Jesse Arrested While Attempting Public Garden

by Nick Ryder | Apr 11, 2009 | 28 comments

In an act of civil disobedience in response to a recent City Council decision to grant $5000 to a private organization for a food co-op study, Jesse attempts to start another public food source in downtown Keene. He was planning to till and supplement the soil downtown into land he could plant vegetable seeds in. Jesse says he did not want money or any other compensation for his work. He just wanted the public to have access to a garden. You can read about Jesse’s plan in his own words on this recent FreeKeene post.

Fifteen to twenty minutes after Jesse arrives downtown, Lt. Shane Maxfield interferes with Jesse’s work and arrests him. Jesse is booked at the police station, and released with a $120 ticket for violation of:

Sec. 82-32. Excavations.
(a) No person(s), company, corporation, or any other entity shall excavate or otherwise disturb any surface (shoulders, ditches, embankments, swales, pavement, etc.) of any city street, highway, sidewalk, right-of-way or city owned property without consent of the public works department. Any person(s), company, corporation, or any other entity shall restore such excavation or disturbance to a condition as good as before the excavation or disturbance occurred with the expense of such restoration to be assumed by such person(s), company, corporation, or entity. The work of excavation, disturbance, removal and restoration of the surface shall in all such cases be done under the supervision of the public works director or designee.

As reported by FreeKeene’s Ian, Jesse says he will not consent to any fines, and will take the issue into the court.