[Principled]

Somebody told the panthers that they need not even show up for court.

I too see this as perhaps most insidious.

Someone told them "it will be taken care of".... scary...

[cripplecreek]

One of the Black Panthers who failed to show up is an attorney. These aren’t people who just don’t bother to show up for court. They knew they wouldn’t need to be there.