It has been 8 months sense I was falsely arrested in Minneapolis, and it will be another 4 until I go to court it seems. Very little has proceeded sense then. Gus, the first to go to trial, was found not guilty after 5 days of court. My lawyer thought that after that victory the prosecutor would be more willing to either dismiss the charges or at least offer a lower plead. That now seems to be a false hope and we are preparing for trial.
At least this court date sits better with me. The previous date of mid july was exactly when i was hoping to go to peru to see my girlfriend Mariela on her vacation. I am very glad I will be able to see her again before standing trial before these corrupt protectors of fascism. And with this new date being only one week after the RNC I will be saving a trip altogether.
For those of you that would like to help, yes financial contributions for our legal support are always appreciated, but I think it is more beneficial to contribute more directly. Go to the RNC in Minneapolis this September 1-4 show them how you feel. Show them like a vote or letter never could. And if you are still around a week later, go to my court date and show your support there.
Thursday, April 24, 2008
Tuesday, February 26, 2008
Critical Mass Arrestie Support Site
To keep up to date on whats going on and to lend your solidarity in any way you can.
Critical Mass Arrestie Support
Thanks so much for the support you have given me.
It looks like I wont have to go to court till around may, and that works out pretty good for me. The weather will me nicer then and it gives me time to go to mexico for a wile. Im going to volunteer again for Baja Travisia, an eco adventure race that traverses the baja peninsula. I think i will stay in mexico until i have to go to court and just fly out to minneapolis when i need to. But we will see how that all works out. As of now the plan is to leave in a little over a week to cali then down to mexico.
Critical Mass Arrestie Support
Thanks so much for the support you have given me.
It looks like I wont have to go to court till around may, and that works out pretty good for me. The weather will me nicer then and it gives me time to go to mexico for a wile. Im going to volunteer again for Baja Travisia, an eco adventure race that traverses the baja peninsula. I think i will stay in mexico until i have to go to court and just fly out to minneapolis when i need to. But we will see how that all works out. As of now the plan is to leave in a little over a week to cali then down to mexico.
Thursday, January 17, 2008
the photos i got arrested for
Not all that great. Kinda disappointing from a photographic stand point.
Thursday, September 13, 2007
A republished article
Url: http://articles.citypages.com/2007-09-12/news/vicious-cycle/
Home: www.citypages.com
City Pages — News
Issue — September 12, 2007
Critical Mass chaos may be a preview of the Republican National Convention
Vicious Cycle
By Matt Snyders
As Sgt. Ed Nelson of the Minneapolis Police Department approached his officers on La Salle Avenue, the looming 25-year veteran of the force appeared calm and unruffled, though there was no mistaking the urgency in his hurried gait.
Nearly 50 patrol units from multiple agencies had responded to an MPD officer's call for help earlier on that August 31 evening, and a group of police now stood near the corner of 15th and La Salle awaiting Nelson's orders. His composed demeanor did little to mask the zeal in his voice.
"Drive down Nicollet," Nelson barked sternly, his hands on his hips. "Herd the assholes down this way. Any blocking of traffic, any blocking of anything, arrest them."
Paula Hare, a transgender veterans' activist who lives nearby, caught this exchange on tape. The "assholes" Nelson referred to were participating in Critical Mass, a monthly event in which bicyclists take to the road en masse to assert their "right to the road" and discourage reliance on gas-dependent vehicles. Previous rallies had unfolded peacefully.
Not this time. The MPD maintains that rogue cyclists attacked officers. Spokesmen within the department have refused to provide details, and police involved in the tussle have snubbed inquiries as to exactly what happened.
According to the official police report, a few cyclists near the rear of the group put hoods over their heads and "began to make aggressive moves" in front of trailing cop cars. Officers tried to arrest one of the troublemakers, but he escaped into the crowd. Soon after, a second male put a handkerchief over his face and tauntingly darted in front of the tailing squad cars.
This time, officers succeeded in catching the suspect, but were soon surrounded by a frenzied crowd chanting, "Let him go! Let him go!" A third cyclist tried to interfere, according to the report, and was arrested.
That only agitated the stunned cyclists. "What's the charge? What's the charge?" they chanted.
Police responded with aggression. Video footage captures police unleashing pepper spray into the faces of baffled bystanders. Witnesses say nonresistant cyclists were continually Tasered and Maced even after they were pinned to the pavement.
As Donny Lessard stood by watching the surreal fracas unfold, he was overcome by a noxious, burning odor. "It was like an habanero pepper times one thousand," he says. Maced from nearly 15 feet away, his eyes poured tears and his nose streamed mucus.
As police began herding the crowd southbound down La Salle, Lessard walked with a female companion. When an officer told her to "keep moving, sweetheart," Lessard—still suffering from the aftereffects of the pepper spray—fired back, "Don't call her 'sweetheart.'"
At that point, he says, he was grabbed from behind and tackled to the pavement by two officers, who simultaneously Maced him again, this time at point blank.
"A cop told me to 'Quit crying like a pussy,'" he says. He was arrested on suspicion of rioting and held in custody until the following night, after a friend posted his $3,000 bail.
Witnesses—both local residents and cyclists—recount similar stories. For many, the issue at stake has less to do with whether or not Critical Mass members broke the law—participants themselves admit a few cyclists almost certainly committed traffic violations and blocked traffic—and more to do with law enforcement's heavy-handed response.
"The videos and the 20 written witness accounts I've read corroborate what the cyclists say," says Jordan Kushner, a Minneapolis attorney who is part of a group representing the bulk of those arrested. "It's pretty simple. The MPD aggresively attacked a group of bicyclists. They provide no specifics as to how they were provoked other than that one or two cyclists crossed the yellow line. If that's sufficient provocation for what happened, we're in big trouble."
In a September 4 press release, Minneapolis Police Chief Tim Dolan admitted that some of the actions reported to him "give [him] some concern" and announced that an internal review will be conducted by three of his units and the City Civil Rights Department.
"The Minneapolis Police Department strongly supports citizens' rights to free speech and assembly," he said, "and I will ensure that this incident and every complaint are fairly reviewed."
Matt Laible, a spokesman for the city of Minneapolis, said the city attorney's office is currently reviewing the charges against the 16 alleged rioters. He expects the city attorney to make decisions on the charges by the end of the month.
In the wake of the incident, some observers are asking whether the confrontation was designed to undermine the growing Republican National Convention protest movement.
"It works on two levels," says lawyer Kushner, "Not only does it intimidate potential protesters to stay silent, but it's also an attempt to poison the well for RNC protesters in terms of the public's perception of them."
The ride featured an unprecedented police surveillance team keeping tabs on the cyclists. In addition to the MPD, the Ramsey County Sheriff's Department and Minnesota State Patrol trailed the riders. Perhaps the most striking presence was that of a state patrol helicopter hovering overhead.
The extra police presence may have been due to the participation of the RNC Welcoming Committee—a group organizing a mass protest at the 2008 Republican Convention in St. Paul—which held a weekend event marking the one-year lead-up to the convention. While Critical Mass riders stress that they are in no way affiliated with the group, the ride did have sizeable representation from the Welcoming Committee.
Officials dismiss the Committee in their explanation, attributing the heightened surveillance to increased complaints they had received in the wake of previous Critical Mass rides. Asked about the helicopter, MPD spokeswoman Tammy Diedrich claims that it was intended to help the cyclists.
"The police department has never been able to help facilitate their ride because they're always in the back of the riders," Diedrich says, "so they decided to provide an aerial view to make it a better ride."
But that explanation doesn't wash with Michelle Gross, a registered nurse who treated many of the cyclists' injuries and acts as vice president for Communities United Against Police Brutality.
"They had this planned and were ready," Gross says of the police. "They've been doing this for months with no problems and all of sudden they need a helicopter? This was political."Tony Webster
Url: http://articles.citypages.com/2007-09-12/news/vicious-cycle/
Home: www.citypages.com
City Pages is the Online News and Arts Weekly of the Twin Cities
Home: www.citypages.com
City Pages — News
Issue — September 12, 2007
Critical Mass chaos may be a preview of the Republican National Convention
Vicious Cycle
By Matt Snyders
As Sgt. Ed Nelson of the Minneapolis Police Department approached his officers on La Salle Avenue, the looming 25-year veteran of the force appeared calm and unruffled, though there was no mistaking the urgency in his hurried gait.
Nearly 50 patrol units from multiple agencies had responded to an MPD officer's call for help earlier on that August 31 evening, and a group of police now stood near the corner of 15th and La Salle awaiting Nelson's orders. His composed demeanor did little to mask the zeal in his voice.
"Drive down Nicollet," Nelson barked sternly, his hands on his hips. "Herd the assholes down this way. Any blocking of traffic, any blocking of anything, arrest them."
Paula Hare, a transgender veterans' activist who lives nearby, caught this exchange on tape. The "assholes" Nelson referred to were participating in Critical Mass, a monthly event in which bicyclists take to the road en masse to assert their "right to the road" and discourage reliance on gas-dependent vehicles. Previous rallies had unfolded peacefully.
Not this time. The MPD maintains that rogue cyclists attacked officers. Spokesmen within the department have refused to provide details, and police involved in the tussle have snubbed inquiries as to exactly what happened.
According to the official police report, a few cyclists near the rear of the group put hoods over their heads and "began to make aggressive moves" in front of trailing cop cars. Officers tried to arrest one of the troublemakers, but he escaped into the crowd. Soon after, a second male put a handkerchief over his face and tauntingly darted in front of the tailing squad cars.
This time, officers succeeded in catching the suspect, but were soon surrounded by a frenzied crowd chanting, "Let him go! Let him go!" A third cyclist tried to interfere, according to the report, and was arrested.
That only agitated the stunned cyclists. "What's the charge? What's the charge?" they chanted.
Police responded with aggression. Video footage captures police unleashing pepper spray into the faces of baffled bystanders. Witnesses say nonresistant cyclists were continually Tasered and Maced even after they were pinned to the pavement.
As Donny Lessard stood by watching the surreal fracas unfold, he was overcome by a noxious, burning odor. "It was like an habanero pepper times one thousand," he says. Maced from nearly 15 feet away, his eyes poured tears and his nose streamed mucus.
As police began herding the crowd southbound down La Salle, Lessard walked with a female companion. When an officer told her to "keep moving, sweetheart," Lessard—still suffering from the aftereffects of the pepper spray—fired back, "Don't call her 'sweetheart.'"
At that point, he says, he was grabbed from behind and tackled to the pavement by two officers, who simultaneously Maced him again, this time at point blank.
"A cop told me to 'Quit crying like a pussy,'" he says. He was arrested on suspicion of rioting and held in custody until the following night, after a friend posted his $3,000 bail.
Witnesses—both local residents and cyclists—recount similar stories. For many, the issue at stake has less to do with whether or not Critical Mass members broke the law—participants themselves admit a few cyclists almost certainly committed traffic violations and blocked traffic—and more to do with law enforcement's heavy-handed response.
"The videos and the 20 written witness accounts I've read corroborate what the cyclists say," says Jordan Kushner, a Minneapolis attorney who is part of a group representing the bulk of those arrested. "It's pretty simple. The MPD aggresively attacked a group of bicyclists. They provide no specifics as to how they were provoked other than that one or two cyclists crossed the yellow line. If that's sufficient provocation for what happened, we're in big trouble."
In a September 4 press release, Minneapolis Police Chief Tim Dolan admitted that some of the actions reported to him "give [him] some concern" and announced that an internal review will be conducted by three of his units and the City Civil Rights Department.
"The Minneapolis Police Department strongly supports citizens' rights to free speech and assembly," he said, "and I will ensure that this incident and every complaint are fairly reviewed."
Matt Laible, a spokesman for the city of Minneapolis, said the city attorney's office is currently reviewing the charges against the 16 alleged rioters. He expects the city attorney to make decisions on the charges by the end of the month.
In the wake of the incident, some observers are asking whether the confrontation was designed to undermine the growing Republican National Convention protest movement.
"It works on two levels," says lawyer Kushner, "Not only does it intimidate potential protesters to stay silent, but it's also an attempt to poison the well for RNC protesters in terms of the public's perception of them."
The ride featured an unprecedented police surveillance team keeping tabs on the cyclists. In addition to the MPD, the Ramsey County Sheriff's Department and Minnesota State Patrol trailed the riders. Perhaps the most striking presence was that of a state patrol helicopter hovering overhead.
The extra police presence may have been due to the participation of the RNC Welcoming Committee—a group organizing a mass protest at the 2008 Republican Convention in St. Paul—which held a weekend event marking the one-year lead-up to the convention. While Critical Mass riders stress that they are in no way affiliated with the group, the ride did have sizeable representation from the Welcoming Committee.
Officials dismiss the Committee in their explanation, attributing the heightened surveillance to increased complaints they had received in the wake of previous Critical Mass rides. Asked about the helicopter, MPD spokeswoman Tammy Diedrich claims that it was intended to help the cyclists.
"The police department has never been able to help facilitate their ride because they're always in the back of the riders," Diedrich says, "so they decided to provide an aerial view to make it a better ride."
But that explanation doesn't wash with Michelle Gross, a registered nurse who treated many of the cyclists' injuries and acts as vice president for Communities United Against Police Brutality.
"They had this planned and were ready," Gross says of the police. "They've been doing this for months with no problems and all of sudden they need a helicopter? This was political."Tony Webster
Url: http://articles.citypages.com/2007-09-12/news/vicious-cycle/
Home: www.citypages.com
City Pages is the Online News and Arts Weekly of the Twin Cities
Critical Mass and the pReNC, Minneapolis
The pReNC was hosted by the RNC Welcoming Committee for the pourpuse of organizing, networking, strategizing, etc. for the coming RNC in 2008. It was kicked off on fri, aug, 31, 07 with critical mass. A monthly bike ride through the city that promotes bike culture wile calling for less dependence on petroleum. The pReNC organizers lent mike and i bikes for the week and we promptly peddled off for the mass. The cops tailed the mass for an hour or so, routinely blaring their sirens, which we mimicked back at them. At this point a squad car, "attempting to arrest a provicator" rushed into the bikes to make the arrest. The car hit a bycilist, breaking his wrist, and tried to make the arrest. The order to 'mass up' was called and chants of 'let them go' and 'whats the charge' ensued. The police reacted by spraying pepper spray in wide arc's into the crowd. I was somewhere in that crowd taking photos of the exsesive force until i caught a blast of pepper spray in the face. The cops were yelling 'move forward' and thats what i tried to do until a projectile tazer dart hit me in the neck and i fell prone, spazing on the ground from electric shocks. The next thing i felt was my face being smashed against the street, by knee or boot. All i could say at that point was "im not resisting", and i wasn't. Me and 18 others were thrown into a sauna of a patty wagon for an excess of 2 hours to sweet the pepper spray back into our eyes (note: pepper spray is activated by water, do not try to rinse your face), until going through processing and then jail.
The charge? PC Riot. PC is probable cause and sense the riot charge wont stick we will get charged for other things. 4 guild lawyers took our case probono, 2 of which were at the jail that night to talk to us. Most of us were bailed out the next night, including me. Sense i was from out of state the bondsmen would not take a bond, so a lady i had never met before threw down the entire $3000 bail (and the bails of 2 other out of states bringing the total to $9000). Others took longer to bailout including a passerby on his way home from buying underwear. He was recording video of the arrests with his phone when he was peppered and arrested.
Our arrests were political, they were practice for the RNC and they were aimed to discourage and intimidate those that will protest next year for the RNC. Well we will not be intimidated. Indymedia did an article as did others, so read up for yourself. My camera, along with my backpack, journal, and ID (of all things) are being held as evidence, so i have no photos of my own. I will grab a few from the net for your viewing pleasure.
Notice the cop spraying people riding by that just saw a girl get tackled to the ground for no reason.
The charge? PC Riot. PC is probable cause and sense the riot charge wont stick we will get charged for other things. 4 guild lawyers took our case probono, 2 of which were at the jail that night to talk to us. Most of us were bailed out the next night, including me. Sense i was from out of state the bondsmen would not take a bond, so a lady i had never met before threw down the entire $3000 bail (and the bails of 2 other out of states bringing the total to $9000). Others took longer to bailout including a passerby on his way home from buying underwear. He was recording video of the arrests with his phone when he was peppered and arrested.
Our arrests were political, they were practice for the RNC and they were aimed to discourage and intimidate those that will protest next year for the RNC. Well we will not be intimidated. Indymedia did an article as did others, so read up for yourself. My camera, along with my backpack, journal, and ID (of all things) are being held as evidence, so i have no photos of my own. I will grab a few from the net for your viewing pleasure.
Notice the cop spraying people riding by that just saw a girl get tackled to the ground for no reason.
This blog`
This blog was going to be, as usual, about my travels. It was going to be about hitchiking to mexico in true beat fashion and the rucksack revolution. Filled with senoritas and and misadventures. And there still will be a fair share of that i hope. But it seems circumstance is going to direct me on another avenue. And even I, your humble narrator, dont have a clue how it will unfold.
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