Skinhead gets probation in murder of black man - Christopher Williams Brosky

Jet, April 12, 1993

An all-White jury in Fort Worth, Texas, convicted a skin-head of murder in a drive-by shooting of a Black man, but let him off with probation.

The decision triggered a flurry of protests by local Blacks who were outspoken about the decision.

"Black folks' lives still ain't worth a damn in Texas," exclaimed Dallas County Commissioner John Wiley Price, who is Black, "I'm mad as hell. Until Black folks start taking to the streets, nothing is going to happen."

Christopher Williams Brosky, 18, received 10 years' probation recently for the 1991 slaying of 32-year-old Donald Thomas. The maximum sentence for the crime is life in prison.

"We just felt like this might be a man who might be able to turn his life around," Richard Higgs, one of the jurors explained. "If we had sent him to Huntsville (state prison), he might come back in worse shape."

Brosky helped plan the execution and was in the car, according to testimony. However, the defense argued he was less blameworthy because he sat in the back seat of the car.

The admitted triggerman, a 17-year-old, received 4 years in prison in exchange for his testimony against Brosky. Another 17-year-old received a 15-year juvenile sentence.

A number of civil rights groups, including the NAACP, said they will call for a U.S. Justice Department investigation.