Black Ministers who once prayed with the DA urge Rosenthal to step down

[Ian David]

Black leaders urge Rosenthal to step down
Ministers who once prayed with the DA now say he misled them
By LESLIE CASIMIR
Copyright 2008 Houston Chronicle

A growing chorus of black leaders on Friday called for besieged Harris County District Attorney Chuck Rosenthal to step down immediately in response to court documents that reveal he used government computers to send and receive racist and sexually explicit e-mails.

The 730 e-mails released Tuesday also show Rosenthal strategized with political consultants and colleagues about his re-election campaign on his county e-mail account, prompting the Texas Attorney General's Office to launch an investigation this week.

As state officials determine whether Rosenthal violated state campaign laws, a coalition of black ministers and other community leaders on Friday called for him to step down immediately, charging the top prosecutor misled them. At least one called for a federal probe of the entire district attorney's office.

They pointed to a racially charged photograph found in Rosenthal's e-mails depicting a black man sprawled out on a sidewalk next to large slices of watermelon, a cup of soda and a chicken bucket. The title of the e-mail: Fatal Overdose. It's unclear how the image arrived in Rosenthal's file.

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