Yesterday, 200 people rallied outside the Ruane Judicial Center in Salem, MA to protest Feeley's decision regarding convicted drug dealer Manuel Soto-Vittini. The rally, organized by local radio talk show host Jeff Kuhner, came a week after Massachusetts representative Jim Lyons filed a resolution to impeach Judge Feeley. For Rep. Lyons, Judge Feeley's ruling on Soto-Vittini was the last straw.
Manuel Soto-Vittini was arrested in June 2015 after police found 40 bags of heroin hidden in various departments in his car. According to Salem Police, Soto-Vittini was not a small time crook. He was a central figure in the Salem drug trade. This drug trade led to 21 deaths in Salem directly from opioids like heroin in 2017. That number pales in comparison to the 2,016 who died from opioid overdoses bought by addicts purchased from criminals such as Soto-Vittini through out last year.
Comment: Interestingly, this story bears a strong resemblance to Sergei Magnitsky, the Russian accountant who died in custody. Bill Browder then spread the story that Magnitsky had been beaten to death by numerous guards, and his activism led to the Magnitsky Act, which sanctions Russians allegedly guilty of human rights abuses.
Now here's the thing: Browder's story was a fabrication. Yes, Magnitsky died in prison and the guards were negligent about caring for his health. But there is no indication he was beaten. Browder just made that up.
All things being equal, the claims that Israeli guards beat Oweisat, leading to his death, should result in an "Oweisat Act" sanctioning Israelis tied to alleged human rights abuses. God knows, there is more evidence of Israeli human rights violations than there are for Russians. So what do you think? How long until the U.S. starts sanctioning Israelis for beating up Palestinian detainees? We're not holding our breaths, either.