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Greetings,
As you may know, I was in court yesterday for the start of my anti-war trial. I face a year in jail for participating in an anti-war protest in Cleveland on March 28, 2003. I wanted to give you an update on what happened. For background info, get the current "Free Times" and read my Statement on page 9.
A spirited march and rally took place outside the Justice Center before we went into the court. There was a lot of interest among passersby, with people eagerly taking fliers. Stationed nearby was the crew of plainclothes cops that have been following peace activists for months. I was interviewed by channel 19/43 and WCPN.
As people entered the courtroom, the bailiff immediately announced that no one wearing shorts would be allowed in! Huh? This was just the beginning of an atmosphere of arbitrariness and hostility from the City that would mark this day. It's a good thing for the plainclothes cops that followed us into the courtroom that they weren't wearing shorts.
The first thing that happened was that my trial was postponed until September 17. We had over 20 witnesses lined up and 4 video tapes of the March 28 protest, so I was very frustrated with this delay. I was ready and willing to go forward that day. Then the judge, Ellen Connelly, went on and on about what an inconvenience all this was...for her! In a very patronizing and hostile manner, she tried to make all of us (me, the lawyer, and the supporters) feel like we were doing something wrong by taking this case to trial!
Excuse me, but I have the RIGHT to a jury trial. I have the right to call witnesses, and defend myself. And the judge does NOT have the right to scold me! But I know that in Amerikkka 2003, the government and courts don't look at things this way. After all, with the Patriot Act, people can be taken from their homes without charges, without due process, and held indefinitely, so jury trials are "just a bother."
The Judge than sneered, "I have a son in the Marine Corps who just returned from Iraq. Does anyone have a problem with that?!" The Prosecutor added to this atmosphere. Even though this was the perfect opportunity to drop the charges (after all, if they don't want me to go to trial, they could at least drop the charges), the prosecutor made it clear to me and my lawyer that they are very serious about trying to convict me. As of yesterday, the prosecutor had said that their case against me consisted of 2 police officers. But after court, the prosecutor said, he will now do a "search" to find any police video of March 28 and more witnesses.
Things are heating up! The City is very pissed off that we are fighting all the charges, and that we are fighting this in the courtroom AND in the streets. So we have a lot more work to do.
I want to thank all those who have supported me so far. And I call on everyone to do what they can to help in the next 5 weeks.
And I want to invite everyone to come to the next Not in Our Name Potluck Dinner on Wednesday, August 13. Bring a dish and a friend to our office at 4403 St. Clair Ave at 6:30 pm and we can talk more about what's happening.
And here are some things you can do to help:
a. If you are a lawyer or law student, we need your help with legal work
b. If you are a teacher, bring your classes to the trial to show them "how the system works"
c. Call the City Prosecutor's office at 216-664-4850 and demand the charges be dropped on Melanie "Lee" Lettich
d. If you have a radio show, I am available for interviews
e. Write the Free Times--thank them for printing my statement and give them your opinion
f. Donate to the legal defense. Not in Our Name, 4403 St. Clair Ave, Cleveland, OH 44113 (indicate this is for legal defense)
g. When schools starts, get the word out everywhere and bring your friends to the trial You can contact me at leegrrrl@hotmail.com For updates, go to www.cleveland.indymedia.org or www.nioncleveland.org
Political Dissent is NOT a crime!
Melanie "Lee" Lettich, Not in Our Name
As you may know, I was in court yesterday for the start of my anti-war trial. I face a year in jail for participating in an anti-war protest in Cleveland on March 28, 2003. I wanted to give you an update on what happened. For background info, get the current "Free Times" and read my Statement on page 9.
A spirited march and rally took place outside the Justice Center before we went into the court. There was a lot of interest among passersby, with people eagerly taking fliers. Stationed nearby was the crew of plainclothes cops that have been following peace activists for months. I was interviewed by channel 19/43 and WCPN.
As people entered the courtroom, the bailiff immediately announced that no one wearing shorts would be allowed in! Huh? This was just the beginning of an atmosphere of arbitrariness and hostility from the City that would mark this day. It's a good thing for the plainclothes cops that followed us into the courtroom that they weren't wearing shorts.
The first thing that happened was that my trial was postponed until September 17. We had over 20 witnesses lined up and 4 video tapes of the March 28 protest, so I was very frustrated with this delay. I was ready and willing to go forward that day. Then the judge, Ellen Connelly, went on and on about what an inconvenience all this was...for her! In a very patronizing and hostile manner, she tried to make all of us (me, the lawyer, and the supporters) feel like we were doing something wrong by taking this case to trial!
Excuse me, but I have the RIGHT to a jury trial. I have the right to call witnesses, and defend myself. And the judge does NOT have the right to scold me! But I know that in Amerikkka 2003, the government and courts don't look at things this way. After all, with the Patriot Act, people can be taken from their homes without charges, without due process, and held indefinitely, so jury trials are "just a bother."
The Judge than sneered, "I have a son in the Marine Corps who just returned from Iraq. Does anyone have a problem with that?!" The Prosecutor added to this atmosphere. Even though this was the perfect opportunity to drop the charges (after all, if they don't want me to go to trial, they could at least drop the charges), the prosecutor made it clear to me and my lawyer that they are very serious about trying to convict me. As of yesterday, the prosecutor had said that their case against me consisted of 2 police officers. But after court, the prosecutor said, he will now do a "search" to find any police video of March 28 and more witnesses.
Things are heating up! The City is very pissed off that we are fighting all the charges, and that we are fighting this in the courtroom AND in the streets. So we have a lot more work to do.
I want to thank all those who have supported me so far. And I call on everyone to do what they can to help in the next 5 weeks.
And I want to invite everyone to come to the next Not in Our Name Potluck Dinner on Wednesday, August 13. Bring a dish and a friend to our office at 4403 St. Clair Ave at 6:30 pm and we can talk more about what's happening.
And here are some things you can do to help:
a. If you are a lawyer or law student, we need your help with legal work
b. If you are a teacher, bring your classes to the trial to show them "how the system works"
c. Call the City Prosecutor's office at 216-664-4850 and demand the charges be dropped on Melanie "Lee" Lettich
d. If you have a radio show, I am available for interviews
e. Write the Free Times--thank them for printing my statement and give them your opinion
f. Donate to the legal defense. Not in Our Name, 4403 St. Clair Ave, Cleveland, OH 44113 (indicate this is for legal defense)
g. When schools starts, get the word out everywhere and bring your friends to the trial You can contact me at leegrrrl@hotmail.com For updates, go to www.cleveland.indymedia.org or www.nioncleveland.org
Political Dissent is NOT a crime!
Melanie "Lee" Lettich, Not in Our Name