September 6 was a national day of action for Bradley Manning. Some larger cities hosted civil disobedience arrests for trespassing via sit-in. The focus of the actions were mostly Obama campaign headquarters, though the Democratic Party headquarters in Washington, DC was the location of a tense letter delivery to president Barack Obama. A full report of the delivery of the letter to the national office is available here.
Sept 6 2012 – Concord, NH
The letter being delivered to the party headquarters was signed by eighty-three individuals representing a variety of organizations. Included in the list of signers is Art Brennan, a veteran and former New Hampshire district court judge who scheduled his own action to occur at the Concord Obama campaign office on September 6. He had notified the office that he would be reading his letter aloud and delivering a copy for Mr. Obama. When Mr. Brennan arrived with a small group from Veterans for Peace and NH Peace Action, the doors were locked and the lights were off. (more…)
Yesterday I was out promoting the theatrical premiere of Derrick J’s Victimless Crime Spree near Keene State College. I chalked the ground while Darryl held a sign with details for the screening. Security approached myself and Darryl after I had finished one chalking and was headed to complete the next one. While he approached us, you can hear him calling in re-enforcements from the Keene police, only to call them off within moments of conversing with me. Darryl happens to have a no-trespass order against him from KSC, for having gone onto campus with a friend in the past who was distributing unauthorized information, so he was careful not to accidentally step onto campus property. See the jovial encounter below. You can view photos of the chalkings in this entry from yesterday.
An article published in Monday’s Union Leader sources a video from the FreeConcordTV youtube channel. In a follow-up piece on the recent State v Jonathan Evans, the full trial footage is linked toward the end of the article, when describing the oddity occurring on camera when a seemingly civilian witness open carries onto the witness stand. Jim Berry identified on the stand as being employed by Riley’s gun store, but I have since been informed that he had been hired by the Northfield police department. It appears he is also sporting a badge on his waistband at 28:10 in the first third of the trial.
The article also reveals that Mr. Blackden has still not been returned his vest, though an older comment from prosecutor John Webb indicates he intends to file a motion to return the unlawfully seized vest. Text of the article:
Concord business Owner Awaiting Return of
Road Dawgs Vest
by Mark Hayward
New Hampshire Union Leader
Two weeks after a judge cleared a Hill police officer in the theft of a Road Dawgs motorcycle vest, the man who claims to own it has yet to get it back.
Concord business owner Brian Blackden said he doesn’t even know the whereabouts of the vest, which he had insisted was stolen from his Main Street shop.
“This judge has no legal right to hold that vest,” said Blackden, who had hung the vest on a female mannequin in his pepper-spray supply store.
Road Dawgs is a motorcycle club comprised of current and former police officers who ride together while off-duty. (more…)
It was Friday night, and Keene Copblock was on the streets. While observing another scene I noticed what looked like an undercover unit drive down the street and turn onto Marlborough. I gave chase on my bicycle down to the Keene police station, where the officers were taking beer from the trunk of one undercover Impala and loading it into the backseat of another. I pulled out my camera and began recording. That’s where the video picks up. Thanks to Lightspeedliberty for editing the video and the other CopBlockers for their dedication and assistance in busting these aggressors:
It’s like this. New mover Johnson Rice spent five hours packing the truck with three guys. We had it unloaded in under thirty minutes. Usually people moving in buy pizza and beer for the movers, but Johnson has upped the ante and hired Mandrik to cater the event!!
It is not often that an active duty law enforcement officer faces trial for a criminal complaint. But there is little that is typical of the recent case of Jonathan Evans, a Hill, New Hampshire police sergeant who faced misdemeanor charges for his role in the theft of a leather vest from a Concord storefront. There is no known video of the encounter between store owner Brian Blackden and five members of the motorcycle club, the ‘road dawgs’, but from the picture painted in court by witnesses and police, their actions blurred the line between a club and a gang, and exemplified that there are classes of men in modern society.
Prosecutor John Webb
The minutiae brought to surface surrounding an underground police organization remained intriguing throughout the nearly three hour ordeal. The Concord courtroom was host to a range of characters from around NH. Stemming from an incident involving police officers from everywhere in the state but Concord, CPD officers were the primary investigators and the first three witnesses called at trial. The single, B-misdemeanor charge of theft was prosecuted by Cheshire county assistant attorney John Webb, and heard by Concord district court judge Gerald Boyle. Witnesses to speak were three Concord police officers, the storefront neighbor of the victim, the store owner (victim), and the defendant, Jonathan Evans. Evans was represented by Eric Wilson of wbdklaw.com. (more…)
