Sadly, Ademo did not realize this as he’d not seen any official paperwork the entire time he was in custody in Kansas. Considering he was expecting to be held until extradition to Indiana and further held in Indiana’s jail pre-trial, he decided to have his friends and supporters bail him out. Only while he was getting bailed did he discover that he was not actually facing any felonies. So, his friends unknowingly paid $800 to a bail bondsman (non-refundable) to likely have him released a day early. (His hearing in front of a judge was to be Monday, where he’d likely have been released, as Noblesville will not extradite for that misdemeanor charge.) Ademo commented in an extended interview on tonight’s Free Talk Live that had he been fully informed, he’d have chosen to sit in jail and not be bailed out. We had him on-air to discuss his situation for most of our second hour (click here to jump straight to the interview).
Cop Block’s Mobile Accountability for Cops tour will hit the road again soon, though the previously planned stops will have to be rescheduled as they still have to clear up the warrants in Indiana (there’s one for Ademo’s tourmate, Brian Sumner as well). Stay tuned to Cop Block’s MAC Tour page for the latest.
You may have seen the news today that Ross Ulbricht, the man who created the Silk Road, the world’s most infamous black market “darknet” site, has been sentenced to life in federal prison with no possibility of parole. Given the unfair trial he was subjected to from start-to-finish, the fact that he did not take a plea, and because the feds want to “send a message” to underground market operators and participants, it’s sad but no surprise he got the maximum. Ross plans to appeal and fundraising is being done for that now.
One of the big questions at the time was, what did Ross want? We knew what his understandably-frightened mother and his court-obedient attorney wanted, but was their wish Ross’ wish?
Free Keene Bloggers James Cleaveland and Jay Freeville Outside the Ulbricht Trial
Local liberty activist David Crawford decided to write Ross and find out. Unfortunately, Ross didn’t write back until after his conviction, and in what may be the first publicly available letter from Ross Ulbricht, he exonerates the liberty-loving activists who came out to support him.
Ross thanks the activists for their support at trial and says he’s glad they were there, doesn’t think they did anything wrong, and appreciated their effort. He also expresses hope to not receive the life sentence. The full text of the letter appears below.
Dear David,
I got your letter a few weeks back, thank you for writing, and thank you for your support at the trial. I’m glad you were there protesting. You should be able to voice your opinions and hold signs, especially at a courthouse where it is especially important to have that freedom. I know it was touchy because the judge wanted to control what the jury was exposed to, but I don’t think you did anything wrong and I appreciate you trying to help even though I was found guilty in the end. Now I have to focus on sentencing. I really don’t want to get that life sentence even though I know the prosecutors will be pushing for it. Please thank the others that were with you showing me support at trial if you get a chance. 🙂
You can meet Ross’ mother, Lyn, at Porcfest 2015 next month, as she’ll be speaking about this harrowing experience at the yearly camping festival thrown by the Free State Project.
P.S. This story was originally posted in early March and then quickly pulled at the request of Ross and his family. They were worried it might affect his chances at sentencing. It didn’t. So, I’m reposting it now.
Ademo Freeman. CopBlock Founder, blogger, and motherfucker was arrested today for contempt of court in Zanesville, Ohio. He was there to see about a Zanesville CopBlocker, who was arrested for obstruction for filming last night. The bailiff in his Bambuser video challenged him to show him where he had walked in the courtroom with a hat on. This created an argument about filming in the courtroom to which Ademo responded, “I sued the last mother fucker who told me I couldn’t record in a courtroom, you wanna be next?”
The shitbag bailiff then went into the judge and told him Ademo called HIM a mother fucker! The judge found Ademo in contempt and told him he was sentenced to 10 days. After an apology, the judge relented and lowered the sentence to 5 days. People we know in Zanesville are worried about Ademos well being when he gets out, as they know how Zanesville cops are. (more…)
James is out, but has to deal with retrieving his box truck that was stolen by the police gang. Then, once he can escape Virginia, he’ll ultimately have to come back for what will likely be all manner of unnecessary court dates, costing him thousands in travel fees alone. Of course, “the state” people have no case, but they’ll draw it out as long as they can, likely. We’ll keep you informed here at Free Keene. Stay tuned for more on James’ situation.
Heroic activist, blogger, entrepreneur, and Free State Project participant James Cleaveland was sentenced in Judge Burke’s courtroom in Keene, New Hampshire for the charges of “disorderly conduct” and “resisting arrest”. His charges stem from a June 30th incident in which James was video recording police. According to officer accounts, James was ordered to move back from an “active scene,” and he complied. After complying with the first officer’s request, a different officer demanded he move back further. He refused and was arrested. (more…)
Ross Ulbricht is the man accused of running the Silk Road underground market. He’s facing life in prison and his jury trial begins tomorrow morning. If Ulbricht did run the Silk Road, he’s a hero for making the black market a safer place. If he didn’t, then he’s a man wrongfully accused. Either way, he should be found not guilty by the jury.
Liberty activists from Keene including Derrick J Freeman, James Cleaveland, and Jay Freeville and activists from Manchester Andre Rosa and William Kostric are heading down to Manhattan today! They’ll be meeting up with liberty activists from as far away as Austin, Texas and will be doing everything they can to help Free Ross and bring attention to his case. Stay tuned here at Free Keene for more.
