Eyewitness to Michael Randolph killing says DA Jim Martin's local media accounts are false

Thomas Hawkins lives in Idaho and works for the U.S. Forest Service. When we spoke by cell phone on Tuesday June 12 at 6:07 pm EST, T-Tom Hawkins was fighting a forest fire in 98 degree temperature in Arizona.

A former longtime Allentonian and a 2008 graduate of Allentown's William Allen High School, Tom Hawkins and his brother were with their friend Michael Randolph the night Randolph was shot three times and killed by licensed National Rifle Association firearms instructor and security guard Andrew Gesslein [Criminal Docket] at Allentown's North End Republican Club on April 29, 2012.

After 40 days of online, on-street, and political pressure from Allentown Mayor Ed Pawlowski, DA Jim Martin finally charged Andrew Gesslein with voluntary manslaughter on June 7, read LVS account, then read the DA Jim Martin-friendly account by WFMZ-TV 69 "News."

Turns out Michael Randolph's white killer Andrew Gesslein is a law enforcement insider who works for ex-cop Pat Badolato/Eye In The Sky, inconvenient facts that were purposefully concealed by our local media for 28 days but were reported on exposé exclusively here at LVS over a month ago. On June 13, LVS learned from an attorney colleague of DA Jim Martin that Andrew Gesslein is also familiar to our local law enforcement community in his capacity as a bail bondsman "bounty hunter." But again, no mention of this in our local media.

Incredibly, in DA Jim Martin's local media accounts of Andrew Gesslein's arrest, NO PHOTOS of caucasian criminal defendant and licensed NRA firearms instructor/confessed killer/bounty hunter Andrew Gesslein were published or broadcast-- no perp walk, no mug shot, no nuthin', although DA Jim Martin's local media peppered and slanted their coverage w/ numerous photos of the deceased victim Michael Randolph. To date [6/27/12], no photos of Andrew Gesslein have appeared anywhere in DA Jim Martin's local media.

Tom Hawkins and his brother cooperated fully with local law enforcement investigators. Allentown Police Detectives interviewed both Hawkins brothers and both made statements on the record soon after Michael Randolph's killing.

Today's Morning Call > "Police have not talked to the two people with Randolph that night. One of them is out of state, Martin said, and police have not been able to identify the other."

Tom Hawkins and his brother were standing next to Michael Randolph at the North End Republican Club before and after Andrew Gesslein started shooting on April 29. Tom Hawkins heard 4 shots. Andrew Gesslein told authorities he fired only twice. DA Jim Martin's local media accounts have admitted to 3 shots (for now).

According to DA Jim Martin's local media accounts ...

The Morning Call > "Gesslein said Randolph and his friends threatened to kill him or hurt him. Two witnesses interviewed by police confirmed his account."

The Express-Times > "Gesslein told police Randolph made repeated threats to kill him, saying: "I'll kill you," "We should (expletive) you up" and "If you don't let me in, we're going to fight." Note: There's no mention of "2 witnesses" corroborating Andrew Gesslein's story about 'threats to kill' in The Express-Times's account as was declared in The Morning Call's account.

According to T-Tom Hawkins ... who was there ... none of this happened.

Neither Michael Randolph nor his friends verbalized anything even remotely resembling threats to kill anyone, according to Hawkins.

"Is the 'threats to kill' story total bullshit?" I asked Tom Hawkins. "Yes," Tom told me.

The Morning Call > "A security guard working the North End Republican Club in Allentown on April 29 told detectives he saw a man he had just kicked out reaching toward his waistband for what the guard thought was a gun, according to court records."

The Express-Times > "Gesslein told police he fired after Randolph stopped, turned around and reached for his waist area. Witnesses could not confirm Gesslein's account of whether Randolph turned around or not ..."

Note: So basically, DA Jim Martin is taking confessed killer Andrew Gesslein's word for this, that Michael Randolph 'reached for his waist area,' as well as the 'threats to kill' story-- and this is the same killer who claimed to have fired 2 shots but in fact had fired at least 3. Not very credible, this Andrew Gesslein, although DA Jim Martin sure does like to quote him in his local media accounts.

The Morning Call > "A nearly six-week investigation revealed Randolph had no weapon and there were no witnesses or evidence saying he even pretended to have one, authorities said Thursday."

The Morning Call > "Another witness told police Gesslein fired as the three men [one of which was Michael Randolph] were running toward the door."

Now we're getting closer to the truth.

The Express-Times > "Martin said Randolph was shot three times -- once in the back ..."

Here's Tom Hawkins's account of what actually happened that night, as told to me over the phone on June 12 ...

Michael Randolph and the Hawkins brothers were anticipating entrance to the North End Republican Club at the club's back entrance. When the door swung open, the three men started to enter the club; they did not "force their way in," as is being reported in DA Jim Martin's local media accounts. When security guard/doorman Andrew Gesslein spotted Michael Randolph, he had a noticeable bad reaction (more on this later) and he slammed the door so quickly that it hit, and caught, Michael Randolph. Randolph shoved Gesslein. Once. Gesslein shoved Randolph back, stepped back, drew his weapon, and shot Michael Randolph 3 times, killing him.

Why did Andrew Gesslein have a noticeable bad reaction to seeing Michael Randolph that night?

As North End Republican Club President Robert E. Smith told LVS, and The Morning Call, Andrew Gesslein and Michael Randolph had had 'words' during a previous run-in. Gesslein knew aspiring rapper Randolph who was no stranger to the club; Randolph had frequented the club in the past, including the previous night with the Hawkins brothers, and Randolph had performed at the club recently.

Bob Smith told LVS he was perplexed by this paragraph in The Morning Call "newspaper" coverage of security guard Andrew Gesslein's arrest ...

"Club President Robert E. Smith Jr. has said Gesslein had a run-in with Randolph weeks before the killing, but Martin said investigators found no evidence to prove that claim."

Note: DA Jim Martin should try asking Andrew "Gospel" Gesslein about the claim ... because ... according to Bob Smith, it was Andrew Gesslein himself who told Bob Smith about his prior run-in w/ Michael Randolph.

When I theorized to Bob Smith that DA Jim Martin likely wanted to cover up the prior run-in because it could explain Gesslein's being inexplicably armed that night ... and might also indicate possible pre-meditation ... Bob Smith didn't seem perplexed anymore.

Bob Smith also told LVS that "everybody entering the North End Republican Club is frisked."And because everybody who goes there regularly (including Michael Randolph) knows this, "nobody ever brings a gun in," Smith told LVS.

In a phone conversation w/ LVS on June 12, North End Republican Club President Bob Smith reiterated that he stands by his statement that there was a prior run-in between killer Andrew Gesslein and victim Michael Randolph, as was reported to Bob Smith by Andrew Gesslein himself.

After previewing and approving the content of this blog post prior to publication, eyewitness Tom Hawkins stands by his statements made to LVS too, which are the same statements he made on the record to the Allentown Police Department soon after Michael Randolph's killing.

Today's Morning Call > "Police have not talked to the two people with Randolph that night. One of them is out of state, Martin said, and police have not been able to identify the other."

The Big Lie that's being perpetrated on the public by DA Jim Martin and his local media is that Michael Randolph and his friends "threatened to kill" Andrew Gesslein, then "forced their way in" through the club's "back door," where Michael Randolph then "reached for his waist area," i.e., "reached for a gun."

As this blog post clearly demonstrates, the "threats to kill" is total bullshit. So is the "forcing their way in." No witnesses (except confessed killer Andrew Gesslein) saw Michael Randolph "reach for his waist area" which is what every law enforcement person who wrongly shoots somebody claims afterwards. Michael Randolph was unarmed. And the "back door" at the North End Republican Club is actually the main entrance to its after-hours club that everyone uses.

Subtract all the bullshit from the equation and ...

The just and appropriate criminal charge in this case appears to be 2nd degree murder, like George Zimmerman got for killing Trayvon Martin.

Stay tuned to LVS for exclusive exposé coverage of citizen grass roots efforts to get Andrew Gesslein [Criminal Docket] charged with, and convicted of, the crime he committed against Michael Randolph.

Update > Confessed killer Andrew Gesslein set free, via DA Jim Martin's dirty 'Bait & Switch' charade

Watch Video > Good Ol' Boy DA Jim Martin

Read > The Dirty Facts on DA Jim Martin

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