We've All Been Punked? Hey National Media Whatcha' Doing Other Than Covering The Tart Trio (Britney,Paris,LiLo)? Hey regional media (other than the Bulletin)- that means you Inquirer, c'mon now, you can't write an update? Do citizen journalists have to do all the work? Crikey, y'all still haven't let Natalee Holloway go....

By now you all out there know we are dedicated to covering the case of the murder of Jamie Cockayne until justice is served. At present, we have to ask, is the government on St. John U.S. Virgin Islands obstructing it?

We have covered Jamie here on the following posts as well as over at PhillyFuture where some of the comments are well into the hundreds:

http://www.saveardmorecoalition.org/node/1742
http://www.saveardmorecoalition.org/node/1760
http://www.saveardmorecoalition.org/node/1782
http://www.saveardmorecoalition.org/node/1786
http://www.saveardmorecoalition.org/node/1800

Jamie Cockayne was a kid. He had a ridiculous myspace page that reflected his age and generation (parents - have you checked out YOUR kid's myspace page lately? Do you know where and what and who of you kid before you criticize a dead kid's myspace page like it would have prevented his murder?) Does every single person who has ever had "words" on a public street or in a bar or someplace else deserve to be murdered? Uh, no.

But what is stupefying and horrifying here is the bungle factor in this murder case, which isn't in a foreign country, but instead a U.S. territory. Our American interpretation of justice doesn't seem to exist does it? First degree murder suspects who are flight risks are getting bail we normally see on the mainland for much lesser offenses. A court prosecutor (we guess like a DA) just inexplicably fails to show at a court proceeding, and that is ok? A family has been waiting since June for some knd of autopsy report, and that is ok?

Supposedly U.S. Congressmen, U.S. Senators, FBI and others we rely on for the correct carrying out of justice are involved, yet this case is such a miscarriage of our justice system and things we hold dear as Americans? The more time passes, the more we learn that Jamie's case is but the tip of the proverbial iceberg, and that is ok too?

Is this welcome to the twilight zone? Are we being legally punked here as U.S. citizens? Are we supposed to continue to travel and live in the U.S. Virgin Islands and pretend that "America's Paradise" is NOT a hotbed of corruption?

Today's Bulletin reports the following story:

Cockayne Family Blasts Authorities
By: Jenny DeHuff, The Bulletin
08/21/2007

Philadelphia - The case is being bungled.

This is the sentiment of the parents of Jamie Cockayne, 21, of New Hope, the victim of the June murder that took place on the U.S. Virgin Islands territory of St. John.

But recent events in the courtroom have led Attorney Sean Summers to believe the Cockayne case is being foiled by island police, prosecutors, judges and corrections officials.

Virgin Islands Superior Court Judge Brenda Hollar dismissed a motion to detain Anselmo Boston, who faces first-degree murder charges for the stabbing death of Cockayne, after a prosecutor was more than 30 minutes late for the scheduled 9 a.m. hearing Friday.
Hollar set bail at $100,000. He faces charges of first-degree murder, first-degree assault, third degree assault and weapons charges..."This case has received national media attention so you think they'd pay a little more attention," Summers said of the prosecution.

"We don't want to believe it's a Virgin Islands government conspiracy, I think it just proves they are incapable of doing their jobs," Jeanie Cockayne said.....According to recent news reports from island publications, a total of three arrests have been made in connection with the brutal slaying of Cockayne, which took place outside a bar in the Cruz Bay section of St. John.

U.S. Assistant District Attorney Renee Gumbs-Carty claimed "miscommunication" as a reason for her absence.

"All the players were there except the prosecution," Summers said.

"The Cockaynes are sick to their stomach. Either [the government doesn't] grasp the seriousness of this case or they don't give a damn."

Summers and the Cockaynes said they would continue with efforts to engage the federal government, in hopes of a more serious approach to seeking justice for Cockayne's killers.

"I blame the governor of the Virgin Islands, the police department, and I've heard from so many people who are afraid to speak," Jeanie Cockayne said.

Assistant Attorney General Charlotte Poole-Davis said it was a misunderstanding between prosecutors and the court that led to the failure to appear on Friday. She said, typically, the court issues an order to the prosecutor's office, confirming the court date and time. By the judge issuing a "tentative" date for the hearing, Poole-Davis said miscommunication was to blame....The Cockaynes have voiced frustration over what they feel was a shotty job done by the police department, which they allege have tampered evidence, lied and stonewalled them for weeks now.

Summers said a primary source of frustration for the Cockaynes is the fact that Virgin Islands police have yet to recover the getaway car that was involved the night of the murder.... "It's just simple police work and they don't do it. It's appalling," Jeanie Cockayne said.

It's not just Jamie Cockayne's family at this point that deserves justice, we all do. And we're not getting it. Thank heavens for the Philadelphia area media outlets and us pesky little bloggers, because if we all weren't working hard to keep this story alive, it would be dead...dead and murdered just like Jamie. CNN, FOX News, MSNBC, and the network evening news, where are you? Can you stop covering Linsey Lohan, Paris Hilton,hot pants Britney Spears, and the weather long enough to pay more attention to this? And our Federally elected officials, like the after affect of Katrina, this ain't going away, so get busy.

And to the government of the U.S. Virgin Islands, you deserve the largest black eye of them all: you continue to fight a grieving family who wants justice and closure. You can hire all the spin doctors money can buy, but you can't make this go away, and the court of public opinion will not allow it. We will also note that no one to our knowledge has received even ONE acknowledgement of what must be thousands of e-mails, phone calls, and letters. And you also can't ignore a hot national topic - the topic of freedom of information.

Freedom of information is just not at issue in this case....we all wonder about it on a local, regional, and national level. Here's a little bit about that:

Freedom of information in the United States

The purpose of freedom of information legislation and sunshine laws is to increase the openness and transparency of government.

On a national level, the federal Freedom of Information Act was signed into law on July 4, 1966 by President Lyndon Johnson.

Each state has its own open records legislation that governs documents at the state and local (cities, counties, school districts) level.

The first open records law was passed in Wisconsin shortly after it became a state in 1848. A number of states passed their open records legislation in the 1970s in the wake of Watergate.

Freedom of Information Act (FOIA)