August 22, 2008

Free Snoop

Actress Felicia Pearson, who played Snoop on The Wire, has been arrested on minor drug charges. Of course she has. From the New York Times:

Court records show Felicia ''Snoop'' Pearson, who played a killer of the same name on the television series, was charged after police went to her home in Northeast Baltimore to pick her up for refusing to cooperate as a witness in a murder trial.
She was arrested Wednesday after police served a warrant that would allow them to detain her, if needed, until the Sept. 16 trial of Steven Lashley. Court documents say Pearson is accused of having two cigars containing suspected marijuana in a bedroom and loose plant material. She was charged with one count of drug possession.

Authorities say Pearson witnessed Lashley stab three men, killing one, during an argument in 2005.

Look, my middle name is "Justice" (actually it's "Vigilante Justice," but let's not split hairs unless I come to your house in the middle of the night and split them for you to avenge a wrong), but it seems ridiculous to imprison Snoop for just being who she is. Would you put a lion in a cage? Would you try not to get hit by lightning? No. So how is this different?

That's why I've created this t-shirt.

All proceeds will go to the People's Defense Fund For Snoop, an organization that buys The Wire on DVD and rewatches them in the living room.

However, I recognize that some people think all crimes should be punished, even if the person committing them was so awesome and kind of scared you when she was on TV. That's why I've created an alternative t-shirt. The proceeds will go to the same organization, but each donation will be accompanied by a note that says "I don't believe in this," which you can also have put in the name of a loved one, if the shirt is being given as a gift.