December, 21 2017, 02:45pm EDT
ACLU-DC Applauds Jury Verdict in Inauguration Day Protestor Criminal Trials
WASHINGTON
A jury has found all six defendants in the first criminal trial against Inauguration Day protestors in D.C. Superior Court not guilty on all counts.
Scott Michelman, Senior Staff Attorney, ACLU of the District of Columbia, issued the following statement:
"Today's verdict reaffirms two central constitutional principles of our democracy: first, that dissent is not a crime, and second, that our justice system does not permit guilt by association. We hope today's verdict begins the important work of teaching police and prosecutors to respect the line between lawbreaking and constitutionally protected protest. We hope that the U.S. Attorney's Office gets the message and moves quickly to drop all remaining changes against peaceful demonstrators.
"For nearly a year, these people have been under the cloud of felony charges that have turned their lives upside down, subjecting them to the anxiety and expense of defending themselves against charges that should never have been brought. No one should have to fear arrest or prosecution for coming to the nation's capital to express opinions peacefully, no matter what those opinions may be. Through our civil lawsuit against the police, the ACLU-DC will continue to fight for demonstrators' constitutional rights."
The defendants had faced eight charges of rioting, property destruction, and conspiracy, with a maximum sentence of more than 60 years. More than 150 defendants face similar charges in trials that will take place next year.
In June, the ACLU-DC filed a civil lawsuit against the District of Columbia and D.C.'s Metropolitan Police Department on behalf of four individuals. The ACLU-DC lawsuit charges that in response to demonstrations in the District on Inauguration Day, D.C. police carried out an unlawful mass round-up, pepper-sprayed nonviolent demonstrators, and held detainees for many hours without food, water, or access to bathrooms. The case is remains pending before the federal district court in Washington, D.C.
The American Civil Liberties Union was founded in 1920 and is our nation's guardian of liberty. The ACLU works in the courts, legislatures and communities to defend and preserve the individual rights and liberties guaranteed to all people in this country by the Constitution and laws of the United States.
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Guterres "is particularly concerned over the hundreds of Israeli airstrikes on several locations in Syria" and has stressed the "urgent need to de-escalate violence on all fronts throughout the country," said U.N. spokesperson Stephane Dujarric.
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Addressing the assassination of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson and conversations it has sparked about the country's for-profit system, longtime Medicare for All advocate Sen. Bernie Sanders on Wednesday condemned the murder and stressed that getting to universal coverage will require a movement challenging corporate money in politics.
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Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.)—a co-sponsor of Sanders' Medicare for All Act—similarly toldHuffPost in a Tuesday interview, "The visceral response from people across this country who feel cheated, ripped off, and threatened by the vile practices of their insurance companies should be a warning to everyone in the healthcare system."
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Reporters Without Borders' (RSF) 2024 roundup, which was published Thursday, found that at least 54 journalists were killed on the job or in connection with their work this year, and 18 of them were killed by Israeli armed forces (16 in Palestine, and two in Lebanon).
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