Civil Rights Group Demands Florida Governor Rick Scott Suspend State Attorney Angela Corey and Condemn the Charges Against Marissa Alexander

ColorOfChange.org, the nation's largest online civil rights group, is demanding that Florida Governor Rick Scott take definitive action to suspend State Attorney Angela Corey and condemn the charges against Marissa Alexander.

ColorOfChange Executive Director Rashad Robinson explained, "State Attorney Corey has rejected persistent calls to drop the case once and for all, and instead has chosen to ramp up her shameful prosecution against Marissa. National outrage about Marissa's case continues to grow and Governor Scott could pay a political price at the polls during his tight re-election campaign for Governor unless he takes action."

Robinson continued, "Governor Scott has the power and responsibility to intervene and demand justice for Marissa and for Florida as a whole. By demanding that Gov. Scott hold Corey accountable for her actions, we have a real opportunity to move forward a national conversation on the ways in which Black people are mistreated in our criminal justice system -- and take steps to secure systemic change."

Known as the "killingest prosecutor," Florida State Attorney Angela Corey has a history of unjustly and excessively punishing Black defendants. True to form, she now intends to send Marissa Alexander -- a domestic violence survivor and Black mother of three -- to prison for 60 years for firing a warning shot in self-defense to stop her abusive husband. In 2012, Marissa was unjustly sentenced to 20 years in prison, and after immense public outrage, she won her appeal and was set free last September.

Over the past 5 years, Corey has sent 21 people to death row -- more than any other Florida prosecutor -- 66% of which have been Black despite the fact that Black people account for only 16% of her district. Additionally, Corey's refusal to acknowledge racial bias has led to accusations of prosecutorial misconduct, most recently in the murder trials of George Zimmerman and Michael Dunn, who were both let off the hook for killing Black youth.

"As long as Angela Corey remains at her post, Florida's criminal justice system will continue to fail Black folks. Black women face unique harm and discrimination in the criminal justice system, and are today's fastest growing population of people in prison. Black domestic violence survivors are disproportionately more likely to be punished for the abuse and violence they experience," concluded Robinson.