Restorative Justice Coalition will demonstrate for Andrew Joseph III at Florida State Fairgrounds

Share
Andrew Joseph with Tampa For Justice
Andrew Joseph holds a sign with an image of his son at the Tampa For Justice press conference. By Seán Kinane / WMNF News (23 Sept 2015).

Five years ago, dozens of teenagers were so rowdy at the Florida State Fair that Hillsborough deputies removed them from the fairgrounds.

One of them, Andrew Joseph III, was then hit and killed by a vehicle on nearby Interstate-4.

His family and supporters blame the fair and law enforcement.

WMNF News interviewed Angel D’Angelo, an organizer with Restorative Justice Coalition, which is helping to organize a five-year commemoration and protest at the Fairgrounds on February 8.

“Andrew Joseph III was a 14-year-old who was attending the Fair Day, as sanctioned by Hillsborough County Public Schools. His family originally comes from Louisiana. And they were refugees from the Hurricane Katrina tragedy. [They] came to Hillsborough County because it looked like a safe and charming place to be.

“Andrew Joseph III was a high-performing student in school, never had any disciplinary problems, anything like that.

“So when he approached his parents about going to the Fair Day they thought it would be a great idea. They saw the advertisements. It looked like a safe and fun place for children to go.

“Andrew Joseph III went. And unfortunately at some point in the evening the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office Gang Task Unit rounded up a large sum of children, most of them black, and took them into their detention area.

“At that point Andrew Joseph III was detained. He was searched. They looked for gang tattoos and piercings, none of which that they found. [They] took a mugshot, did all of that stuff. But he was never charged or officially accused of any wrongdoing.

“At that time the Florida State Fair closed the fair to handle this mass chaos. Andrew Joseph III was ejected from the fair along with 99 others. Twelve people were actually charged and taken to the juvenile assessment center. [Neither] Andrew Joseph nor any of his friends were one of those people.

“Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office took Andrew Joseph III to the side of a dark, busy highway – which would be Interstate-4 – and left him there. At no time did any member of the Florida State Fair or the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office actually attempt to contact Andrew Joseph’s parents. Tragically, while he was there on the side of I-4, he was struck by an SUV and killed.

“The driver of that SUV was not charged and was left free to go by the Florida Highway Patrol. To this point we are now at five years and [neither] the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office nor the Florida State Fair have taken any type of accountability in any way.”

Listen:

 

Leave a Reply

  • (will not be published)

XHTML: You can use these tags: <a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <cite> <code> <del datetime=""> <em> <i> <q cite=""> <s> <strike> <strong>

You may also like

student meal
Next school year Hillsborough public schools are offering free meals

Hillsborough Public Schools are offering students free meals for the...

Correspondence Through Poetry. A Mind-Numbing Week.

Father Verses Sons: A Correspondence in Poems by Herbert Gold...

The sound of change: Music’s influence on anti-war and human rights movements

Throughout history, music has served as a powerful catalyst for...

a man in a tye dye shirt talking on a radio microphone
Recreational pot for Florida is on the ballot this fall—let’s talk about it

In four months, Florida voters have the opportunity to vote...

Ways to listen

WMNF is listener-supported. That means we don't advertise like a commercial station, and we're not part of a university.

Ways to support

WMNF volunteers have fun providing a variety of needed services to keep your community radio station alive and kickin'.

Follow us on Instagram

The Rhythm Revival
Player position: