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Tuesday, July 24, 2007
Libby Gets Pardoned and Carolyn Gets 60 Days
This Friday, a local activist will go to trial for sitting in the office of Colorado Congressman, Mark Udall, and reading the names of those who have died in Iraq. No, she didn't leave when asked (this is a public office, correct?). No, she didn't harm anyone and she didn't damage or take any property. For her dastardly deeds, though, we was offered a plea bargain of TWO MONTHS IN JAIL.
If you find this punishment to be an outlandish way to dissuade citizens from practicing their right to free speech; if you find the idea of jailing this woman for two months to be a huge and unnecessary waste of taxpayer's money, please call Mark Udall and tell him so at (303) 650-7820.
Oh, and in this wonderful land of the free that we call Colorado, the Colorado University Board of Regents voted to fire Ward Churchill today, thus silencing a professor whose voice didn't echo the sentiments of the majority in our country. And you thought that universities were places to encourage free thought...
Back to Carolyn:
Denver Post article
From the Colorado Daily:
WESTMINSTER - About 50 people protested in front of Congressman Mark Udall's office on Monday to support a local peace activist facing two months of jail time.
Carrying signs that read "Free Carolyn" and "Mr. Udall, Jail Bush, Not Carolyn," the protestors voiced support for Carolyn Bninski, 57, a coordinator at the Rocky Mountain Peace and Justice Center (RMPJC), who was among five people arrested March 8 after refusing to leave the reception area of Udall's office, where they were reading the names of people who have died in Iraq.
Bninski was charged with trespassing and unlawful assembly, which carries a maximum of one year of jail time. She was released on $250 bail and has been offered a plea bargain of two months' jail time. Her trial is set for Friday morning.
The other four arrestees, none of whom had prior arrests, were offered plea bargains of $100 or 15-20 hours of community service.
This is Bninski's fifth civil disobedience arrest in five years. She has been convicted of trespassing on three occasions - protesting at Sen. Wayne Allard's office in 2002, at the Denver offices of Halliburton in 2003 and in front of a military recruiting station in Lakewood in 2005. Last July she served 10 days of jail time in Jefferson County for the Lakewood conviction.
She also paid a $75 fine for demonstrating without a permit in Washington D.C. in 2006.
Udall's Chief of Staff, Alan Salazar, said he's met with RMPJC representatives many times - including participating in a two-hour meeting with them after the March arrests.
"No one has a deeper respect for the right of free speech and civil dissent than my boss," Salazar said. "He doesn't agree with this group's views on the best way to end the Iraq war, but he will always stand up for the rights of people to speak out." [Don't tell me; show me]
Monday's protest focused on the issue of free speech, which activists say is being tested with Bninski's case.
"Scooter Libby gets pardoned and Carolyn gets 60 days," said Bruce Robinson, 67, of Boulder.
If you find this punishment to be an outlandish way to dissuade citizens from practicing their right to free speech; if you find the idea of jailing this woman for two months to be a huge and unnecessary waste of taxpayer's money, please call Mark Udall and tell him so at (303) 650-7820.
Oh, and in this wonderful land of the free that we call Colorado, the Colorado University Board of Regents voted to fire Ward Churchill today, thus silencing a professor whose voice didn't echo the sentiments of the majority in our country. And you thought that universities were places to encourage free thought...
Back to Carolyn:
Denver Post article
From the Colorado Daily:
WESTMINSTER - About 50 people protested in front of Congressman Mark Udall's office on Monday to support a local peace activist facing two months of jail time.
Carrying signs that read "Free Carolyn" and "Mr. Udall, Jail Bush, Not Carolyn," the protestors voiced support for Carolyn Bninski, 57, a coordinator at the Rocky Mountain Peace and Justice Center (RMPJC), who was among five people arrested March 8 after refusing to leave the reception area of Udall's office, where they were reading the names of people who have died in Iraq.
Bninski was charged with trespassing and unlawful assembly, which carries a maximum of one year of jail time. She was released on $250 bail and has been offered a plea bargain of two months' jail time. Her trial is set for Friday morning.
The other four arrestees, none of whom had prior arrests, were offered plea bargains of $100 or 15-20 hours of community service.
This is Bninski's fifth civil disobedience arrest in five years. She has been convicted of trespassing on three occasions - protesting at Sen. Wayne Allard's office in 2002, at the Denver offices of Halliburton in 2003 and in front of a military recruiting station in Lakewood in 2005. Last July she served 10 days of jail time in Jefferson County for the Lakewood conviction.
She also paid a $75 fine for demonstrating without a permit in Washington D.C. in 2006.
Udall's Chief of Staff, Alan Salazar, said he's met with RMPJC representatives many times - including participating in a two-hour meeting with them after the March arrests.
"No one has a deeper respect for the right of free speech and civil dissent than my boss," Salazar said. "He doesn't agree with this group's views on the best way to end the Iraq war, but he will always stand up for the rights of people to speak out." [Don't tell me; show me]
Monday's protest focused on the issue of free speech, which activists say is being tested with Bninski's case.
"Scooter Libby gets pardoned and Carolyn gets 60 days," said Bruce Robinson, 67, of Boulder.
Labels: Carolyn, Udall, Ward Churchill
posted by Carol at 8:57 PM
8 Comments:
Read a high school civics textbook--something Bob Kinsey ought to have considering he was my high school history teacher. US Congressmen do not arrest, file charges, offer plea bargains, or pardon people. Rather than harassing a bunch of kids who have no power working in the office of a congressman who has no authority to change the situation, try protesting the DA's office. The DA has prosecutorial discretion. Mark Udall doesn't, and the teenage interns and 20-somethings who work in the district office certainly don't.
re: "try protesting the DA's office"
Good suggestion.
Why did you bring up Bob Kinsey?
Well now..a couple of things...may I suggest folks read up Art ll sec ten of Colorado Constitution...check out Bock V. Westminster Mall..
once tax $$ are involved our State Constitution trumps the "desire" of the property owner as long as the political speech does not interfere..
..and no Udalls office did not file the complaint but they initiated the action...
How do I know some stuff..in April I had a trespassing charge by a recruiting station dismissed in Jeffco...
Also..when the cops asked us to leave on Monday? We did not..Were we arrested? ah no...because we were not interfering.
Somebody called the cops when the arrests took place or at least when the cops came could have said "no problem"..
beside it is not the arrest that is the issue...it is that she has been involved in CD before(won't she ever learn?)
...so sir..I will read some books..by the way you can get a summery of Bock via google..I had to go to the Supreme Court Lib on Broadway to get the whole thing...
(oh yeah,,we will be at the courthouse on Friday)
Peace/Dance/Resist
nogo war
I'll see ya there, nogo war!
Re: Bob Kinsey
Because his picture is on Dave Chandler's blog, so I know he was there.
Oh. Thanks! I don't know Dave Chandler, but I looked him up and found the site and photos of the protest. I wasn't at the protest, because I had to work, but I will be the trial on Friday.
just sayin'...don't know how it turned out...but the City called only two witnesses...both from Udall's staff...if Carolyn is convicted...
it is a direct result of Udall...by
the way one of the "Kids" testified that he called the cops after ten minutes...one of his reasons? ..."they might do yoga or start to stretch, like before."
John Bristol seems like a good kid...but Udall staked him out like the goat in Jurassic Park...
as for his supervisor Carter Ellison?
Q:(from City) It seems it was inconvenient to have a number of people come in over three weeks to express their opposition to Iraq War Funding?"
Ms. Ellison: It was very inconvenient!"
Anony...may I suggest you attend the other Udall trials..real life is even more educating than books...
Take care...I know you mean well...
nogo war
I just got home from the trial - 11 hours later. I will blog about it either later tonight (if I have the energy) or tomorrow.
Bottom line ending of story:
Trespass - guilty
Unlawful Assembly - not guilty
I won't reveal the sentence until I blog about the whole thing.
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