Jon Bonavia
Banned
Thursday, December 9
Hennepin County Judge Orders Pre-Trial Punishment
Civil rights activist Joel Rosenberg remains in jail today, after a judge refused to set reasonable bail.
In a disappointing but not entirely surprising move, Hennepin County District Court Judge Toddrick S. Barnette today set bail at $100,000.
This unusually high bail came despite the fact that Rosenberg has no criminal record, is a homeowner, business owner, family man and 23-year resident of Minneapolis, who was falsely accused of a victimless and non-violent crime.
Rosenberg was charged after legally carrying a holstered gun into the offices of the Minneapolis Police Department, on the spurious theory that the city police department office was somehow a district court facility.
At the hearing, Barnette also revoked Rosenberg's permit to carry.
Rosenberg's next court appearance, a pretrial conference, is scheduled for January 7.
According to his wife, Felicia Herman, Rosenberg has refused both food and medication since his arrest yesterday. Rosenberg has high blood pressure and is an insulin-dependent diabetic.
Thursday, December 9
Arraignment today
Joel will be arraigned on the trumped-up charges today, Thursday, December 9, at 1:30 p.m. in room 142 of the Public Safety Facility, 401 South Fourth Avenue, Minneapolis
Here's why the charges are baseless:
* Felony carry in a courthouse
Minnesota Statute 609.66 reads, in part:
Subd. 1g.Felony; possession in courthouse or certain state buildings.
(a) A person who commits either of the following acts is guilty of a felony and may be sentenced to imprisonment for not more than five years or to payment of a fine of not more than $10,000, or both:
(1) possesses a dangerous weapon, ammunition, or explosives within any courthouse complex;
...
(b) Unless a person is otherwise prohibited or restricted by other law to possess a dangerous weapon, this subdivision does not apply to:
(1) licensed peace officers or military personnel who are performing official duties;
(2) persons who carry pistols according to the terms of a permit issued under section 624.714 and who so notify the sheriff or the commissioner of public safety, as appropriate;
First, Minneapolis City Hall is not part of a "courthouse complex." It is a city building housing almost exclusively city offices. There is one seldom-used courtroom two floors up from the chief's office, where Joel was assaulted by Sgt. Palmer.
Next, even if the chief's office were part of a courthouse complex, the law excepts permit holders who have notified the sheriff of their intent to carry there. Joel explained weeks ago:
As Bill Palmer knows, City Hall isn't even the issue. Not only do I have the right to carry in the Hennepin County Courthouse -- I've given notice to the sheriff, repeatedly, as most recent as last month -- but I have the permission of the Sheriff's Office.
And, if necessary, I can and will prove it in a court of law.
* Violation of a court order
The court order (PDF) in question includes the following language:
IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that all persons, except as provided in this Order, are prohibited from having weapons on their person or in their possession in Hennepin County court facilities, regardless of whether or not they have a firearms permit, and
...
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that Hennepin County court facilities include:
...
2. Minneapolis City Hall,
300 South Fifth Street, Minneapolis
There are some problems here as well.
First, Minneapolis City Hall can be found at 350 South 5th St., not 300 South 5th St. You'd think the court would know where its own buildings stood.
Of course, it's not the court's building -- it s the city's. City Hall, and especially the office of the Minneapolis Police Department, is not a court facility, and the court can't make it one by saying so.
Wednesday, December 8
What do you do when a man follows the law to the very letter?
You throw him in jail. At least in Minneapolis.
Joel Rosenberg arrested for being assaulted by a police officer
Joel Rosenberg has been arrested and booked into jail by the Hennepin County Sheriff's Office, based on a warrant obtained by the Minneapolis Police, related to Sgt. Palmer's assault on Joel at the Minneapolis police chief's office last month.
The charges include contempt, a misdemeanor, and carry in a courthouse, a felony. He will be arraigned today, Thursday, at 1:30 (see the Sheriff's booking record).
As to the first, Joel believes that the order in unlawfully broad -- the city police chief's office is NOT a county courthouse.
As to the second, Joel has made clear several times that even if the chief's office were a courthouse (hint: it's not), he has already availed himself of the statutory exception to that offense by notifying the sheriff's office of his intent to carry at the courthouse. See Minnesota Statute 609.66, Subd. 1g:
[T]his subdivision does not apply to * * * persons who carry pistols according to the terms of a permit issued under section 624.714 and who so notify the sheriff or the commissioner of public safety, as appropriate.
Wednesday, December 8
The Arrest Warrant
Anyone want to count the things wrong with this warrant?
Download warrant (PDF)
Wednesday, December 8
Minnesota Rules of Criminal Procedure
Take particular note of the areas we've highlighted on pages 7-10. Some good questions:
* Why was Joel served with a warrant and not a summons, as required by Rule 3.01?
A summons rather than a warrant must issue unless a substantial likelihood exists that the defendant will fail to respond to a summons, the defendant’s location is not reasonably discoverable, or the defendant’s arrest is necessary to prevent imminent harm to anyone.
* Why wasn't Joel brought before a judge as soon as he was arrested, as required by Rule 3.02, Subd. 2?
Download rules (PDF)
Wednesday, December 8
Frequently Asked Questions
WTF?
Good question. See this press release and this open letter.
No, really, WTF?
Okay. From the beginning. Joel's wife, Felicia, was disciplining her kid as permitted by law when a passerby called the cops. The cop on the scene, after clearly establishing that no crime had occurred, promptly arrested Felicia.
The city had no case, and they knew it. So they put the family through hell anyway, forcing the family to make bail, forcing Felicia to leave the family home, and stretching the whole thing out a month. This is stadard operating procedure: break down the "perp," innocent or guilty, so she'll plead out and avoid all that annoying "proof" stuff.
That often works, but not when the innocent arrestee has a lawyer named David Gross, who called out the city on their utter lack of a case.
So, after dragging the family through the mud, the city dropped the bogus charges at the last moment.
This led Joel to take a strong and renewed interest in certain actors and actions within the Minneapolis Police Department.
In the course of his research, Joel requested some data from the department. Sergeant William Palmer, after first attempting to illegally extort payment to view the documents (which, by law, must be available for view at no charge), made some documents available for viewing at the office of the chief of police.
The chief's office is on the first floor of Minneapolis's historic City Hall. While at one time it was shared between the court and the city, the Hennepin County Government Center, built in 1973, and three other buildings in the area, as the county county shows on their web site, house the district court.
Oh, up on the third floor, there is, apparently, one lonely, seldom-used conciliation courtroom.
More to come...
http://ellegon.com/news/
Hennepin County Judge Orders Pre-Trial Punishment
Civil rights activist Joel Rosenberg remains in jail today, after a judge refused to set reasonable bail.
In a disappointing but not entirely surprising move, Hennepin County District Court Judge Toddrick S. Barnette today set bail at $100,000.
This unusually high bail came despite the fact that Rosenberg has no criminal record, is a homeowner, business owner, family man and 23-year resident of Minneapolis, who was falsely accused of a victimless and non-violent crime.
Rosenberg was charged after legally carrying a holstered gun into the offices of the Minneapolis Police Department, on the spurious theory that the city police department office was somehow a district court facility.
At the hearing, Barnette also revoked Rosenberg's permit to carry.
Rosenberg's next court appearance, a pretrial conference, is scheduled for January 7.
According to his wife, Felicia Herman, Rosenberg has refused both food and medication since his arrest yesterday. Rosenberg has high blood pressure and is an insulin-dependent diabetic.
Thursday, December 9
Arraignment today
Joel will be arraigned on the trumped-up charges today, Thursday, December 9, at 1:30 p.m. in room 142 of the Public Safety Facility, 401 South Fourth Avenue, Minneapolis
Here's why the charges are baseless:
* Felony carry in a courthouse
Minnesota Statute 609.66 reads, in part:
Subd. 1g.Felony; possession in courthouse or certain state buildings.
(a) A person who commits either of the following acts is guilty of a felony and may be sentenced to imprisonment for not more than five years or to payment of a fine of not more than $10,000, or both:
(1) possesses a dangerous weapon, ammunition, or explosives within any courthouse complex;
...
(b) Unless a person is otherwise prohibited or restricted by other law to possess a dangerous weapon, this subdivision does not apply to:
(1) licensed peace officers or military personnel who are performing official duties;
(2) persons who carry pistols according to the terms of a permit issued under section 624.714 and who so notify the sheriff or the commissioner of public safety, as appropriate;
First, Minneapolis City Hall is not part of a "courthouse complex." It is a city building housing almost exclusively city offices. There is one seldom-used courtroom two floors up from the chief's office, where Joel was assaulted by Sgt. Palmer.
Next, even if the chief's office were part of a courthouse complex, the law excepts permit holders who have notified the sheriff of their intent to carry there. Joel explained weeks ago:
As Bill Palmer knows, City Hall isn't even the issue. Not only do I have the right to carry in the Hennepin County Courthouse -- I've given notice to the sheriff, repeatedly, as most recent as last month -- but I have the permission of the Sheriff's Office.
And, if necessary, I can and will prove it in a court of law.
* Violation of a court order
The court order (PDF) in question includes the following language:
IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that all persons, except as provided in this Order, are prohibited from having weapons on their person or in their possession in Hennepin County court facilities, regardless of whether or not they have a firearms permit, and
...
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that Hennepin County court facilities include:
...
2. Minneapolis City Hall,
300 South Fifth Street, Minneapolis
There are some problems here as well.
First, Minneapolis City Hall can be found at 350 South 5th St., not 300 South 5th St. You'd think the court would know where its own buildings stood.
Of course, it's not the court's building -- it s the city's. City Hall, and especially the office of the Minneapolis Police Department, is not a court facility, and the court can't make it one by saying so.
Wednesday, December 8
What do you do when a man follows the law to the very letter?
You throw him in jail. At least in Minneapolis.
Joel Rosenberg arrested for being assaulted by a police officer
Joel Rosenberg has been arrested and booked into jail by the Hennepin County Sheriff's Office, based on a warrant obtained by the Minneapolis Police, related to Sgt. Palmer's assault on Joel at the Minneapolis police chief's office last month.
The charges include contempt, a misdemeanor, and carry in a courthouse, a felony. He will be arraigned today, Thursday, at 1:30 (see the Sheriff's booking record).
As to the first, Joel believes that the order in unlawfully broad -- the city police chief's office is NOT a county courthouse.
As to the second, Joel has made clear several times that even if the chief's office were a courthouse (hint: it's not), he has already availed himself of the statutory exception to that offense by notifying the sheriff's office of his intent to carry at the courthouse. See Minnesota Statute 609.66, Subd. 1g:
[T]his subdivision does not apply to * * * persons who carry pistols according to the terms of a permit issued under section 624.714 and who so notify the sheriff or the commissioner of public safety, as appropriate.
Wednesday, December 8
The Arrest Warrant
Anyone want to count the things wrong with this warrant?
Download warrant (PDF)
Wednesday, December 8
Minnesota Rules of Criminal Procedure
Take particular note of the areas we've highlighted on pages 7-10. Some good questions:
* Why was Joel served with a warrant and not a summons, as required by Rule 3.01?
A summons rather than a warrant must issue unless a substantial likelihood exists that the defendant will fail to respond to a summons, the defendant’s location is not reasonably discoverable, or the defendant’s arrest is necessary to prevent imminent harm to anyone.
* Why wasn't Joel brought before a judge as soon as he was arrested, as required by Rule 3.02, Subd. 2?
Download rules (PDF)
Wednesday, December 8
Frequently Asked Questions
WTF?
Good question. See this press release and this open letter.
No, really, WTF?
Okay. From the beginning. Joel's wife, Felicia, was disciplining her kid as permitted by law when a passerby called the cops. The cop on the scene, after clearly establishing that no crime had occurred, promptly arrested Felicia.
The city had no case, and they knew it. So they put the family through hell anyway, forcing the family to make bail, forcing Felicia to leave the family home, and stretching the whole thing out a month. This is stadard operating procedure: break down the "perp," innocent or guilty, so she'll plead out and avoid all that annoying "proof" stuff.
That often works, but not when the innocent arrestee has a lawyer named David Gross, who called out the city on their utter lack of a case.
So, after dragging the family through the mud, the city dropped the bogus charges at the last moment.
This led Joel to take a strong and renewed interest in certain actors and actions within the Minneapolis Police Department.
In the course of his research, Joel requested some data from the department. Sergeant William Palmer, after first attempting to illegally extort payment to view the documents (which, by law, must be available for view at no charge), made some documents available for viewing at the office of the chief of police.
The chief's office is on the first floor of Minneapolis's historic City Hall. While at one time it was shared between the court and the city, the Hennepin County Government Center, built in 1973, and three other buildings in the area, as the county county shows on their web site, house the district court.
Oh, up on the third floor, there is, apparently, one lonely, seldom-used conciliation courtroom.
More to come...
http://ellegon.com/news/
