Download the PDF of the amended complaint here:
http://rnc8.org/wp-content/uploads/2009/04/amd-cplt-rnc8-red.pdf
In the surest sign yet of the power of post-RNC court solidarity, Ramsey County Attorney Susan Gaertner has dropped two of four unfounded charges against the RNC 8. Caving to months and months of public pressure, Gaertner dropped one count of Conspiracy to Commit Riot in Furtherance of Terrorism, and one count of Conspiracy to Commit Criminal Damage to Property in Furtherance of Terrorism.
“We are heartened by the fact that our supporters have won this concession,” said defendant Nathanael Secor. “It’s taken a tremendous show of strength and solidarity over the past seven months.”
Originally facing a single charge–Conspiracy to Riot in Furtherance of Terrorism–Gaertner’s office added three additional charges against the eight defendants in December of last year. Now, two of those charges have been dropped, clearly demonstrating that all the charges are a matter of political maneuvering, not a reasoned look at the evidence.
On March 28, supporters delivered to Susan Gaertner’s office a stack of over 3,000 petitions urging her to drop all four charges. Among other statements, a resolution from the 17,000-member Duluth Central Labor Body in support of the RNC 8 was also delivered. National media attention, including an appearance on MSNBC on Wednesday morning, has drawn significant attention to the case at the same time as Gaertner is accelerating her campaign for Governor–having just hired full-time staffers, opened an office on University Avenue, and planned appearances at several DFL events in the next month. Additionally, the broad-based RNC 8 Defense Committee has succeeded in calling widespread attention to the Minnesota PATRIOT Act, and played an instrumental role in applying the pressure that led to this reduction of charges.
In removing the controversial MN PATRIOT Act from the debate at this moment, Susan Gaertner obviously hopes to defray the costs of this unprecedented prosecution on her campaign for Governor, and to mitigate the overwhelmingly negative public opinion of Ramsey County’s repressive behavior during and since the RNC.
“Make no mistake,” said defendant Luce Guillen-Givins, “This change to the complaint against us is a token gesture meant to placate our supporters and bolster a floundering political prosecution.”
As defendant Eryn Trimmer pointed out, “This move only focuses attention more acutely on the outrageous nature of the two remaining charges, Conspiracy to Commit Riot and Conspiracy to Commit Criminal Damage to Property.”
In the months leading up to the RNC, the defendants were involved in open, public organizing with a broad coalition of Twin Cities activists and community members. We continue to assert that the only “conspiracy” committed by the RNC 8 was to provide basic and necessary infrastructure for people who wished to engage in their fundamental right to dissent.
“We’re relieved and gratified that the most sensational part of the charges has been dropped,” said St. Paul peace and justice activist Betsy Raasch-Gilman, member of Friends of the RNC 8. She continued, “We hope that the conspiracy charges will also be dropped. If planning a protest can be called conspiracy, the right to free speech is in real danger.”
Friends of the RNC 8 asks Susan Gaertner to continue in the direction of justice by dropping all the remaining charges, thereby saving enormous financial resources for the people of Minnesota in this time of rampant foreclosures, unemployment and economic turmoil. We also remind supporters that while we should rightly celebrate this small victory, the time for increased action to defend the RNC 8 is now. Political organizing is not conspiracy. Dissent is not a crime.
* * * * * * * *
LEGAL UPDATE
Before we heard the news, we wrote up this legal update about last month's matters:
Near the end of March, Judge Teresa Warner proclaimed her ruling on the prosecution’s problematic proposed protective order, which was one of the main topics of last month’s proceedings. The ruling is about as favorable as could be expected, with the main point being that the eight will be able to receive their own copies of the discovery against them–rather than being forced to view it only in the offices of their attorneys, as the prosecution wished. The eight and their attorneys will have to sign a waiver prohibiting dissemination of the contents.
This batch of discovery - an entire 40 CDs and 40 DVDs worth - was produced by the procrastinating prosecutors a couple days after the promised March 31 deadline. Because the investigation is still active, the discovery can and does include so-called “evidence” gathered as recently as this month, and more discovery may be provided as it is, well, discovered. However, prosecutor Heidi Westby is refusing to release a handful of the discs of evidence, instead asking the eight and their attorneys to come downtown to view it. This appears to be in defiance of the order by Judge Warner.
Remember, folks: “active investigation” means the clicking noise on your phone might be the FBI, the zooming noise you hear might be Bob Fletcher’s telephoto lens outside your house, and that sucking sound all around is money being drained from social services in order to provocatively prosecute protesters as terrorists. Oh, and that howl of outrage and solidarity is coming from the thousands of people proudly proclaiming their support for the RNC 8, while learning how to fight pernicious prowling police tactics, to boot.
The next court date is now scheduled for May 26 at 9am in Ramsey County District Court. If Susan Gaertner’s office doesn’t drop the charges, prognosticators expect trial in September at the earliest, but more likely later in the fall.
* * * * * * * *
UPCOMING EVENTS - Mark your calendars:
St. Paul:
Sunday, April 19, 2-4pm:
Ramona Africa, spokesperson for MOVE, speaks on Repression and Resistance, Then and Now: From the MOVE 9 to the RNC 8
http://rnc8.org/2009/04/ramona-africa/
Ramona Africa will also speak on Saturday, April 18 on Hamline Law School:
http://tc.indymedia.org/2009/apr/prison-reform-project-hosts-ramona-africa-move-hamline-law-school
Minneapolis:
Friday, April 24, 1-3pm:
Jules Boykoff, author of Beyond Bullets: The Suppression of Dissent in the United States (AK Press) speaks at the University of Minnesota
http://rnc8.org/2009/04/boykoff/
Minneapolis:
Wednesday, April 29, 7pm:
Defend the RNC 8! Meet the RNC 8, family and friends, plus watch videos about the case at the Univeristy of Minnesota, Coffman Union 324. Sponsored by Socialist Alternative and Friends of the RNC 8
Details coming soon at http://rnc8.org
Los Angeles:
Thursday, April 30, 7pm:
Cinebang! and KIWA present Terrorizing Dissent and a discussion about the RNC 8 case
http://rnc8.org/2009/04/los-angeles-event-tuesday-april-30/
Minneapolis:
Sunday, May 3, All Day:
Visit the RNC 8 Defense Committee and Community RNC Arrestee Support Structure at the annual May Day Festival and Parade at Powderhorn Park, Minneapolis
Next Scheduled RNC 8 Defense Committee Meeting:
Sunday, May 10, 4pm
Walker Church, 3104 16th Ave. S., Minneapolis
Next Scheduled Court Date:
Tuesday, May 26, 9am
Ramsey County Courthouse, 15 W. Kellogg Boulevard, St. Paul
More events? Send your info to info@rnc8.org.
Saturday, April 11, 2009
Wednesday, April 1, 2009
Brighton, UK: Solidarity with EDO 2
In the night of 29 March 2009, the prison probation service building of Brighton was attacked with paintbombs and spraypaint signs "No War" & "EDO 2". The HSBC bank next door was also smashed windows.
Communique from Indymedia UK:
"In the night of 29 March 2009, the prison probation service building of Brighton was attacked with paintbombs and spraypaint signs "No War" & "EDO 2". The HSBC bank next door was also smashed windows.
These actions have been taken in solidarity with the 'EDO 2', Robert and Elijah, that are jailed in this period because they attacked the factory of arms EDO in Brighton (suppliers of the Israeli army). With these energies we wish to extend the fight against the objectives of the judicial and capitalist system. We can only attack one or two targets this time but the unique attacks they express always to us our rage against the total network of oppression.
Thus these energies are taken also in the solidarity and the collective effort with those that fight the NATO summit in Strasbourg and those that take the streets in London against the G20 this week.
Solidarity means attack - For a hot summer.
@"
Taken from infoshop.org
Communique from Indymedia UK:
"In the night of 29 March 2009, the prison probation service building of Brighton was attacked with paintbombs and spraypaint signs "No War" & "EDO 2". The HSBC bank next door was also smashed windows.
These actions have been taken in solidarity with the 'EDO 2', Robert and Elijah, that are jailed in this period because they attacked the factory of arms EDO in Brighton (suppliers of the Israeli army). With these energies we wish to extend the fight against the objectives of the judicial and capitalist system. We can only attack one or two targets this time but the unique attacks they express always to us our rage against the total network of oppression.
Thus these energies are taken also in the solidarity and the collective effort with those that fight the NATO summit in Strasbourg and those that take the streets in London against the G20 this week.
Solidarity means attack - For a hot summer.
@"
Taken from infoshop.org
Between the State and a Hard Place: Statement on David Mckay´s Plea
On March 17, 2009 David McKay plead guilty to possession of unregistered Molotov cocktails, charges stemming from his involvement in the protests against the Republican National Convention last September. Those of us following the case were shocked and saddened to learn of this development.
The State and, in particular, the FBI reached into their bag of dirty tricks to make examples of McKay and his co-defendant Brad Crowder. Between the State and a Hard Place: Statement on David McKay's Plea from the Austin Informant Working Group The Austin Informant Working Group is an ad hoc collective of interested and affected individuals that formed to do research and media and legal work around the exposure of an FBI informant in the Austin radical community. The group is also helping to uncover the lessons about community accountability and security that must be learned from this debacle. It is not a prisoner support group and does not speak for Brad Crowder or David McKay. On March 17, 2009 David McKay plead guilty to possession of unregistered Molotov cocktails, charges stemming from his involvement in the protests against the Republican National Convention last September. Those of us following the case were shocked and saddened to learn of this development. The State and, in particular, the FBI reached into their bag of dirty tricks to make examples of McKay and his co-defendant Brad Crowder. It is also apparent to us that if this had gone to trial again, the lies of the State's primary informant in the case, Brandon Darby, would have embarrassed the FBI and the prosecution. This would have ruined their case against David and called into question the reliability of informants in past and future litigation. This is the question the prosecution has feared all along. Before David’s first trial in January the prosecution filed a motion to change the definition of entrapment in the case. However the judge refused to overturn years of legal precedents for the mere convenience of the prosecution in this case. The first trial ended in a hung jury. We have reliable information indicating that it was hung 6-6, with the crucial issue being the question of entrapment. A couple weeks before the March 16 retrial, in another attempt to cover for their informant’s misconduct, the prosecution filed a motion to exclude information about Darby's violent tendencies and his history of using firearms in inappropriate situations. This motion also failed. During the intermission in proceedings, David’s defense compiled additional testimony that confirmed Darby’s history of problematic and manipulative behavior. Through grassroots appeals, reliable witnesses came out of the woodwork to attest to Darby's repeated incitements to violence, his disruptive behavior and promotion of illegal activities in every organization he infiltrated. As the case of the defense solidified, so escalated the prosecution’s intimidation of both David and Brad. The State was determined to prevent both the exposure of its misconduct in utilizing and supporting a violence-prone provocateur to entrap two young activists, and the precedent of being called out and held accountable for their repressive tactics. The State knew that Darby’s testimony was questionable, if not completely lacking credibility. The months since David and Brad’s arrest have been hard for both of them, their families and the community. Days before the trial, the prosecution subpoenaed Brad to testify. Brad had no interest in testifying against David. The State then threatened to add two years to Brad’s sentence if he failed to cooperate. The FBI has contacted and intimidated others, including potential defense witnesses, over the past few months in an attempt to disrupt David’s legal defense. It is likely that David did not want Brad, his close friend, to be forced to choose between testifying and enduring harsher sentencing. Neither did he want his family and loved ones to have to go through the turmoil of a second trial. David’s father has spent large amounts of money, bankrupting his business, to pay David’s legal fees. The State has never been above entrapping and manipulating activists. As many of us well know, radical movements have long been the targets of these tactics in an effort to criminalize and suppress our dissent. Based on our interactions with Brad, David and the unabashed snitch, Brandon Darby, and through a rigorous examination of the court and FBI documents that emerged during this case, we believe strongly that this is once again the situation. The Austin Informant Working Group concludes that there is much more to the story than any of us know. From what information we do have, we stand by the statements we have previously made about the entrapment of Brad and David. There are many reasons innocent people plead guilty, including intimidation, fear and exhaustion. The evidence suggests these factors, rather than the truth, controlled the outcome in this case. This battle has been a hard one. In the end, the State once again had more resources and time than those of us who stood in solidarity with the defendants. Rather than let this hinder our hopes and overwhelm our movements we must learn from this experience and stick together to build stronger and more just communities. We must also recognize our continued resistance, solidarity, and resilience in the face of the forces of misery as victories in and of themselves. We respectfully submit this statement as a Call to Action to all communities of conscience in support of the struggle against all forms of government repression, and in opposition to all the travesties (named and unnamed) carried out on a daily basis under the guise of the “criminal justice system”.
In solidarity,
Austin Informant Working Group
Texas.solidarity@gmail.com
This was taken from infoshop.org
The State and, in particular, the FBI reached into their bag of dirty tricks to make examples of McKay and his co-defendant Brad Crowder. Between the State and a Hard Place: Statement on David McKay's Plea from the Austin Informant Working Group The Austin Informant Working Group is an ad hoc collective of interested and affected individuals that formed to do research and media and legal work around the exposure of an FBI informant in the Austin radical community. The group is also helping to uncover the lessons about community accountability and security that must be learned from this debacle. It is not a prisoner support group and does not speak for Brad Crowder or David McKay. On March 17, 2009 David McKay plead guilty to possession of unregistered Molotov cocktails, charges stemming from his involvement in the protests against the Republican National Convention last September. Those of us following the case were shocked and saddened to learn of this development. The State and, in particular, the FBI reached into their bag of dirty tricks to make examples of McKay and his co-defendant Brad Crowder. It is also apparent to us that if this had gone to trial again, the lies of the State's primary informant in the case, Brandon Darby, would have embarrassed the FBI and the prosecution. This would have ruined their case against David and called into question the reliability of informants in past and future litigation. This is the question the prosecution has feared all along. Before David’s first trial in January the prosecution filed a motion to change the definition of entrapment in the case. However the judge refused to overturn years of legal precedents for the mere convenience of the prosecution in this case. The first trial ended in a hung jury. We have reliable information indicating that it was hung 6-6, with the crucial issue being the question of entrapment. A couple weeks before the March 16 retrial, in another attempt to cover for their informant’s misconduct, the prosecution filed a motion to exclude information about Darby's violent tendencies and his history of using firearms in inappropriate situations. This motion also failed. During the intermission in proceedings, David’s defense compiled additional testimony that confirmed Darby’s history of problematic and manipulative behavior. Through grassroots appeals, reliable witnesses came out of the woodwork to attest to Darby's repeated incitements to violence, his disruptive behavior and promotion of illegal activities in every organization he infiltrated. As the case of the defense solidified, so escalated the prosecution’s intimidation of both David and Brad. The State was determined to prevent both the exposure of its misconduct in utilizing and supporting a violence-prone provocateur to entrap two young activists, and the precedent of being called out and held accountable for their repressive tactics. The State knew that Darby’s testimony was questionable, if not completely lacking credibility. The months since David and Brad’s arrest have been hard for both of them, their families and the community. Days before the trial, the prosecution subpoenaed Brad to testify. Brad had no interest in testifying against David. The State then threatened to add two years to Brad’s sentence if he failed to cooperate. The FBI has contacted and intimidated others, including potential defense witnesses, over the past few months in an attempt to disrupt David’s legal defense. It is likely that David did not want Brad, his close friend, to be forced to choose between testifying and enduring harsher sentencing. Neither did he want his family and loved ones to have to go through the turmoil of a second trial. David’s father has spent large amounts of money, bankrupting his business, to pay David’s legal fees. The State has never been above entrapping and manipulating activists. As many of us well know, radical movements have long been the targets of these tactics in an effort to criminalize and suppress our dissent. Based on our interactions with Brad, David and the unabashed snitch, Brandon Darby, and through a rigorous examination of the court and FBI documents that emerged during this case, we believe strongly that this is once again the situation. The Austin Informant Working Group concludes that there is much more to the story than any of us know. From what information we do have, we stand by the statements we have previously made about the entrapment of Brad and David. There are many reasons innocent people plead guilty, including intimidation, fear and exhaustion. The evidence suggests these factors, rather than the truth, controlled the outcome in this case. This battle has been a hard one. In the end, the State once again had more resources and time than those of us who stood in solidarity with the defendants. Rather than let this hinder our hopes and overwhelm our movements we must learn from this experience and stick together to build stronger and more just communities. We must also recognize our continued resistance, solidarity, and resilience in the face of the forces of misery as victories in and of themselves. We respectfully submit this statement as a Call to Action to all communities of conscience in support of the struggle against all forms of government repression, and in opposition to all the travesties (named and unnamed) carried out on a daily basis under the guise of the “criminal justice system”.
In solidarity,
Austin Informant Working Group
Texas.solidarity@gmail.com
This was taken from infoshop.org
The Good Time Bill
March 2009
Dear family and friends,
Greetings from the"Communication Management Unit" (CMU) at USP Marion. I hope this letters finds you well and enjoying the springtime weather. Iam writing you today to let you know about a piece of federallegislation introduced in Congress recently that has the potential toreduce my sentence-and many federal prisoners' sentences-by increasingthe level of 'good time' credit we receive. This bill, H.R. #1475, alsoknown as the Federal Work Incentive Act of 2009, introduced byRepresentative Danny Davis (IL) has the potential to pass, given thedire economic situation and the Democrat-majority Congress. Nonetheless,this bill needs your support. I am requesting that you write aletter to your House Representative urging them to co-sponsor the billand vote for it when the time comes. (You can find out who your rep. is by typingyour address into the tool at www.house.gov or www.goodtimebill.info/takeaction.html). You can read the text of the bill, background information on the situationwith federal prisons today, talking points and sample letters on thenew website, www.goodtimebill.info This will be the only site you needto check for updates - feel free to contact them to get more involved atsupport@goodtimebill.info When writing your Representative onthis issue, it's OK to mention you know someone in federal prison butalso, raise issues of cost and overcrowding as well [e.g. federalprisons are 40% overcrowded, costs U.S. taxpayers 7.6 billion annuallyand over 3/4 of the prisoners are serving time for non-violentoffenses]. Currently, the population in federal prisons is 203,000 (andgrowing), parole was abolished 20 years ago and we serve about 85% ofour sentence. This bill can begin to remedy these issues and giveprisoners incentives for early release and good behavior. Youcan sign up to receive more information or join the 'Good Time Bill'Facebook group by visiting the above website. In the next couple ofmonths, we will be asking for you to follow your letter up with anemail and before a vote, a simple two minute phone call to your Rep'soffice urging a 'yes' vote. Please do your part in addressing a veryrelevant problem in our society by working to pass this bill - it has thepotential to reduce the sentence of the majority of the 203,000peoples' sentences and return us to society to live productive lives. Thankyou for your attention to this matter and for all the support. Be sureto check the www.goodtimebill.info website for more information,updates and more detailed information about the Good Time Bill.
With love from
Little Guantanamo,
Daniel McGowan #63794-053
USP Marion-CMU PO
Box 1000 Marion, IL
62959
Dear family and friends,
Greetings from the"Communication Management Unit" (CMU) at USP Marion. I hope this letters finds you well and enjoying the springtime weather. Iam writing you today to let you know about a piece of federallegislation introduced in Congress recently that has the potential toreduce my sentence-and many federal prisoners' sentences-by increasingthe level of 'good time' credit we receive. This bill, H.R. #1475, alsoknown as the Federal Work Incentive Act of 2009, introduced byRepresentative Danny Davis (IL) has the potential to pass, given thedire economic situation and the Democrat-majority Congress. Nonetheless,this bill needs your support. I am requesting that you write aletter to your House Representative urging them to co-sponsor the billand vote for it when the time comes. (You can find out who your rep. is by typingyour address into the tool at www.house.gov or www.goodtimebill.info/takeaction.html). You can read the text of the bill, background information on the situationwith federal prisons today, talking points and sample letters on thenew website, www.goodtimebill.info This will be the only site you needto check for updates - feel free to contact them to get more involved atsupport@goodtimebill.info When writing your Representative onthis issue, it's OK to mention you know someone in federal prison butalso, raise issues of cost and overcrowding as well [e.g. federalprisons are 40% overcrowded, costs U.S. taxpayers 7.6 billion annuallyand over 3/4 of the prisoners are serving time for non-violentoffenses]. Currently, the population in federal prisons is 203,000 (andgrowing), parole was abolished 20 years ago and we serve about 85% ofour sentence. This bill can begin to remedy these issues and giveprisoners incentives for early release and good behavior. Youcan sign up to receive more information or join the 'Good Time Bill'Facebook group by visiting the above website. In the next couple ofmonths, we will be asking for you to follow your letter up with anemail and before a vote, a simple two minute phone call to your Rep'soffice urging a 'yes' vote. Please do your part in addressing a veryrelevant problem in our society by working to pass this bill - it has thepotential to reduce the sentence of the majority of the 203,000peoples' sentences and return us to society to live productive lives. Thankyou for your attention to this matter and for all the support. Be sureto check the www.goodtimebill.info website for more information,updates and more detailed information about the Good Time Bill.
With love from
Little Guantanamo,
Daniel McGowan #63794-053
USP Marion-CMU PO
Box 1000 Marion, IL
62959
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