6 charged in anti-war protest on 520 bridge

The Seattle Times ^ | 3/11/03 | Sara Jean Green

[ppaul]

King County prosecutors charged six anti-war protesters yesterday with disorderly conduct for blocking eastbound traffic from getting onto the Evergreen Point Floating Bridge last month.

The four men and two women — along with two girls, 15 and 17 — were arrested after they carried anti-war signs and erected a giant tripod in the eastbound lanes of Highway 520, stopping vehicles from crossing the bridge during the morning commute on Feb. 18. The 30-minute protest blocked traffic for miles, according King County Prosecuting Attorney Norm Maleng. He said the protesters went too far in opposing the potential war with Iraq.

If convicted of disorderly conduct, the six could each be sentenced to a maximum of 90 days in jail, prosecutors spokesman Dan Donohoe said. All six were released after being arrested. Prosecutors will ask a District Court judge to fine each defendant $1,000, the maximum allowed for a misdemeanor charge, on top of whatever jail time the court may impose, Donohoe said.

The protesters used their vehicles to slow traffic and put up a 15- to 20-foot-tall metal tripod in the middle of eastbound lanes. Alden R. Verdan, 20, of Kenmore climbed to the top of the tripod and sat in a sling suspended from its axis, remaining there for the protest's duration, court documents say. He refused to get down until police arrested his fellow protesters holding the tripod's posts.

Also charged were Marc P. Maupoux, 20, Webster S. Walker, 44, Jessica Ann Long, 21, Jonathan Montgomery Dupuy, 18, and Kimberly Russell-Martin, 21, all of Seattle. The six are to be arraigned this month in King County District Court in Redmond.

The two juveniles have not been charged because their cases are being sent through a diversion program in King County Juvenile Court, Donohoe said. To avoid charges, the girls may be required to perform community service or comply with other conditions, he said.

The arrest and filing of charges against the protesters contrasts with the way officials handled protesters who marched onto Interstate 5 in downtown Seattle last April. In a march following the funeral of Robert Lee Thomas Sr., a black man shot and killed by an off-duty King County sheriff's deputy in Renton, about 100 people crowded onto I-5 from a ramp near Madison Street. The group had a permit to march from Mount Zion Baptist Church on 19th Avenue East down East Madison Street to the King County Courthouse for a rally.

Seattle police didn't arrest any of the protesters who blocked evening rush-hour traffic on I-5 because "it was an impromptu decision to veer off their permitted path onto the freeway," said police spokesman Duane Fish. With so many people, it would have taken "a lot of resources and an excruciating amount of time" to arrest them all, and officers worried about potentially injuring older protesters if arrests turned physical, Fish said yesterday.

As it happened, the protesters left the freeway once officers threatened to arrest them if they didn't disperse, he said.

In this image from KING-TV, police arrest anti-war protesters who blocked the Highway 520 bridge Feb. 18.

Since then, Seattle Police Chief Gil Kerlikowske "has made it pretty clear that any disruption of freeway traffic is going to lead to arrests," Fish said.

In the case of the Highway 520 protesters, their decision to erect the tripod "indicated an intent to stay there until they were physically removed," he said.

The actions of the Highway 520 anti-war protesters resulted in the introduction of a new bill by state Sen. Bill Finkbeiner, R-Kirkland. Under the proposed bill, pedestrians who intentionally disrupt traffic on highways of statewide significance could be found guilty of a gross misdemeanor, which carries a maximum penalty of one year in jail and/or a $5,000 fine. The bill will die unless senators approve it and send it to the House for consideration by March 19.

Sara Jean Green: 206-515-5654.

[ppaul]

County Prosecuting Attorney Norm Maleng...said the protesters went too far in opposing the potential war with Iraq.

LOL!

[Unleashed]

Damn, what's up with King County. My family lives there (I currently reside in Texas) and this kind of crap just infuriates me. Trust me, and you Seattlelites back me up here, the traffic on 520 is bad enough without these yay-whos out there making a scene. Give us all a break and GO GET A JOB!!!! REVITALIZE THE ECONOMY YOU MORONS!!!! Or at the least, stop wasting other people's time, you inconsiderate liberal dips.

Man... can you tell I'm angry?

[xm177e2]

If you drive a truck, keep a 5-gallon can of gasoline in the back, in case you ever have to deal with vehicles blocking traffic. Just slosh some over the top of their treasonmobile, and threaten to set the thing alight if they don't haul ass.

[Tamzee]

He looks like a pinata...

[bellevuesbest]

Great! Press the bill through. This 44 year old guy should get the maximum!

[lavaroise]

For safety's sake, why couldn't people throw the poles out of the bridge and kick their arses. It is not merely disorderly conduct, it is felony confinement of hundreds of innocent commuters. If you and I cannot stop someone from leaving their room, why can they do it to thousands of people?

[Catspaw]

I would've been tempted to turn that tripod into a catapult: SPLASH!

[Alia]

I concur.

However, March 15th is the lefties "international war against police brutality" day. Check out their websites. And heads up.

[Charles Henrickson]

Speedless in Seattle.

[theDentist]

Jake:"What's the holdup?"
Elwood:"Seattle's Liberal Peaceniks. They're blocking the 520
to protest our going to Iraq and blowing Saddam Hussein to a
thousand bits!"
Jake:"I hate peaceniks."

"Hit It."

[MissBaby]

One of these days I will be there when one of these things happens. I won't just sit there and wait. If I am going to be stuck, they are going to be very, very uncomfortable.

[Eala]

King County Prosecuting Attorney Norm Maleng...said the protesters went too far in opposing the potential war with Iraq.
LOL!

No. That's all you're going to get from Maleng.

Norm Maleng is a RINO bigtime, and snuggles up to those he's indebted to, the Seattle liberal establishment. This is the prosecutor who served as campaign manager for a very liberal judge (can you say "conflict of interest"?), until an attorney blew the whistle on him -- at which point he immediately resigned, thus proving the charge.

I know some of our local talk show hosts say they respect and like him -- but anyone in the media who doesn't gets shut out.

[MinuteGal]

It looks like a gibbet to me. Wish that it was.

Leni