If you’ve been reading this blog for the last year-or-so, you probably know I and other activists were arrested at a city council meeting last year for playing a drinking game, quietly, with brown bottles mostly filled with water.
Over a year post-the-arrests, they dropped my charges – a tacit admission that the arrests were wrongful. Rather than do as many have suggested and sue, I merely asked, in writing, for an apology. I didn’t expect one, but I did get an amusing refusal letter from the city attorney, which I will share with you below.
The people calling themselves “the city of Keene” have an attorney on staff named Thom Mullins. Thom told me prior to receiving this letter that they wouldn’t apologize because according to him, even though I couldn’t be prosecuted for anything didn’t mean I should have been allowed to stay in their meeting. My real crime all along had been to not take them seriously. The government people can’t have us little people poking fun at them (even if silently) in creative ways. Had we stood in there with signs, we’d have been alright, because people have always done that sort of protest over the years. Drinking in unison from brown bottles however? They see it as a slap to the precious legitimacy of their system. (more…)
Unfortunately no video exists of the incident due to oppressive camera restrictions at Cheshire “superior” court, but this afternoon before my trial on open records access could begin, two arrests were made in the courtroom. Jason Talley of Talley.TV (and FK blogger) and Kelly Voluntaryist James were both cuffed and removed. Talley was dragged by the handcuffs out of the room, yelling in pain. All of this because when the robed man entered, about eight activists refused to stand, as always happens in any court we visit. However the robed man in this case is perhaps the most power-mad one in all of NH, John P. Arnold, who despite retiring is still a “Senior judge”, which means he can be brought back anytime. The bailiffs threatened the activists upon their remaining seated and demanded they stand or leave. No one did either, so they began targeting people separately. Eventually, most got up, and Talley was in the process of leaving when they arrested him and then Kelly, who stayed seated in protest of Talley’s arrest.
Later, the two were brought in for a “right of alocution” and were released with holiday wishes from Arnold. No, seriously. He actually told them “Merry Christmas” and “Happy Holidays”. He also lectured them about having more respect for the court. He claimed that he wasn’t personally offended at their staying seated, but that it’s disrespectful to the process. After he left, out-of-control court security agent Bob Tebo tried to lecture me about respect, and I informed him that one must earn respect and that one doesn’t earn respect in my book by threatening and caging peaceful people.
For a full description and discussion of today’s events, please listen to tonight’s Free Talk Live – we spend most of the last 2/3s of the show discussing it.
Thank you Terry Clark. No thanks to the rest of the council, who just voted to accept federal money for a “BearCat”. It’s that scary looking Armored Personnel Carrier behind these scary guys pictured below. The cops sure have come a long way since Andy Griffith, huh? This thing is not something that peace officers need to have. Of course, they aren’t peace officers, are they? Otherwise they would be focusing on keeping the peace instead of aggressing against the peaceful.
As the entire nation is now aware, Tommy Mozingo and I are presently litigating the illegal restrictions on self-defense that the University System of New Hampshire has enacted on students, parents, alumni, and public members. In the Grafton County Superior Court on 12/13/11 USNH argued that it has authority to enact “policies” that are not “regulations” and therefore they are exempt from the State of New Hampshire’s firearm preemption law and perhaps even the New Hampshire Constitution.
Under Plymouth State University “policy” there is one man who can allow non-criminals to possess firearms for self-defensive purposes, and that man is Colonel Creig W. Doyle, PSU’s Police Chief. I hereby publicly challenge Colonel Doyle to an Oxford-style debate on the following motion: “Firearms and knives should be allowed on campus for self-defensive purposes.”
I propose using the Intelligence² US Debates modified Oxford rules format and that Colonel Doyle and I both choose two additional people to join our team in debating the motion.
This is a public policy debate worth having… and I would encourage the Colonel to step up and publicly defend the position he enforces.
Oh… and don’t forget to read New Hampshire’s largest newspaper’s response to USNH/PSU’s massive overreaction to our self-defense rights protest.
Radio Free Keene News is a five minute newscast which is available as a podcast and also will air at the top of some hours on LRN.FM.
You can download the edition for this week here. Topics covered include the campus weapons controversy, compelled speech, and a local school’s attempt to shut down free speech.
You can add Radio Free Keene News to your podcast client via this RSS feed.
This is video from Brad & Tommy’s demonstration on Plymouth State University campus. As you can see here, the teacher who organized the event and made the signs, Robin DeRosa, silenced the protesters.
If you’ve been reading this blog for the last year-or-so, you probably know I and other activists were arrested at a city council meeting last year for playing a drinking game, quietly, with brown bottles mostly filled with water.
Unfortunately no video exists of the incident due to oppressive camera restrictions at Cheshire “superior” court, but this afternoon before my trial on open records access could begin, two arrests were made in the courtroom. Jason Talley of 
Radio Free Keene News is a five minute newscast which is available as 
