Progressive DFL Minneapolis Uses Riot Charge To Discourage Occupy Protests at homes

[annm4peace]

In the words of defense attorney Jordan Kushner: "I’ve never had someone charged with riot for just sitting in front of a physical space."

(if progressive cities like Minneapolis are charging those who participate in non-violence to stop foreclosures, where is this country headed? )

City of Minneapolis prosecutors would like the protests calling attention to unfair evictions of homeowners to stop says an attorney representing one of protesters. Attorney Jordan Kushner says prosecutors are trying to intimidate the Occupy Homes protesters who have been arrested for trespassing by elevating the charges to rioting. Rioting carries the possibility of jail time, a criminal record and several thousand dollars in fines.
Recently, a judge hearing the case about the October 2011 Occupy Homes arrests at US Bank wouldn’t allow the new rioting charges saying they cannot be increased without new evidence. That allowed the protesters to agree to a plea bargain equivalent to a traffic ticket. Occupy Homes supporters are celebrating that victory. However, City attorneys are trying the same rioting charge tactic again with another set of more recent Occupy Homes protester arrests.

Defense attorney Jordan Kushner said “The decision to level more serious charges then are normally leveled against people for non-violent civil disobedience protests was made by the higher ups in the office.

Intimidation tactic

“So it’s obvious that’s whats going on is an effort to intimidate people. The city attorney’s office is tired of the protest activity that’s going on. The prosecutor in the case yesterday expressed that to the judge in private that he was concerned or even upset about the prospect of the protests continuing.”

Kushner’s client, Occupy Homes organizer Nick Espinosa, was in court on Wednesday for a pre-trial hearing on charges that had recently been elevated from trespassing to rioting. “I’ve never had someone charged with riot for just sitting in front of a physical space,” said Kushner.

“That’s no way to treat non-violent protesters,” said Espinoza. “To me it’s clearly an attempt to silence people and to scare them from standing up for their neighbors and fighting back.”

Espinoza says on Wednesday prosecutors offered to reduce his charge to a misdemeanor. He says would only accept the deal if the charges against 33 other arrestees were dropped. “Needless to say, we’re going to trial.” Espinoza posted on his Facebook page.

Deb Konechne, who is with Occupy Minneapolis and Welfare Rights said, ” I see this is a part of the whole repressive apparatus that is trying to squash the movement as fast as possible because they are very afraid of what this movement is doing.”

David Cruz, homeowner who has been battling for months over a bank error, said, “How do you exercise your First Amendment (right to speech) when every time you exercise it you have to get arrested for crazy charges like rioting. When a police officer steps on me, I’m rioting.”

Mel Reeves, well known activist and journalist observed, “We got folks like Nick and other people who are pretty much guilty of being a good human being. That’s how I see it.

[MotherPetrie]

1. Where is this country headed? Right down the fucking drain.

[annm4peace]

2. but some of us are fighting back

that is what gives me hope.

No matter what the powers that be do...we will still come back. we won't make it easy for them.

at every hearing, trial, etc. there will be activist there. We will be passing out flyers educating the public, someone from the Uptake will be there, or others posting the video's online.

we have to stand up and support each other.

[limpyhobbler]

4. Thank goodness for news sources like the Uptake.

The mainstream media is clearly ignoring what's been going on up there in MN,

These occupiers have shown so much tenacity and endurance over and over, and getting smarter every time, and keeping that commitment to non-violence.

For the amount of work that's gone into it from the protest side and the police, and for it's national implications, this should have been a national news story by now.

[limpyhobbler]

3. Shame on the Mayor for allowing these blatant lies and trumped up charges.

I hope Occupy Homes MN will take their organizing skills and apply them to electing a new mayor and city government who will take the right side on the foreclosure issue.

[annm4peace]

5. I don't think they will. as it would take energy from the Occupy movement

there is such a strong feeling that getting people elected is working for the people because even if we get "progressives" in office the change and can't seem do what is right for the people. they longer they are in office or move up the less they stay to progressive policies. It is the system that is jacked up and we have to change the system. many people who were involved in trying to get these "progressives" elected in the last 10 years no longer work on campaigns and have been putting their energy in Occupy.
Including myself. I volunteered on this mayor's campaign and it has been very sad to see how he has turned on the progressives. So many supported him and now the can't stand the sight of him. It is the system that corrupts them. Something happened to many of these "progressive" leaders in the year before the RNC came to St. Paul... and during the RNC we saw who all our DFL progressive politicians stood with.

But even with all I wrote there are some who are working on green party candidate's campaigns. At this time I don't think there are any non-party people running.


I really appreciate your insightful comments. Sometimes you wonder if anyone is noticing.

We know this case is very important for the National Occupy movement.. both the fight to save the Cruz home and the trial and changes of inciting riot. I don't think the "powers that be" outside of Minneapolis realize just how tight the progressive community is here.

[sabrina 1]

6. People are noticing, a lot of people. Just because the MSM ignores all of this, doesn't mean

the people are doing so.

Your comment was excellent btw. And I agree that Occupy will not get directly involved in politics and for all the right reasons. However, they have exposed so much just by exercising their rights, such as these elected officials who should be on the same side, helping to stop foreclosures eg, since many of those people are the ones who elected them.

But people are now seeing that their elected officials are not doing their job FOR the people and they can let them know that unless they begin to show some concern for them, they will hear from the people, mostly those they are counting on for reelection. Politicians respond to pressure, that is why Big Corps never cease letting them know, through their lobbyists, what THEY want.

We the people otoh, are being told that we should be quiet and 'wait until after the election'. All that does is leave the field open to Big Corps with no opposition. NOW is the time to tell them what WE want. We want them to stop these foreclosures eg,

If elected officials were doing their jobs, OWS would not have to try to save people's homes. There would have and should have been a moratorium on foreclosures as soon as the fraud was revealed.

And the only reason why that didn't happen is because Wall St pressured our elected officials while we did not. But thanks to Occupy people now have an opportunity to use THEIR tools to 'encourage' their elected officials to start remembering who they work for.

[limpyhobbler]

7. cool, whatever works

Hopefully there is going to be a breakthrough where some city turns around and says to the banks "OK our cops are not going to be your personal foreclosure enforcers anymore. Our people don't want that, and it's too costly, so you'll have to negotiate a deal with the homeowner." Basically the cops should should protect people, not just banks, so we can have foreclosure reform. If that's going to happen anywhere Minnesota is just as likely a place as any right now. Thanks to all the efforts of the occupiers there.

[sabrina 1]

8. I keep hoping that will happen. But all these months of protests have shown a pattern

of behavior in every single town. It's as if even local politicians no longer act independently of some much more powerful entity. Each situation has been handled the same way. At first I thought that if the city had a Democratic mayor it would make a difference, but the exact opposite happened.

If OWS accomplished nothing else, without really trying, they exposed what we are really up against and blew away any false hopes that elected officials are working for the people. Maybe some of them want to, but I wonder if they can anymore?

[limpyhobbler]

9. It's pretty bad like you said but I still have a sliver of hope.

Anyway if there is person who has made a lot of friends through Occupy and has some real supporters and wants to run for local office on an Occupy-friendly platform, I probably wouldn't discourage them. Not to replace the main part of the movement, but just as another thing. Whether any organization can afford to divert time and resources to help with something like that, only they can know.

[Larkspur]

10. Israel does the same thing to non-violent Palestinian protesters

They treat non-violent Palestinian protestors just like the violent ones, so it looks like the USA is borrowing from the worse tactics of the Israeli government.