Police State

The universities across the nation (and AG) do more for the fbi/cia than assist in the search for foreign terrorists; today our colleges and universities directly encourage their campus police and civilian employees to engage in unlawful intel operations against whistleblower
GERAL SOSBEE.

Even after being subjected to the chemical weapons, arrested, and having my camera destroyed and footage stolen at the conclusion of September's G20 Summit in Pittsburgh, I still had two charges that I needed to fight. I was charged with failure to disperse and disorderly conduct, both misdemeanors. So I journeyed back to Pittsburgh in hopes of getting the charges completely dismissed.

Upon arrival, I noticed the city was much more peaceful and “normal” without the barricades, military-style check-points, and the ever constant presence of the police photographers snapping pictures of everyone. At about the same time as I had arrived, my attorney was presenting evidence of my Twin Cities Indymedia press passes that I was wearing during my arrest. However, the district attorney chose to take a hard-line position and refused to outright dismiss my charges unless I was “credentialed” by the Secret Service. This was not a qualification that all media personnel could make though four journalists were able to get their charges dismissed this way, one from the Post-Gazette, a local mainstream paper and two from the University of Pittsburgh’s publication, the Pitt News.

Related: TCIMC G20 Coverage Archive | TCIMC Journalist, Other Mediamakers Arrested as Pittsburgh Says No to G20 (with video) | Pittsburgh IMC | G20Media.org

Los Angeles Indymedia hosts James and Bronwyn of KPFK's "Indymedia On Air" invited TCIMC's Nigel Parry to appear together with Jessica McPherson from Pittsburgh Indymedia and Ted Forsyth from Rochester Indymedia to talk about the G-20 in Pittsburgh. Topics covered included the increasing militarization of these kinds of events, Indymedia's reporting of the protests around the Summit, the police targeting of journalists and the LRAD.

UPDATE: Full Video from Monday Press Conference (Mobile Broadcast News) | More Info | At the conclusion of the Pittsburgh G20 summit and resistance, videos of police brutality produced by G-Infinity Media (project of Pittsburgh IMC) have received hundreds of thousands of hits.  But independent journalists behind the people's perspective coverage of the summit were targeted by authorities during the worst of the police riots Friday night at the University of Pittsburgh.

Twin Cities Independent Media Center reporter Melissa Hill was among at least six journalists arrested.  "Police pointed riot control projectile launchers at our heads," said Hill. "I repeatedly identified myself as a member of the press, and when I was released five hours later, my camera was returned to me broken, and the recordable DVD with my footage on it was stolen." (This video was made by the Twin Cities' Nigel Parry the next morning.)

Additionally, a Blaine man who came to Pittsburgh to film events for G-Infinity was arrested Friday night and is still in jail as of 8am central time Monday.  Nathan Monkelien was given five charges: two felony aggravated assaults, disorderly conduct, resisting arrest, and failure to disperse. (View his charge sheet - PDF) Below: TCIMC/Glass Bead Collective/Thomas Merton Center Press Release with More Info from Pittsburgh | View all videos from Glassbeadian channel | All TCIMC dispatches/photos

Friday's major action was a permitted "People's March" from Oakland to downtown Pittsburgh and ending with a north side rally, endorsed by dozens of national groups and attended by an estimated 8,000 people.  Despite hundreds of riot cops lining every street downtown, no major altercations occurred.  (View photos, more info.)  But if anyone thought the resistance to the unwanted summit and accompanying

Citizen media is not a crime!  But the police and military occupying Pittsburgh during the G-20 have made it out to be.

Have you had your footage, photographs, or media equipment seized or damaged by police, or were you assaulted by police while trying to film?  Or do you have footage of police assaulting media?  Call us at 917-650-2486.  By collectively going public with these abuses, we have a better chance of retrieving what is rightfully ours and preventing it from happening again.

Thirty-five days into the popular occupation of 3138 Clinton, Rosemary Williams (one of five Minnesota women publicly resisting eviction - TCIMC/PPEHRC video) was inside her home when it was raided by the Minneapolis Police Department around 2:45pm Friday afternoon.  Three supporters were inside.  Police claimed they would give ample time to move out remaining belongings, and those inside did so, aided by several dozen who rallied to the scene.

But later in the afternoon, the MPD's plan for a quiet, obedient eviction was foiled.  After rallying the crowd, a handful of activists crossed the yellow tape roping off Clinton Avenue on either side of the house and were promptly assaulted by the police with kicks and pepper spray.  Other supporters crossed the now-removed yellow tape from the opposite direction to ensure the activists' safety.  Officers responded aggressively; one shoved someone to the ground with a two-handed shove to the chest. A TC Indymedia volunteer was sprayed directly in the face while on the "public" side of the police tape.

Four or five people sat down in front of the house in an act of civil disobedience.  An officer pointed to another man standing motionless with the crowd outside the police cordon, grabbed him and arrested him.  Eventually, seven were taken waiting vans in the alley and arrested.  An MPD spokesman said they were charged with obstruction of legal process, though they have not actually been formally charged as of tonight.  As of midnight, all have been released from jail.  This video (1:50) shows the police conduct during the civil disobedience.

Download video (MP4) 8.4MB | YouTube | Related: Video: Before the arrests  | Article from Fight Back News | Foreclosure Solutions Forum Sat. 9/19  | TC Daily Planet article w/ video Williams interview | Upcoming: Saturday 10am Leaflet at 7th/Hennepin outside Obama event | Sunday 2pm Press conference outside Rosemary's house

Have videos, photos, or updates?  Post them as a comment or publish to the newswire.

Think your cellmate looks a little strange?  Look again.

In Eagan, even the alligators are going to jail!  John Choi wants to prosecute it for unlawful assembly, swimming without a permit, and possessing a dangerous weapon.

Bob Fletcher wants to sell it at auction and pocket the change.

Dusterhoff just wants to eat it alive.

Recent acquittals and dropped charges highlight the continued waste of taxpayer funds in pursuing RNC cases

Press Release from Community RNC Arrestee Support Structure, March 23rd, 2009