RNC 8 are back in court . Thursday 10/8 Rally at 8:15am at Kellogg and Wabasha

[annm4peace]

This week, the RNC8 are back in court.

On Thursday, October 8th, there will be a rally outside
on the plaza at Kellogg and Wabasha at 8:15 AM.

At 8:30 AM, there will be a press conference.

One of the lawyers will speak about where the cases stand currently.

At 9 AM, everyone who wants to, can go up to the courtroom and attend the hearing.

Motions will be presented, perhaps the judge will rule on motions previously presented.

The court will schedule future hearings for some time when all the lawyers, defendants and the judge can get together.

Court support is requested.
Since these defendants are just coming back into the public eye,

we'd like to show they still have the strong public support
that succeeded in getting the terrorism charges against them dropped earlier in the year.
We'd like to see as many of you there as possible.




Originally slated for August and then cancelled at the last minute, the RNC 8's scheduling and motion hearing has been rescheduled for Thursday, October 8 at 9am in room 1040 of the Ramsey County Courthouse in St. Paul. Once again - barring further delays - all of the RNC 8 and their attorneys will be in attendance. Please join them!


The RNC 8 Defense Committee will sponsor a rally outside the courthouse at 15 West Kellogg Boulevard from 8:15-9am on October 8, before we head upstairs to pack the courtroom. To carpool from Minneapolis, meet at Walker Church (3100 16th Ave S.) at 7:30 sharp. Otherwise, the courthouse is near several bus routes from Minneapolis, including the 16, 21, 50 and 94. For updates, sign up for our twitter feed by texting "follow defendthernc8" to 40404.


At the hearing itself, the 8's motion to be tried together rather than separately will likely be addressed. Other motions may be raised as well, and future dates will be set. Judge Warner may or may not rule on the motions immediately.

It's been over a year since the RNC, and our community has proven that court solidarity works. Show yours! Help remind Judge Warner, Ramsey County Attorney and DFL Governor candidate Susan Gaertner, and the Ramsey County Sheriff's Office that the RNC 8 are not criminals and that prosecuting activists is a disgrace! Join us on the morning of Thursday, October 8.

[annm4peace]

1. A reminder of the history of "their crime" (organizing)

On Saturday, August 30th 2008, the Ramsey County, Minnesota Sheriff’s Department executed search warrants on three houses, seizing personal and common household items and arresting RNC organizers Monica Bicking, Garrett Fitzgerald, Erik Oseland, Nathanael Secor, and Eryn Trimmer. Later that day Luce Guillen-Givins was arrested leaving a public meeting at a park. Rob Czernik and Max Specktor were arrested on Monday, September 1. These arrests were preemptive, targeting known organizers in an attempt to derail 2008 anti-RNC protests in St. Paul, MN before the convention had even begun. The “RNC 8″ were originally charged with conspiracy to riot in the 2nd degree in furtherance of terrorism, a felony which was the first ever use of Minnesota’s PATRIOT Act.

In December 2008, Ramsey County Attorney Susan Gaertner (who is also running for Governor of Minnesota as a Democrat) added three more felony charges: 2nd degree conspiracy to riot (without the terrorism enhancement), 1st degree conspiracy to commit criminal damage to property in furtherance of terrorism, and 1st degree conspiracy to commit criminal damage to property (without the terrorism enhancement). Then, in April 2009, Gaertner dropped the two “in furtherance of terrorism” charges due to political pressure from RNC 8 supporters. The other two conspiracy charges still remain, and the RNC 8 still potentially face several years of prison time.

http://rnc8.org/

If you can't make it, call Ramsey County Attorney and tell her to DROP THE CHARGES! Organizing and Dissent are not crimes!
It’s been a full year of dragging community members through the mud, wasted taxpayer dollars, and embarrassment for MN.

One Year Later - Call-in to Susan Gaertner
651-266-3222 | Fax: [phone] | [e-mail]

[annm4peace]

2. Sorry, just had to include this article. If we don't stand together, we'll all fall

http://www.fightbacknews.org/2009/09/rnc8-defending-right-to-dissent.htm

The RNC 8: Defending the Right to Dissent

By Meredith Aby

St. Paul, MN - Even though the 2008 Republican National Convention (RNC) has been over for a year, eight Twin Cities activists are still caught up in its aftermath. The weekend before the RNC, local police led raids on the Convergence Space and the homes of members of a group calling itself the RNC Welcoming Committee. Eight Twin Cities activists (Monica Bicking , Robert Czernik, Garrett Fitzgerald, Luce Guillen-Givins, Erik Oseland, Nathanael Secor, Max Specktor and Eryn Trimmer) were arrested pre-emptively and held for the entirety of the convention. Despite these arrests and other acts of intimidation, thousands of people turned out to protest all four days of the convention and a groundswell of community support has grown surrounding the group now known as the RNC 8.

“Members of the Welcoming Committee were used as a part of the Saint Paul police’s campaign to scare people from coming out to protest on Sept. 1 and to keep people from taking militant action during the convention,” said Jessica Sundin, a member of the Anti-War Committee and spokesperson for the Coalition to March on the RNC and Stop the War. “But protesters refused to be bullied into silence, were militant, and came out in thousands to oppose the war on Iraq.”

Members of the RNC Welcoming Committee were targeted for their work as open anarchists who were organizing awareness of anti-RNC events and for planning support such as housing, food, etc. for anti-RNC activist sponsored activities. They each face the potential of five years in prison and a $10,000 fine according to Garrett Fitzgerald, one of the RNC 8. Fitzgerald asked “Are we guilty of a crime? I don’t believe so. I don’t believe we did anything criminal. Ultimately when we go to trial the jury is going to have to decide at what point is feeding someone a felony offense?”

The RNC 8 were originally charged with the felony offense of conspiracy to riot in the second degree in furtherance of terrorism. This was the first ever use of Minnesota’s PATRIOT Act. In December, Ramsey County Attorney Susan Gaertner added three more felony charges: second degree conspiracy to riot, first degree conspiracy to commit criminal damage to property in furtherance of terrorism and first degree conspiracy to commit criminal damage to property.

Supporters organized to pressure Gaertner, who is also running for governor of Minnesota as a Democrat, to not prosecute the RNC 8. She has been plagued with pickets at fundraising and campaign events throughout Minnesota and even in Chicago. On April 9, due to political pressure Gaertner’s office dropped the two terrorism enhancement charges but she plans to still prosecute the RNC 8 on the remaining two counts of conspiracy.

Luce Guillen-Given, one of the RNC 8, explained, “Dropping the terrorism enhancements was definitely a victory for grassroots organizing. It wasn’t a victory achieved through litigation but something that came from mobilizing all sorts of different people and communicating to Susan Gaertner’s office what the people of the Twin Cities want to see happen.”

Rob Czernik, another of the RNC 8, explained why they have received so much support, “One of the amazing things…was with the Duluth Board of Trades and Labor who put out a statement of solidarity with us asking Susan Gaertner to drop the charges. There have been a couple of other unions that have recognized that while they didn’t agree with our tactics and didn’t agree necessarily with our ideology they saw that what was happening was something that could happen to them.”

Guillen-Given also addressed the diversity of their support, “We have the support of people’s families, the friends that they bring along, different political groups and communities that each of the eight have worked in, and a lot of people we don’t know who have heard of the case and can recognize that there is something significant, not just for the eight of us, but for everyone.”

Guillen-Givins theorized about reasons for this broad base of support. “This could be anybody. We’re really being targeted for open public organizing. There are a lot of people who engage in that sort of activity and every time there is a political prosecution and they succeed with that it lays the ground work to continue that and to broaden the targets.”

Guillen-Givens added, “We’re at a moment where anarchism is considered inherently criminal. You can see that in the first press release that (Sheriff) Bob Fletcher released the morning after the Convergence Center raid and right after the house raids where he referred to the RNC Welcoming Committee as a ‘known criminal enterprise.’ I guess it’s just really threatening to think of anarchists working across ideological lines. They’re really afraid of that sort of solidarity in building resistance. So I feel like they think they have a lot to lose if movements for social change are strong enough to cross those lines and like they have a lot to gain if they can zero in on the anarchists and kind of isolate us and cut us off from the movement - which I don’t think they’ve been successful at.”

The RNC 8 were supposed to have a hearing on August 19 but it was postponed. At their future hearing they urge their supporters to come to a pre-hearing rally and as much of the trial as possible. In the meantime, the RNC 8’s defense committee is planning to keep up their pressure on the Ramsey County Attorney’s office. There is currently no trial scheduled but it could start as late as spring of 2010.

[annm4peace]

3. Can I get one kick so I don't feel so alone on this

[Bjorn Against]

4. Kick

I wish I could be there, but unfortunately I have to work. I hope you get a good turnout.

[annm4peace]

5. Thanks Bjorn ! I wish I could say there will be a "good" turnout

I wish the people know what these incredible young people have done.

they have stood together and have not backed down from the harassment and pressure to protect our democracy. Our right to dissent, our right to organize.

They wanted to make sure there was a place for the 1000's of protesters who were coming to town.
People who had saved their money to travel to the twin cities, the people who had spent that last 6 years protesting in their communities, writing letters to their Congress members, who had worked on campaigns, or who awoke from their slumber.

These 8 had wanted the protesters a place to rest, a place to eat, a place to meet up and make their signs, banners, and flyers.

I have a bumper sticker that says: Enjoy Freedom? Thank a Dissent