It was either the District Attorney, or Inspector McEvoy of the 103rd Precinct, discussing NYPD preparations for the protest November 19, 2011, when 20 people were arrested for standing in front of the precinct door, who referenced the need for so many police for "an event of this magnitude." McEvoy's been in command of the precinct for years, but this was his first time to manage a protest at the precinct. He had NYPD officers from Queens South Task Force, who during that time were very busy running after and corralling Occupy Wall Street activists; borrowed Community Affairs officers from Boro Command, and some of his own.
McEvoy's testimony is the heart of the state's case against our four defendants, Greg Allen, Noche Diaz, Ribka Getachew and Matt Swaye. The District Attorney has a problem, though, because McEvoy testified in November at the first trial of freedom fighters in this case, and the jury didn't believe his testimony that the business of the precinct had been obstructed by the protest. McEvoy testified today that, despite all these cops, and despite having barricaded a whole city block to traffic and pedestrians, he had no plan for using a side entrance, or escorting cops arriving for their 3:00 pm shift past protesters who stood for about seven minutes below the steps to the main entrance of the precinct. The state claims roll call for that shift was late, constituting the two obstruction of government administration charges, which carry a possible twelve months at Rikers.
This misdemeanor trial is going into its seventh day, and is likely to continue until next week. Many people have asked why the state is putting so much into prosecuting 13 people on these charges. It became more clear today that the NYPD and the District Attorney consider the wave of stop-and-frisk protests began in fall 2011 to be on an order of magnitude that demands suppression. Noche Diaz recalled this week, "When we were arrested at the 103rd precinct, the charges that were brought against us was an escalation and part of trying to punish people who stood up to Stop and Frisk, including with jail time."
The multi-national jury of Queens residents was not very engaged while four police officers testified. But today, we saw them get more interested as the defense's case began. Carl Dix, as a main organizer of the protest in his role as co-initiator with Cornel West of the Stop Mass Incarceration Network, testified for the defense, describing the outreach and political message -- at least as much as he was allowed by the judge to do so -- of the protest rally and march, which began at Rufus King Park in Jamaica Queens, and continued through heavy pedestrian crowds to the 103rd. Yes, he told the DA who accused him of leading people to intentionally block doors at the precinct, we wanted to be in front of the doors; yes, we intended to deliver a political message; yes, we knew we were risking arrest. But, being arrested, he reminded the jury, does not necessarily mean you have done a crime. The D.A. got flustered. You don't want to go one on one in an argument like this with Carl Dix.
Noche Diaz was the first defendant to take the stand. He said the protest "spoke to my very being" as a 24 year old growing up in The Bronx who had been very frequently stopped and frisked by the police. "I thought this was a humiliation I would have to go through" until he learned about protest against these abuses, and joined them. Noche was so direct and honest in his answers to the DA, and when the judge questioned him, that the basic immorality of NYPD abuse came through in spite of the DA's objections.
Ribka Getachew talked about her college activism at Columbia University against mass incarceration, again, at least as much as she was allowed. She said she "had" to be at the protest in Queens, and yes, she did speak out, and step forward to go to the steps of the precinct.
That's where we left off today. The defense will continue tomorrow, but the jury probably will not get the case for deliberations until Monday.
McEvoy's testimony is the heart of the state's case against our four defendants, Greg Allen, Noche Diaz, Ribka Getachew and Matt Swaye. The District Attorney has a problem, though, because McEvoy testified in November at the first trial of freedom fighters in this case, and the jury didn't believe his testimony that the business of the precinct had been obstructed by the protest. McEvoy testified today that, despite all these cops, and despite having barricaded a whole city block to traffic and pedestrians, he had no plan for using a side entrance, or escorting cops arriving for their 3:00 pm shift past protesters who stood for about seven minutes below the steps to the main entrance of the precinct. The state claims roll call for that shift was late, constituting the two obstruction of government administration charges, which carry a possible twelve months at Rikers.
This misdemeanor trial is going into its seventh day, and is likely to continue until next week. Many people have asked why the state is putting so much into prosecuting 13 people on these charges. It became more clear today that the NYPD and the District Attorney consider the wave of stop-and-frisk protests began in fall 2011 to be on an order of magnitude that demands suppression. Noche Diaz recalled this week, "When we were arrested at the 103rd precinct, the charges that were brought against us was an escalation and part of trying to punish people who stood up to Stop and Frisk, including with jail time."
The multi-national jury of Queens residents was not very engaged while four police officers testified. But today, we saw them get more interested as the defense's case began. Carl Dix, as a main organizer of the protest in his role as co-initiator with Cornel West of the Stop Mass Incarceration Network, testified for the defense, describing the outreach and political message -- at least as much as he was allowed by the judge to do so -- of the protest rally and march, which began at Rufus King Park in Jamaica Queens, and continued through heavy pedestrian crowds to the 103rd. Yes, he told the DA who accused him of leading people to intentionally block doors at the precinct, we wanted to be in front of the doors; yes, we intended to deliver a political message; yes, we knew we were risking arrest. But, being arrested, he reminded the jury, does not necessarily mean you have done a crime. The D.A. got flustered. You don't want to go one on one in an argument like this with Carl Dix.
Noche Diaz was the first defendant to take the stand. He said the protest "spoke to my very being" as a 24 year old growing up in The Bronx who had been very frequently stopped and frisked by the police. "I thought this was a humiliation I would have to go through" until he learned about protest against these abuses, and joined them. Noche was so direct and honest in his answers to the DA, and when the judge questioned him, that the basic immorality of NYPD abuse came through in spite of the DA's objections.
Ribka Getachew talked about her college activism at Columbia University against mass incarceration, again, at least as much as she was allowed. She said she "had" to be at the protest in Queens, and yes, she did speak out, and step forward to go to the steps of the precinct.
That's where we left off today. The defense will continue tomorrow, but the jury probably will not get the case for deliberations until Monday.
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