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\n<\/strong><\/p>\nThe first time I ever heard the Rubin Carter story was at a student party in the mid 80\u2019s. In the grand old tradition of my forefathers, I was terribly drunk but I do recall someone tuning a guitar and belting out a rendition of \u201cHurricane\u201d. The story had \u2018Movie\u2019 written all over it from the start and when, in 1999, Denzel Washington brought Rubin alive on the big screen, there was a feeling that no filmmaker or songwriter could ever do justice to the terrible injustice that took place all those years ago.<\/p>\n
To some degree, the Carter story had a happy ending. Of course, there was never going to be payback for what a deeply racist system did to him but he would be successful in his long campaign for freedom and the world would know of the awful crime that was perpetrated against him by a corrupt cabal within the New Jersey Police Department.<\/p>\n
Rubin left us last year. In March 2012, while attending an International Justice Conference in Australia, Rubin was diagnosed with cancer and there was no appeal to be lodged. On April 20th 2014, he doffed his fedora hat for the last time and bid adieu to a life often filled with sadness. He was a fighter, a thinker and a writer but was his plight unique to him or are our jail cells home to other fighters who have fallen foul of injustice?<\/p>\n
Anthony \u201cTwo Guns\u201d Fletcher was born on November 24th 1957 and fought out of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. As a young man, he joined the US Army and, following his discharge he took up boxing in his 20\u2019s. He would later say that, having lived the soldier\u2019s life, it was the discipline of boxing that appealed to him. But Anthony had the gift and he went on to a hugely impressive amateur career. He won the regional title, the national title, he was the Ohio Fair champion four years running and he won six Pennsylvania State Golden Gloves titles. In the unpaid ranks he beat Ray Mancini twice, Milton McCrory, Jimmy Paul, Melvin Paul and Harry Arroyo. After compiling a record of 159-12, Anthony turned pro as a Lightweight on June 5th 1980.<\/p>\n
By 1987, Anthony had put together an impressive record of
\n21-0-1, 8 KO\u2019s. Age would be against him however and, without a title to his credit, turning 31 in the lighter divisions was always going to be a handicap with so many exciting young fighters coming up the ranks. Anthony was struggling and he looked to the easy money to make ends meet. He became involved in petty crime and, although he would go on to win the USA Pennsylvania State Lightweight Title in 1989, other events that year would have a more profound effect on his life. In June of that year, while watching a basketball game with a friend, a gunman opened fire on Fletcher, shooting him 5 times. Incredibly, he survived the attack but one of the bullets had damaged his vocal chords and he was never able to talk above a whisper after that. He fought his last bout in 1990 and bowed out of the game with a record of 24-4-1, 8 KO\u2019s.<\/p>\n
On March 2nd 1992, at approximately 1am in the morning, according to Anthony he was walking by 60th Street and Greenway Avenue when he was approached by Vaughn Christopher who taken $50 from Fletcher in a crap game earlier that night. An altercation took place and Christopher pulled a gun. The men wrestled, the gun went off more than once and Vaughn Christopher was badly injured. He later died in hospital. Fletcher was charged with First Degree Murder and, although Anthony was offered leniency (10yrs to 20yrs) if he accepted a plea bargain, he opted to go to trial believing no jury would convict him.<\/p>\n
His defense attorney outlined that Fletcher had fallen from grace having once held a title in the ring. \u201cI just wanted to fight\u201d Anthony testified \u201cI fought Livingstone Bramble in Atlantic City and I beat him. In 1980, I knocked Ray Mancini out. But I got a Detached Retina. I was messed up and it seemed like I just couldn\u2019t get back on track\u201d. The eyewitness testimonies came from Natalie Renee Grant, who was facing charges of theft and prostitution, and Angelic Kirkman, an admitted Crack Addict who was facing charges of possession. Both witnesses were offered probation for their testimony. The jury was not informed of those deals. Also, it was never stated to the jury that Vaughn Christopher died of blood loss at hospital because his mother, a Jehovah\u2019s Witness, refused medical treatment that could have saved his life.<\/p>\n
The District Attorney at the time was Lynne Abraham who was known as \u201cThe Deadly D.A\u201d having once appeared on the cover of a Philly magazine brandishing a machine gun. Her office called for the death penalty and Fletcher\u2019s own Attorney, Stephen Patrizo, would later confess to a litany of trial errors but that would come too late. He would say that he had expected Anthony to take the plea bargain and no plan B. Anthony\u2019s criminal record was presented to the court but there was no mention of his service to his country. Even Fletcher\u2019s nickname was used against him. It was put to the jury that he was known as \u201cTwo Guns\u201d because he carried such weapons on the street and Patrizo didn\u2019t see it as necessary to correct the assertion by saying the \u201cTwo Guns\u201d referred to Fletcher\u2019s fists. Vital evidence disappeared from the medical examiner\u2019s office and detectives who looked at the case later would agree that Natalie Renee Grant\u2019s testimony was dubious and that there were no grounds for premeditation in the case, ruling out First Degree Murder.<\/p>\n
Regardless of what would come to light at a later date, Anthony Fletcher was found guilty and sentenced to death by lethal injection. Even the jury\u2019s deliberation was steeped in controversy. Twice the jury had reported to Judge Robert A. Latrone that they were deadlocked but he insisted they come back with a verdict.\u201cThey railroaded me\u201d Fletcher shouted as he was led away \u201cThat guy pulled a gun on me. I tried to block him. That\u2019s not First-Degree Murder\u201d. Fletcher was once described as \u2018just another disposable black man\u2019 but the saddest part of that statement is that, had he not served his country with distinction and had he been free to turn pro at a younger age, Anthony could have been a great champion and a huge success story from the streets of Philadelphia. Over the years there have been many attempts made to highlight the injustice around Fletcher\u2019s case.<\/p>\n
In August of 2000, Robert Cassidy, a former associate editor of Ring Magazine, wrote a detailed article about the many holes in the case against Anthony. There are online petitions calling for his death penalty to be revoked and there have been calls for lawyers, who have garnished so much from the boxing industry, to come out fighting for Fletcher. But, to date, no one has and Fletcher sits in a Death Row Cell inside SCI Greene Prison in Waynesburg, Pennsylvania awaiting his fate. But his tragedy hasn\u2019t stopped there.<\/p>\n
Anthony\u2019s son, Anthony, JR., did not go down the same path as his father. Although a huge fight fan, young Fletcher was an articulate, intelligent and ambitious guy who avoided the lure of the ring. Instead he became a Delegate for the District 1199c of the Hospital and Health Care employees union at Hahnamann Hospital. In December 2012, Anthony JR. and his friend were walking towards the University Court apartments when they were approached by a single male, Marco Joaquin, who shot Fletcher once in the head, killing him instantly. Anthony\u2019s friend, Dwayne Page, was shot in the chest and later died in hospital. Anthony JR. was a passionate fight fan and an insightful reader of the game. He can be seen on YouTube breaking down the rivalry between Bernard Hopkins and Chad Dawson. His passing will hurt his father more than the injustice of his trial and the loss of his liberty. RSR would like to extend our belated condolences to Anthony SR and to the Fletcher family for their terrible loss.<\/p>\n