Posted on 10/09/2011 12:38:06 AM PDT by Hunton Peck
Madison - So far this year, the handful of protesters getting multiple citations or arrests at the state Capitol have had 20 cases dismissed by prosecutors.
Online court records show nearly 40 cases filed against a half-dozen frequent demonstrators on allegations of disrupting lawmakers' work, with 20 dismissed so far by the Dane County district attorney's office. Of the remaining cases listed in the online courts system, five have resulted in fines or convictions, and 13 are still pending.
The demonstrators themselves said some additional citations were also dismissed before they could be entered into the state courts database.
The dismissals are drawing criticism from Republican lawmakers who have been the target of the demonstrators.
For his part, Dane County District Attorney Ismael Ozanne, a Democrat, said that some cases are still being decided and that it's too early to judge whether he's being soft on the demonstrators. He said that on Monday, eight demonstrators will receive additional criminal charges.
"We hold ourselves to the same standard (in each case) and make a charging decision based on what we can charge," Ozanne said, adding that it then takes time and the proper evidence to prosecute cases. "I know people are getting frustrated, people on both sides of the aisle, but that doesn't necessarily mean we have an ability to do more."
That didn't satisfy Rep. Robin Vos (R-Rochester). The co-chairman of the Legislature's influential budget committee has been a frequent target of protesters, including an incident last month in which one allegedly dumped a glass of beer on his head.
"If you have a pattern of dismissing charges against people who continue to commit the same offense, it's gross negligence or you're condoning the behavior," Vos said.
Vos said he was concerned that the continued harassment of some lawmakers by protesters could escalate and lead to an injury.
The demonstrations against Gov. Scott Walker's union bargaining law and other pieces of GOP legislation have quieted substantially since February and March. But a smaller group of protesters is still getting cited and sometimes physically removed from meetings by law enforcement for shouting, holding up signs or recording the proceedings in violation of legislative rules.
The citations and charges have varied, from local ordinance violations to disorderly conduct and resisting or obstructing an officer.
Rep. Brett Hulsey (D-Madison) said that the demonstrators being cited were hurting their own cause by taking attention away from what he said was a harmful Republican agenda. Hulsey said that he's seen the demonstrators interrupt not just Republicans but prominent Democratic lawmakers as well.
"If you choose to do civil disobedience, you need to remember the civil part. That's the part that worked for Martin Luther King, Gandhi and others," Hulsey said.Racking up citations
Jeremy J. Ryan, 23, has had the most citations written against him, according to Capitol police, with at least 15 citations since Feb. 1. He was reached for an interview in Washington, D.C., where he was participating in the demonstrations against Wall Street.
Of the ones entered in the state court system, 10 have been dismissed by prosecutors, four are open and one resulted in a fine. Ryan, who's known for riding a Segway around the hallways of the Capitol, said he was considering whether to pay the $200 fine or to further contest it.
"When you have court dates almost every week, you're bound to (miss) one," Ryan said. "I just accidentally missed one of them."
He said he considered the citations to be illegal attempts to limit his constitutional right to free speech.
Ryan said a prosecutor had informed one of his attorneys that the district attorney's office would seek to bring at least one of his open cases to trial. That case involves a charge of resisting or obstructing a police officer, Ryan said.
He said that case stemmed from an August demonstration in which 13 people were arrested and carried away for remaining in the Capitol after its 6 p.m. closing time and refusing to follow an order by police to leave.
Madison attorney Jessa Nicholson said that Ryan would enter a plea of not guilty in that case. She said there was a question whether the police were making a valid arrest when Ryan allegedly obstructed them.
Christopher J. Terrell, 23, is another protester who has been cited multiple times by police. The Madison resident said that his protests have been peaceful civil disobedience and that the citations were improper.
Online court records show two cases against Terrell dismissed by prosecutors and four still open.
"I honestly couldn't tell you how many citations I've received since February," said Terrell, who was also protesting in Washington, D.C. "The majority of them are getting dropped."
Ozanne said that just because some demonstrators believe nothing will happen to them, that isn't necessarily the case.
In an incident last month, Miles Kristan, 26, was cited for disorderly conduct on allegations of pouring the beer on Vos' head at a Madison hotel bar. In an interview, Kristan said he had a court appearance on Monday in that case but didn't say how he would plead in the case. He said he would contact a reporter later but didn't do so.
For his part, Vos condemned the incident and said he was disappointed that he hasn't had any further contact from authorities after he gave a statement to them that day.
Ozanne said the case is moving forward and that he expected that someone from the victim witness unit in his office would contact Vos.
Um, The prosecutor himself says it's too early to judge whether he's trying to do his job?
This isn't a political protest; it's absurdist performance art. That's gotta be it.
More madness from the ‘stan ping.
Sorry, but the people running Madison (which is the majority of Dane County) are extremely liberal.
I would go so far as to call them insane. That’s why we call it Madistan.
We believe in the rule of law. We believe in the rule of law. We believe in the rule of law. We believe in the rule of law. We believe in the rule of law. We believe in the rule of law.
Say it enough times and it will be true.
Nowadays, say it enough times and all you'll get is Laryngitis.
“Case dismissed, case dismissed,” etc.....What the hell did anyone expect from Madistan? That place is the epicenter of/for liberlism. I avoid going there at all costs.
Maybe it’s in there and I just missed it, but is there any info on whatever happened to the doctors who were issuing bogus sick excuses for protesters?
I haven’t heard, but My bet would be against them suffering any significant consequences.
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