Posted on 08/06/2003 1:06:34 PM PDT by chance33_98
Breast-Feeding Driver Appeals To Higher Authority
Husband Says Only He Can Punish Wife
POSTED: 8:55 a.m. EDT August 6, 2003 UPDATED: 12:35 p.m. EDT August 6, 2003
RAVENNA, Ohio -- A woman arrested for breast-feeding while driving is appealing to a higher authority.
Catherine Nicole Donkers says she wants the Bible to be the law, when she goes on trial Wednesday.
She was busted in May when a truck driver called 911 to report that he had seen a woman driving her car with a baby in her lap on the Ohio Turnpike.
Donkers doesn't deny she was nursing her baby on the Ohio Turnpike, but contends she was improperly charged. She and her common-law husband are members of the First Christian Fellowship for Eternal Sovereignty -- an organization founded in Henderson, Nev., in the 1990s. It pledges allegiance to Jesus Christ and at times takes a dim view of government authority and believe it's wrong to require people to have legal documents.
Donkers faces charges including endangering her 7-month-old daughter.
When talking about the case, Donkers and Brad Lee Barnhill refer to their membership in their religion. Barnhill says he's a minister with 650 followers, Donkers is his wife and only he can punish her.
In court filings, the couple says neither has a Social Security number or driver's license and they don't have a marriage license either -- because they don't believe the government has the right to require such documents.
"I'm not required to get permission from the government to marry," Donkers said.
Previously, Barnhill, 46, appeared on "Good Morning America" and said religious beliefs put him in charge of his wife's actions, so he wants to be the one to go on trial.
In court filings, the couple said they think it's wrong to be required to have driver's licenses and they do not have a marriage license, although they said they are husband and wife.
Barnhill said, "Just like we don't need permission to get married, why should I need permission from the state to use my property on the road?"
A conviction for misdemeanor child endangering carries maximum penalties of six months in jail and a $1,000 fine.
In the spirit of his replies, if you'll now excuse me, I'm preparing some briefs for the Supreme Court. I don't know WHY these guys can't buy their own underwear. Did anyone ever ask them if they prefer boxers? And what about Sandy and Ruth?? Don't even want to get into the whole 'thong v. granny panties' debate.
While I'm at it, I must find a way to renounce my Social Security Number, and defend a relative who couldn't stop at a rest area because she was on her way to meet forensic toxicologists whose testimony was key in her allegations that the roadside vegetable stand sold her kohlrabi instead of cabbage.
This relative decided to self catheterize instead of using the normal rest facilities due to time constraints mentioned above and in the Canon of Waters, 1620. She was arrested by the Highway Patrol who said she was "whizzing through a 55 mph zone"...
Nope, he's sequestered as a witness, which means he's riding a bench outside the courtroom until he's called. She did forget to sequester the state of Ohio.
Woman on trial for breast-feeding while driving won't act without husband's consent
By KRISTEN GELINEAU
The Associated Press
8/6/03 6:48 PM
RAVENNA, Ohio (AP) -- A woman pulled over for breast-feeding her baby while driving on the Ohio Turnpike was shown on videotape at her trial Wednesday refusing to cooperate with troopers until she called her husband for permission.
Catherine Nicole Donkers, 29, also would not stand or speak as she defended herself in Portage County Municipal Court until her husband gave her permission from the first row of the audience.
The first day ended with Donkers finishing her questioning of the trooper. The trial was expected to continue Thursday.
Judge Donald Martell dismissed a request earlier Wednesday by Donkers' husband, Brad Lee Barnhill, to stand in for her at the trial.
"I don't see why I'm not in there," Barnhill said during a break. "I directed her to do everything she did that day ... Under our faith, she obeys me."
Barnhill requested that he be prosecuted on several misdemeanor charges because his religious belief is that he is the only one who can punish his wife.
Donkers cried as she watched the two-hour police cruiser video of Trooper Adam Doles following her for several miles with siren and lights going before she stopped at a toll booth.
Donkers said she did not pull over right away because she was looking for a safe place to stop. The tape showed Doles saying to Donkers, "You've got a baby in your lap. You know how unsafe that is?"
Donkers, still clutching her 7-month-old girl, refused to hand over her driver's license and get out of her car until calling her husband. Once he gave the OK, she turned over a homemade identification card.
The couple belongs to the First Christian Fellowship for Eternal Sovereignty, a religious group that has a history of challenging state laws.
The organization was founded in Henderson, Nev., in the 1990s. It pledges allegiance to Jesus Christ and at times takes a dim view of the federal government. Barnhill says he is a minister in the fellowship with 650 followers.
The judge appeared frustrated then amused by Donkers, who refused her appointed public defender. Donkers read a list of witnesses she planned to call, including Barnhill and her mother. Later she said she left a key witness off the list: the state of Ohio.
"I'm not sure we have room in the hallway," Martell said with a laugh.
The prosecution's first witness, truck driver George Barrett of Syracuse, N.Y., said he called 911 on May 8 to report seeing a woman driving with a baby on her lap.
"I could not believe what I saw," Barrett said.
Over repeated objections by prosecutors, Donkers suggested while questioning Barrett that he had broken the law by reporting her because he didn't know the details of Ohio's seat belt laws.
Donkers also questioned Barrett's memory, saying his testimony about the make of her car and license plate number were incorrect.
During a recess, Barrett said he was watching out for the baby.
"I've seen too many body bags. I've seen too many white sheets," he said.
Donkers is charged with misdemeanor counts of child endangering, failure to comply with the order of a police officer, driving without a license and several other driving infractions. She acknowledges breast-feeding while driving and says she did nothing wrong.
In court filings, the couple says neither has a Social Security number, they think it's wrong to be required to have driver's licenses and they do not have a marriage license, although they say they are husband and wife.
Barnhill said the couple was living temporarily in Pittsburgh for work, but Donkers was a resident of Michigan when arrested.
Michigan and Ohio require children under age 4 to be in child-restraint systems while traveling in cars, but Michigan excludes children being nursed.
Barnhill said Michigan's exclusion should mean Donkers was stopped improperly.
A conviction for misdemeanor child endangering carries maximum penalties of six months in jail and a $1,000 fine.
Some days I think the gods, if there are any, got together on a slow day and said "Hey, let's play this new game, we'll call it 'religion' and get all these silly Earth creatures to do amusing things."
Yahweh led off with a classic move that's still renowned by saying in a loud voice "Hey, y'all down there! I want you take your johnson in one hand and a sharp piece of flint in the other..."
I was thinking along the lines of hand signals--or a dog whistle.
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