Rights
Groups File FOIA to Uncover Details About Police Use of Force, Infiltration of
Inauguration Protests
July 11, 2017 by Rights &
Dissent
Revolution, people protest
against government, man fighting for rights, silhouettes of hands up in the
sky, threat of war
FOIA filing comes as D.C. Council
moves to investigate police misconduct on January 20
DC National Lawyers Guild (DC NLG)
and Defending
Rights and Dissent, two groups who defend the right to protest, are
demanding answers about the Metropolitan Police Department’s conduct during
anti-Trump inauguration protests.
Earlier today, the two groups filed a
Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request asking for records pertaining to
police use of force against protesters, including the deployment of chemical
and projectile weapons, and the use of police infiltrators leading up to the
January 20 protests.
“The police assault on the right to
protest on January 20 is part of a broader trend of cracking down on dissent
taking place across the nation,” said Maggie Ellinger-Locke, co-chair of the DC
NLG Demonstration Support Committee. “We hope that shedding light on the MPD’s
actions during the inauguration will be an important step to promoting real
police accountability.”
In an unprecedented move, U.S.
Attorney Channing Phillips indicted more than 200 people in April on eight
felony charges each, punishable by up to 75 years in federal prison. Both the DC NLG and
Defending Rights and Dissent have strongly condemned the charges as being an
intimidation tactic meant to severely punish Inauguration Day protesters and
deter people from participating in future activism.
As the FOIA Request describes, “This
is one of the largest, and harshest en-mass prosecutions of political
demonstrators in U.S. history.”
On January 19 and January 20 police
repeatedly and indiscriminately used excessive force against protesters,
including the use of pepper spray, tear gas, and new weaponry called stingers
which have a combined pepper spray, tear gas, rubber bullets, and flash bang
deployment. The police assaults included attacks on children, journalists,
legal observers, medics, passersby, and protesters. On January 20 police
entrapped, or “kettled,” over 200 people, holding them for eight hours and
arresting everyone en masse.
The filing of today’s FOIA comes just
a month after the District Council approved $150,000 for an investigation
into police misconduct during the Inauguration Day protests.
The Council’s action comes after the Mayor’s Office of Police Complaints issued a report in
February critical of the MPD response to protests on January 20. Notably, the
report found concerning multiple potential violations of the D.C. First
Amendment Assemblies Act, and the indiscriminate use of weapons such as
stingers without adequate warnings.
In addition to the use of force
against protesters, both groups were deeply troubled by revelations that an
undercover member of the MPD infiltrated organizing meetings ahead of the
protests. Under D.C. law, infiltration of First Amendment activity requires
prior written approval by a MPD commander or similarly ranked official. For
authorization to be received the officer must submit a written memorandum. As
part of the FOIA Request, both groups hope to obtain the memorandum requesting
authorization, as well as, the authorization itself.
“There is a reason why the City
Council imposed statutory restrictions on investigations involving First
Amendment protected activity. History shows that such infiltrators oftentimes
purposefully sow chaos. Even under the best of circumstances such agents chill
speech and deter political participation,” said Chip Gibbons, Policy and
Legislative Counsel for Defending Rights and Dissent.
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Donations can be sent
to the Baltimore Nonviolence Center, 325 E. 25th St., Baltimore, MD
21218. Ph: 410-323-1607; Email: mobuszewski2001 [at] comcast.net. Go to http://baltimorenonviolencecenter.blogspot.com/
"The master class
has always declared the wars; the subject class has always fought the battles.
The master class has had all to gain and nothing to lose, while the subject
class has had nothing to gain and everything to lose--especially their lives."
Eugene Victor Debs
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