VIDEO: UBER Driver Turns Self In, Released from Police Custody on Felony “Wiretapping” Charge

by | Nov 9, 2015 | 13 comments

JP Freeman and Jessica Phillips of Keene Cop Block traveled to Portsmouth this morning to accompany Christopher David as he turned himself in on a felony wiretapping charge. Free Keene broke the story of Chris’ civil disobedience of illegally driving people around Portsmouth as a driver with UBER. He was targeted by police for recording audio of a bouncer at a bar (who it appears is a cab driver by day) threatening Chris. Now, he’s facing years in prison.

JP recorded a brief interview with Chris before he turned himself in to be arrested for the first time in his life. Chris points out in the interview that he’s only turning himself in so the cops don’t bust in during his fiancee’s upcoming home birth and take him away then:

He turns himself over to PPD for booking and is released – here’s the video JP took of the moment he was released back to the semi-free world: (more…)

Keene’s Bitcoin Vending Machine Celebrates One Year of Operation!

by | Nov 9, 2015 | 9 comments

Keene Bitcoin Vending Machine

Keene’s Bitcoin Vending Machine

On November 5th, 2014, the Shire Free Church launched Shire Bitcoin Vending when we placed our first Bitcoin Vending Machine at 101 Deals thrift store in Keene at 661 Marlboro St.

In April of 2015, the Keene machine was upgraded to the Lamassu brand Bitcoin Vending Machine. Lamassu is based in the Shire and run by Free State Project early movers. The original unit, the Skyhook brand, is used for special events.

Now, I’m happy to announce we have passed the one year mark of having a publicly-accessible BVM operating in Keene!

Our customers range from young to old from all across the Northeast, because sadly, the Keene BVM is the only publicly accessible BVM (or ATM) in all of ME, NH, VT, MA, CT, RI, and Upstate NY. New York, the Empire State, has cracked down on the bitcoin industry there, resulting Albany and Buffalo losing their machines in 2015 and for some reason all the units listed on the Coin ATM Radar site for Boston are shut off or gone (at least that’s what the customers who drive to Keene from Boston have told us.) Hopefully this will change, as not everyone is willing to drive for hours to purchase bitcoin.

Map of the NorthEast BVMs and ATMS.It’s important to note that the Keene Bitcoin Vending Machine is not an ATM, though many confuse the two terms. The machine vends bitcoins for cash. It does not do the reverse. The machine is stocked with bitcoin (click to see our wallet’s status and all transactions) and sells from that stock. The BVM is not making buys on an exchange. Machines that do that have ridiculous identification requirements. Your bitcoin is your business and as a customer of the church, your privacy is respected. (While our machine does not require identification, there are security cameras monitoring the store premises.)

Come on out to the store and try the machine at 661 Marlboro Street (Route 101) in Keene, six days per week. Hours are Tuesday – Saturday 10a-6p and Sunday 11a-5p.

Activists in Portsmouth Protest Uber Driver Arrests

by | Nov 6, 2015 | 38 comments

free chrisFreeUber.org founder Christopher David was released on personal recognizance today after turning himself in at the Portsmouth Police Department. Activists plan to protest the continued harassment of Uber drivers tonight, and Shire Dude will be livestreaming this protest.

Expect updates every hour, on the hour.

This is a live event that will feature multiple broadcast updates.  If the above video is not live, you can access the footage on Shire Dude’s Bambuser account.

UPDATES:

The protest remained peaceful throughout the night, despite encounters I had with a couple of unsavory characters. Christopher David arrived (over 100 ft. away from the tavern, due to bail restrictions), and I convinced the owner of Daniel Street Tavern to have a conversation with him. State Representative Eric Schleien showed up and had a conversation with the bar owner, asking her if she understood economics or the fact that the state creates monopolies (referring to the taxi cartel). The bar owner became upset after this, and she even flagged down the cops in an attempt to break up the protest. The Portsmouth PD declined her request.

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Unsavory Character #1 attempts to start a fight with confusing homoerotic language

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Unsavory Character #2 attempts to stand in front of my camera

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Owner of Daniel Street Tavern pleads for the Portsmouth PD to break up the protest

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Christopher David stations himself 100+ ft. from the event, due to bail restrictions

 

[FOX protest coverage]
[Disobedient.Me protest coverage]
Bambuser series: VIDEO 1 | VIDEO 2 | VIDEO 3 | VIDEO 4 | VIDEO 5 | VIDEO 6 | VIDEO 7

BREAKING: Warrant Issued for Illegal UBER Driver for WIRETAPPING!

by | Nov 5, 2015 | 62 comments

Illegal UBER Driver Christopher David

Christopher David Delivers his Keynote at Keenevention 2015

Illegal UBER Driver Christopher David’s wife is very pregnant. In fact, she’s due any moment. What better time for Portsmouth police to issue a warrant for his arrest?

Chris posted an update to his facebook today informing us that the officer who threatened him with fines for driving for UBER in this video has now called and asked Chris to turn himself in. A warrant has allegedly been issued for his arrest on wiretapping charges. In a previous threatening call, the PPD officer, Andre Wassouf told Chris he was considering filing felony wiretapping charges, so the warrant may be on felony charges. As of this writing, Portsmouth Police have not returned media inquiries, so a copy of the warrant has yet to be seen.

Chris said, in his facebook post:

I stayed up until 4am last night setting up for the home birth of my son. I am swamped with work and preparation up to my eyeballs, and Kayla could go into labor any minute.

 

My interest to participate in a POLICE WITCH-HUNT designed to MAKE AN EXAMPLE OF ME by charging me with a FELONY for a YOUTUBE VIDEO showcasing EFFECTIVE ACTIVISM, and potentially making me MISS THE BIRTH OF MY SON… is LESS than zero.

 

To the city of Portsmouth, I opt out of your system. Leave me alone.

Sounds like he has no plan to turn himself in. Things are getting very interesting on the Seacoast. Chris has shared the number of Portsmouth Police on facebook, 603-427-1500, and encourages you to call and share how you feel about this persecution.  You can also donate to Chris via paypal and bitcoin.

Stay tuned here to Free Keene for the latest.