Please join us in standing up for the constitutional rights of 11-year-old Daniel Marquez. As parents in the age of smart phones and social media, many of us worry about what our children will say or do online or in private text messages to friends. Kids make mistakes and it is our job to teach and discipline them—not to let elected officials demonize them or destroy their future for saying something inappropriate or offensive in a private conversation.
What happened to Daniel could happen to any child. That is why we are raising money to protect his First and Fourteenth Amendment constitutional rights to free speech and due process. Legal fees for this next phase will be over $20,000. Time is short. In the next few months, Daniel needs to file his appeal. 100% of donations will go toward supporting Daniel and funding his legal expenses.
"'Law enforcement performs a vital role in our society, and what was done to Daniel Marquez by Sheriff Marceno does not make us safer,' [...] Bion Bartning said in a statement. 'Instead, it diverts resources away from dealing with real crimes, and real criminals.' The New York Post then interviewed Marquez and published a second story, with a very different headline: 'Dad of boy accused of school shooting threat says sheriff ‘crucified’ son for political gain.'"
"It’s too easy to forget that young people are citizens just like the rest of us, and they’re protected by the U.S. Constitution. Yes, courts have ruled that minors grow into their rights, but the core principles of equal protection under the law are there at birth. True threats of all sorts – against schools, health officials, librarians, police officers and many more – need to be properly investigated and prosecuted. But that means focusing resources on pursuing those who strive to intimidate, not children who claim to have come into a trillion dollars."
“They started laughing when they saw the ridiculous amounts of money, because it was just one with a bunch of zeros, and no commas in between. So, there’s no way for your adult mind to interpret the number. The detectives that were here investigating a potential mass shooting thought it was funny.” Looking back, Dereck regrets not having a lawyer present during that conversation.
“We have a major problem throughout our system. Not only in the juvenile context, but in Congress today, in the courts today, in which we have eliminated due process in which people are allowed to essentially convict other people based on just one person’s assessment,” Dershowitz said.
Saiz says he doesn’t have that option with Daniel Marquez’s case, because the Lee County Sheriff’s Office chose to make it public. “It should have been a matter that should have been handled by adults involving a child and should have been handled with a certain level of, you know, security and privacy,” said Saiz.
Daniel’s 11-year-old brother Johnathan thought once detectives heard Daniel’s explanation and met their family, they would see he was not a threat. “He never got in trouble in school, he never got in trouble with the law, besides this which I think is outrageous in my opinion,” said Johnathan.
Derrane adds, “The sheriff reportedly said that ‘I am making my people safe’. But in that, is he providing justice to this boy and his family? Could he be providing the trigger that in the long run may make us less safe?”
“Law and order always, and the safety and security of my residents,” Marceno said. “I ain’t playing games.” And it’s not uncommon to hear Marceno call out people he’s arrested live on TV or social media. “These people aren’t human beings.” “He’s a loser.” “We got trash off the streets today. He’s an oxygen stealer.” “He’s an oxygen stealer and he doesn’t deserve to breathe the fresh air.”
“By its very name, the Department of Justice stands for justice. And usually, that means helping ordinary people, especially children, when they are abused by the powerful. Daniel’s case is very compelling,” said Letitia Kim.
Lee County Judge Carolyn Swift didn’t say how long Marquez would be on probation, but the conditions include a 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. curfew, a diversion class, an appearance before a neighborhood accountability board, and a 500-word essay defining a school threat and what he has learned from this case so far.
100% of donations will go toward supporting Daniel and funding his legal expenses.
The organization that had promised to fund Daniel's legal expenses told his father that they are no longer able to help. Daniel has retained an attorney and needs our help. We are almost 1/3 of the way toward our goal of raising $30,000 to help Daniel with his legal expenses. Please consider donating to support Daniel today. 100% of donations will go toward supporting Daniel and funding his legal expenses.