Jena 6 Mom, Melissa Bell, Accused of Attacking Two Women with Shovel

Jena, Louisiana -- Melissa Bell, mother of the only Jena 6 convicted of his part in the violent beating of Justin Barker in Jena, Louisiana, in 2006, has been arrested for allegedly attacking two women with a shovel. According to the Alexandria Town Talk, Bell allegedly attacked two women with a shovel during an altercation in her yard. According to the victims, they arrived at Bell's residence to pick their children up after receiving a phone call claiming that a drug deal had occurred while their children were at Bell's.

This is the second time the parents of Mychal Bell have allegedly attacked someone since Mychal was arrested for his role in the Justin Barker beating. In August of 2008, Marcus Jones, Bell's father, was arrested in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, for allegedly spitting on Bell's lawyer then pushing her down. Carol Powell-Lexing filed charges against Jones. Jones, just like son Mychal in 2006, claimed he was innocent. Mychal Bell later admitted in a CNN interview that he did attack Barker, the crime he was convicted of.

The two crimes by Mychal Bell's parents occurred roughly a year after a huge civil rights March in Jena, Louisiana. The protest, which occured on September 20, 2007, was organized to support Mychal Bell and the other 5 black high school students who were accused of beating a white classmate while unconscious back in 2006. Protesters argued that the Jena 6 were being railroaded by the local judicial system, claiming a disparity exists between the treatment of whites and blacks in the small Louisiana town. Since then, several Jena 6 members have had brushes with the law, making their pleas of being innocent in the role of the Justin Barker beating more questionnable.

Recent events raise several new questions to be addressed. Will raising teens who have been arrested and accused of a violent crime up on a pedestal inspire true positive change in their lives? Do the actions of one's parents have a dominant effect on how children behave? Lastly, where are Jena 6 supporters in times like these?