As reported here at Free Keene this weekend, YouTube vlogger and new Free State Project mover Amanda Billyrock was arrested in Laconia after allegedly running a red light and then not speaking to police.
Amanda initially posted video of her arrest to her Youtube channel, but it was removed within hours at the advice of her attorney. While it is understandable why she would lawyer up – the court system is an intimidating process – it’s always sad when attorneys advise their clients to not speak to media or post media relating to the case. The attorney’s advice disconnects Amanda from a large pool of potential supporters, as now we have no way of knowing what happened. Many may be willing to support her, but since the video is not being shown, some people will have a hard time getting behind her.
Since her attorney is refusing to release even what the charges are, which should be public info, I decided I’d do my best to track down the info. The court system doesn’t even have a docket number for the case yet, so I called Laconia Police and was treated very rudely and hung up on by “Sgt. Hubbard”. He refused to give me information about her charges and told me to either come down to their station or use the request form on their website, which is broken. I called back, this time recording the call:
For whatever reason, Hubbard changes his attitude after putting me on hold for a few minutes and then gives up the info. According to him, Amanda is facing the following charges:
- Disobeying an Officer
- Resisting Arrest or Detention
- Transporting an Alcoholic Beverage
- Possession of a Controlled Drug
- Driving Under the Influence
Hubbard claimed her arraignment was today at Laconia District Court, and I believe he was relaying old information. Amanda’s court date would have been today – had she not received PR bail over the weekend and been released. I’m guessing her arraignment date is several weeks away as the district court has not received any paperwork on the case yet. I’ve placed a call to police prosecutor James Sawyer at 524-2330 to inquire about the court date. (You may want to call him and tell him to drop the charges and leave this peaceful lady alone.) Stay tuned here to Free Keene for the latest on this situation.
Here’s a fun video where Derrick also calls LPD to make a similar inquiry:
UPDATE: All charges against Amanda were dropped, except for “disobeying an officer,” to which she plead guilty. Details here.
