing it. CDF is joined by fourteen other organizations in an amicus brief prepared by the Washington, D.C. law firm of Covington & Burling.
Dixon was 18 years old when a jury took only 20 minutes to acquit him of forcible rape, aggravated assault, false imprisonment, and sexual battery charges. The girl, who is White, was just three months shy of her 16th birthday. Dixon was convicted of statutory rape, a misdemeanor that turns solely on the fact that the girl was not yet 16, and aggravated child molestation. The latter charge is a felony that carries a mandatory minimum 10-year sentence.
Georgia State Representative, Tyrone Brooks, the author of the aggravated child molestation statute, says the law was intended to protect children from adult sexual predators, not to punish teenagers engaging in sexual activity. Consistent with Representative Brooks's view, Georgia's statutory rape provision was reduced in 1996 to a misdemeanor, which carries a maximum sentence of no more than one year.
In its amicus brief, CDF argues that the decision of the trial court to allow Dixon's conviction and sentence for aggravated child molestation is erroneous and not in keeping with the growing national trend away from harsh penalties for teenage sexual activity. A majority of states have passed so-called "Romeo and Juliet" laws that decriminalize consensual sex between teens in just such situations. It is Georgia's statutory rape provision that applied to the facts of the case. CDF argues that the felony aggravated child molestation statute is grossly misapplied.
"Marcus Dixon should be taking classes at Vanderbilt University instead of serving a 10-year prison sentence," said Marian Wright Edelman, president of the Children's Defense Fund. "This is just another heartbreaking example of how vulnerable young Black males are to being treated unjustly in the criminal justice system in this country. I sincerely hope the justices of the Georgia Supreme Court will reach that same conclusion and set Marcus free to continue the path of success he had begun before suffering this grave miscarriage of justice."
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Below is a list of the organizations that signed on to the amicus brief. This link provides a summary of the legal arguments made on Dixon's behalf:
Amici:
Children's Defense Fund
Child Welfare League of America
Christian Methodist Episcopal Church
Justice Policy Institute
Juvenile Law Center National Association of Counsel for Children
National Center for Youth Law
National Council of Churches
Northwestern University Children and Family Justice Law Center
Progressive National Baptist Convention, Inc.
Southern Center for Human Rights
Southern Juvenile Defender Center
United Church of Christ
Women's Missionary Society of the African Methodist Episcopal Church
Youth Law Center
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The mission of the Children's Defense Fund is to Leave No Child Behind and to ensure every child a Healthy Start, a Head Start, a Fair Start, a Safe Start, and a Moral Start in life and successful passage to adulthood with the help of caring families and communities. CDF provides a strong, effective voice for all the children of America who cannot vote, lobby, or speak for themselves. We pay particular attention to the needs of poor and minority children and those with disabilities. CDF educates the nation about the needs of children and encourages preventive investment before they get sick, into trouble, drop out of school, or suffer family breakdown. CDF began in 1973 and is a private, nonprofit organization supported by foundation and corporate grants and individual donations. We have never taken government funds. |
Overview of Amicus Brief