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Jury Declares Pro-Lifers Innocent after Video Reveals Police Brutality
LifeSiteNews.com -- Your Life, Family and Culture Outpost ^ | Tuesday May 12, 2009 | By Kathleen Gilbert

Posted on 05/12/2009 3:47:43 PM PDT by topher

Tuesday May 12, 2009


Jury Declares Pro-Lifers Innocent after Video Reveals Police Brutality and Cover-Up

By Kathleen Gilbert

RANCHO CUCAMONGA, California, May 12, 2009 (LifeSiteNews.com) - A group of peaceful pro-life protesters who were harassed and assaulted by campus police officers at a California college were found not guilty of several charges in court last week.

Survivors' Campus Life Tour (CLT) team members, Jason and James Conrad, were being tried as a result of arrests that took place during a CLT outreach at Chaffey College in Rancho Cucamonga in November 2007. They were charged with disturbing the peace and obstructing a police officer. In spite of video evidence, which Life Legal Defense Foundation (LLDF) lawyers say shows the youths as peaceful and compliant, the district attorney refused to drop their charges and the case was brought to trial.

One other member, Joey Cox, was originally charged with causing a campus disruption and unlawfully recording a confidential conversation. All charges against Cox were dismissed on the eve of trial after the court of appeal ruled that the police unlawfully arrested Cox and illegally seized his tape recorder.

According to pro-lifers' testimony, corroborated by a video that captured the events, the team members were violently assaulted by the Chaffey College police force, unlawfully arrested and held in jail for three days.

(Read the full account of the arrests of Joey Cox, Jason Conrad, and James Conrad on page 5 of the Winter 2007 issue of Survivors Action News at: http://www.survivors.la/news/san24.pdf)

"Before the jury was even selected we knew we were in for an uphill battle," Allison Aranda, staff attorney for Life Legal Defense Foundation (LLDF), who represented the pro-lifers, said.

During the trial Judge Mary Fuller prohibited mention of Cox's unlawful arrest and threatened to exclude the video evidence. Aranda explained that at that point "our hands were tied and the realization that we would only be able to tell part of the story to the jury sunk in. We were disappointed, but not defeated."

However, the judge ultimately allowed the video to be played without sound.  The video reportedly showed the Conrads peacefully complying with the officer's orders and revealed the disturbing actions of the police as they slammed James Conrad on a table and tried to cover the only window to the outside.

The jury deliberated for less than a day and rendered a "not guilty" verdict on all charges against the Conrads.

Executive Director of the Life Legal Defense Foundation, Dana Cody, commented on the verdict, stating, "The jurors are to be commended for following the law and denouncing the police misconduct."

Cody said the law group would seek damages in a civil suit against the officers "for the violations of both the Conrads' and Mr. Cox's civil rights."

URL: http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2009/may/09051205.html


Copyright © LifeSiteNews.com. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-No Derivatives License. You may republish this article or portions of it without request provided the content is not altered and it is clearly attributed to "LifeSiteNews.com". Any website publishing of complete or large portions of original LifeSiteNews articles MUST additionally include a live link to www.LifeSiteNews.com. The link is not required for excerpts. Republishing of articles on LifeSiteNews.com from other sources as noted is subject to the conditions of those sources.



TOPICS: Crime/Corruption; Culture/Society; Extended News; US: California
KEYWORDS: abortion; chaffeycollege; donutwatch; prolife
Sounds like the campus Police were Friends of Nancy Pelosi...
1 posted on 05/12/2009 3:47:44 PM PDT by topher
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To: topher

Lessons learned:

1) Video cameras are your friend.

2)The police will attempt to confiscate media; e.g., Cox’s recorder.

3)Therefore, multiple cameras should be used and kept out of police hands.


2 posted on 05/12/2009 3:56:15 PM PDT by the_Watchman
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To: topher

The police as an institution are part of the Enemy. Treat them as such.


3 posted on 05/12/2009 4:07:09 PM PDT by B-Chan (Catholic. Monarchist. Texan. Any questions?)
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To: topher
..wait till, Zer0Bambi's Black National Liberation Front (Gov. Funded) "Storm Troopers" gets "rollin'.
Coming to a locale near you...

4 posted on 05/12/2009 4:09:55 PM PDT by skinkinthegrass (make no mistake...If you run a war by lawyers, you'll lose practically every time. :^)
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To: topher

My first college :-(


5 posted on 05/12/2009 4:11:05 PM PDT by Smogger
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To: topher

time for a law suit against the college. I think about 10 million should make an impression


6 posted on 05/12/2009 4:12:39 PM PDT by rstark56
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To: B-Chan

Read the whole sick story in the PDF.

And people wonder why so many people of all shapes, stripes, and political views are skeptical of cops.


7 posted on 05/12/2009 4:16:14 PM PDT by Smogger
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To: topher

This reminds us again - the police are NOT your friends.


8 posted on 05/12/2009 4:16:32 PM PDT by Titus Quinctius Cincinnatus (Spock didn't need a teleprompter)
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To: wagglebee; little jeremiah

ping


9 posted on 05/12/2009 4:19:28 PM PDT by metmom (Welfare was never meant to be a career choice.)
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To: topher
Are charges being brought against the campus thugs Police?
10 posted on 05/12/2009 4:53:19 PM PDT by Natural Law
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To: Smogger

Typical cop strategy. They think “civilians” are afraid of them. The solution is to be even more “in their faces” than before without breaking the law. Be rude. Be disrespectful. Make them beat you, cuff you, and imprison you. Trigger their Cop Rage as these kids did and force them to reveal themselves as the criminals and bullies they are.

I’ve been to jail, even though I have no criminal record. I’ve been beaten by a cop, too. It sucks, but it’s not that bad. What’s bad is permitting a public servant to beat and intimidate you.

Any cops on FR should consider spreading the word to the rest of the Blue Gang: the days of people putting up with their swagger are fast drawing to a close. In the end, the police will learn that they are civilians, too — and they’ll either learn it the easy way or the hard way.

They can’t cuff us all.


11 posted on 05/12/2009 5:06:15 PM PDT by B-Chan (Catholic. Monarchist. Texan. Any questions?)
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To: Titus Quinctius Cincinnatus

True. But plenty of people love them anyway.

FR badge-lickers in 3... 2... 1...


12 posted on 05/12/2009 5:07:15 PM PDT by B-Chan (Catholic. Monarchist. Texan. Any questions?)
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To: rstark56

FOR EACH!


13 posted on 05/12/2009 5:19:22 PM PDT by chiefqc
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To: B-Chan
FR badge-lickers in 3... 2... 1...

You rang?

14 posted on 05/12/2009 6:10:14 PM PDT by Onelifetogive (Check out Puppy News at www.buyingapuppy.com)
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To: B-Chan
"Typical cop strategy. They think “civilians” are afraid of them. The solution is to be even more “in their faces” than before without breaking the law. Be rude. Be disrespectful. Make them beat you, cuff you, and imprison you. Trigger their Cop Rage as these kids did and force them to reveal themselves as the criminals and bullies they are."


Yeah, you should name your group "Act Up." Oh wait, that might be taken, sorry. How about Code Pinko? That's probably free.

I think you might have accidentally revealed more than you meant to...you believe that when you get the ass whipping you richly deserve for being 'rude and disrespectful' (to anyone), you're forcing 'them' to reveal that they are 'criminals' and 'bullies.' No, my friend, anyone who whips your ass for your rude and disrespectful behavior (your words, even) is called a man.

Here's a better idea. Be loud. Be vocal. Be firm. Know your rights, and try to express what they mean to you. Explain that our concerns are also the cops concerns. Chances are, the cop in question was raised in a Conservative household. Attempt to engage the cops in debate. Make them question themselves. Start hemorrhaging statistics at them. Most cops are already on our side. Don't believe me? Go read the Second City Cop blog for a while, and you'll see. It reads like Robocop mixed with the Federalist Papers. I personally now have a fondness for Chicago cops, at least the good ones...and I would never have expected to find ideological allies amongst union workers in a large, leftist Northern town.

If you want to be rude...charge the leftist line. At some point in the future, cops as an institution are going to have choose sides. They're already naturally aligned with us...it is stupid to alienate them further.

Getting hauled off to jail after being rude and disrespectful is, in most normal people's eyes, called getting your just desserts...maybe we should wear masks and carry black flags, just so everyone can know what a bunch of vandals we are? But somehow I get the feeling that you already know how such behavior is perceived.

We don't have to act like a bunch of screaming transvestites demanding the right to screw in the park. We actually have 'right' on our side...our facts are correct. Engage in loud verbal sparring with the leftists, shout them down with the truth. Make them hurl meaningless insults. In retrospect, we always come across as the more reasonable, serious group...aping their behavior would ruin that.

This is all assuming, of course, that the police in question are also being respectful...which is the case in most circumstances in America, even today. If they aren't, then defend yourself as best you can, as is your natural right.
15 posted on 05/12/2009 6:19:37 PM PDT by Troy McGreggor
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To: Troy McGreggor
the police in question are also being respectful...which is the case in most circumstances in America, even today.

Man, it must be fun to be on drugs all of the time. Whatever you're high on, I want some.

16 posted on 05/12/2009 8:49:57 PM PDT by B-Chan (Catholic. Monarchist. Texan. Any questions?)
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