September RNC verdicts: community service for Vets for Peace; Forrey gets 120 days

Two decisions related to RNC protests came down simultaneously in Ramsey County Court Thursday afternoon.  Eight demonstrators from the August 31, 2008 Vets for Peace march were found guilty of misdemeanor trespassing, but were sentenced to merely a $100 fine or 20 hours community service.  They had argued their claim of right to enter the secured area around the Xcel Energy Center under international law and the Minnesota and United States Constitutions.  Meanwhile, two floors above, Jesse James Forrey was sentenced to 120 days in jail after being found guilty weeks ago of felony damage to property.  He'll likely serve 75 with good behavior. The expected sentence was much higher.

(YouTube videos) | Read below for more a detailed report, plus more RNC and upcoming Pittsburgh G20 news.

"The Other RNC 8"

In the Vets for Peace case, the eight defendants - who ranged in age from 26 to 79 - were charged for entering the security perimeter near the Landmark Center in an effort to bring a message to elected officials and dialogue with delegates inside.  They were Jeanne Hynes, Joshua Broiller, Joel Weisberg, David Harris, Daniel Pearson, Mary Vaughan, Steve Clemens and Sister Betty McKenzie.  

McKenzie is a member of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondolet.  Weisberg is a Northfield professor.  Harris, of Red Wing, is a long-time Vets for Peace organizer.  The others hail from the Twin Cities area, Wisconsin, and Chicago.

Throughout the three-and-a-half-day trial. the group's two lawyers and two pro-se defendants (Clemens and Harris) used the case to articulate their opposition to war and violence.  They repeatedly cited international treaties, the U.S. Bill of Rights, and the "freedom of conscience" clause of the Minnesota state constitution, though Judge Wilson stopped them almost every time they tried to raise matters of higher law.

Each of the eight testified in turn at length about what led them to become advocates for peace and justice, and why failed methods of social chagne such as letter-writing and voting had to be transcended.  They acted with respect and dignity towards the court, prosecutor and jury, yet rhetorically tussled with the cross-examination, refusing to ceded that they intended to trespass as opposed to accomplish a political objective.

Concluding his legalistic closing statement, Prosecutor Stephen Christie cited Martin Luther King, Jr.'s letter from Birmingham jail, a text from early in King's political development in which he says one who commits civil disobedience must be prepared to face the consequences.

In his following statement, Harris agreed, but argued that did not mean he broke the law, since higher law supercedes state statutes.  He responded with a different King quote from shortly before his murder: "The greatest purveyor of violence in the world is my own government."

"This is a moment, an opportunity, not only for us the defendants, but for allof you listening, to help communicate our ultimate message," Harris continued.  "If we are found guilty by defining the law narrowly, it will not be the last chance for you or us to thnk further about the meaning of our existence and to work for a better world."  Harris then patted Christie on the shoulder as he went to take his seat, one of several respectful but at times comical actions taken by the elderly defendants which seemed to break down the authority of the younger prosecutor and judge.

The jury deliberated for about three hours before returning the guilty verdict.

Allowed to speak before the judge pronounced the sentences, Clemens read a prepared statement decrying war and torture, and citing the reasons we must "challenge the dying empire."  He spoke of the "$50 million seurity for the RNC to protect what Dorothy Day has called 'this filthy, rotten system.'"  He also referred to the inverted "hierarchy of laws" which in this case placed a minor trespassing statute above state and federal Constitutions and international law.

Ironically, on Thursday the courthouse celebrated "Constitution Day" by giving a pocket-sized copy of the document to members of the public entering the building in the morning.  One evidently did not reach the hands of the judge or prosecutor.

Pearson, in his sentencing statement, recalled the defendants' prior statements that they had been treated cordially and with respect by their arresting officers.  He noted now that this would likely not have been the case if the defendants were younger, non-white, or less educated - especially if the media was not present.  He asked the judge either to step out of his role and thereby become a person of conscience, or else to impose the maximum allowable penalty.

McKenzie, the last to be sentenced, said that "it was a real privilege to be with this group and be on trial.  We learned a lot this week, even from the prosecutor."

A ninth person was also arrested during the civil disobedience action on August 31, but, strangely, not charged.  Duncan Hardee of North Carolina was pepper sprayed at point-blank range the next day; footage of his assault in Terrorizing Dissent was later played in the trial of Montana medic Sean McCoy, after which an SPPD commander admitted the use of mace was inappropriate.  Hardee appeared on Democracy Now! and seemed a likely person to file a civil suit, though he has not.  He was also wrongly cited by the SPPD as a "leader of sector 5," in the affidavit for what turned out to be a bungled raid on a Macalester College dorm earlier this year.

Of the defendants, most indicated they would do the community service in lieu of a fine, which one called "a tax on my conscience."

Jesse James

At the same time the jury was returning to the courtroom, sheriff's deputies two floors above were preventing supporters of Jesse James Forrey from entering the room where he was to be sentenced.  Although many were inside Judge Flynn's courtroom, along with about a dozen Ramsey County Sheriff's Office deupties and other officers, just as many supporters were forced to wait in the hallway, even though at least a couple empty seats remained inside.

According to a detailed report on Forrey's support site, prosecutor Richard Dusterhoft asked for six months in jail for Forrey, whose prior felony conviction in California led onlookers to expect a stiffer sentence.  Instead, Judge Flynn sentenced him to four months, influenced by his strong show of support.

The Pioneer Press reported that "Police saw the [Forrey and co-defendant Dustin Matchett Morales] participate in a mob that threw things at police and tried to provoke others," but witnesses actually testified that they acted alone in breaking two windows.  The Pioneer Press also said that "several witnesses" saw the act, when in reality the police could only find two to testify; the paper also cited the damage as over $17,000 when that was actually the total cost of the many windows broken at the First National Bank Building on September 1, 2008 in addition to another several days later.

More News:

National Guard & NORTHCOM taking center stage in protest suppression at G20 next week: One lesser-known dimension of the 2008 Republican National Convention is the extensive involvement of Pentagon security bureaucracies in the suppression of dissent -- violating the Posse Comitatus Act and setting the precedent for expanded domestic militarization. With the collapse of local governments' budgets brought about by widespread financial industry fraud, Pennsylvania police departments have refused to cough up many police officers for security. Instead, around 2,000 National Guard troops are expected to fill the gap. The new U.S. Northern Command, or NORTHCOM, is attempting to expand its 'homeland defense' role into the fully militarized suppression of political dissent and protest in our country -- including by providing law enforcement with access to classified networks (SIPRNET), with the support of the National Geospatial Intelligence Agency (NGA), via the new Police Intelligence Operations (PIO) and Information Operations (IO) doctrines.

After the coverup of RNC military activity via the Heffelfinger/Luger Report, NORTHCOM and the Pennsylvania National Guard can be expected to continue to shred the U.S. Constitution on the streets of Pittsburgh next week. Twin Cities Indymedia is developing information on the use of PSYOPS and other military intelligence and military police techniques exposed during the RNC and other situations such as the Tacoma SAIC military intelligence operations -- this will be released soon. If this NORTHCOM-coordinated political suppression system is allowed to take hold, the American system of civilian government will be eclipsed by a new paramilitary intelligence apparatus. (Details and documentation to follow)

Shady people brag about RNC undercover political suppression:  Former Bloomington police officer Richard Greelis wrote a chapter in his cleverly titled "Cop Book" about undercover RNC work, gave a catty shout-out to Terrorizing Dissent, the film co-produced by TC Indymedia and Glass Bead Collective. He also talks about the usual obsession with bodily wastes and how someone was apparently compelled to become an RNC informant via drug charges; we also learn that the National Lawyers Guild is an affinity group! The infamous and ever attention-hungry FBI informant/provocateur Brandon Darby is peddling lies about the RNC and his activities in New Orleans to a right-wing audience now.

Pittsburgh Terrorizing Dissent screening on eve of the G20: What better way to prepare G20 protesters for widespread suppression of civil rights, PSYOPS crowd control dispersion methods, tactical media work to expose undercover police provocateurs in demonstrations, and all the other RNC travesties we came to know and loathe? Check out the screening of Terrorizing Dissent: Election Cut at 5:30 PM (Eastern) on Wednesday, September 23rd, in room 111 of the Barco Law Building at 3990 Forbes Avenue.

New September 2nd Ripple Effect video: A video about the September 2nd Ripple Effect concert has finally been released, with footage from TC Indymedia, Unconvention.TV, Joanne Sekler, Pepperspray Productions and Democracy Now. It's @ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4QxRiRi0TEY: Substance hosted a progressive concert Sept 2 @ the 2008 RNC-after officials shut down RATM, the crowd rallied to Xcel Center, got tear-gassed, bombed with concussion grenades and pepper sprayed. Featuring Michael Franti, Anti-Flag, Dead Prez, Rage Against the Machine, Amy Goodman, Green Party Rosa Clemente, impact rounds, concussion grenades and Republican National Convention riot police. Produced by Twin Cities Indymedia http://tc.indymedia.org w footage from Unconvention.TV Pepperspray Productions & more.