Judge Orders Anti-Bush Leafleter to PSYCH UNIT
copied this from a DU thread and it came to that poster in an email so I don't have a link, but here it is in full. Beneath it is a link to a newspaper article about it
Thu, 11 May 2006
Hello All,
Here is the latest on Cleveland's Carol Fisher, a World Can't Wait
activist, who faces some real time for events surrounding the Cleveland Heights Police response to a relatively minor infraction, the charge of posting anti-Bush flyers on a telephone pole.
The judge's latest maneuvers and statements in this case clearly demonstrates his political agenda and bias. They also sharply illustrate the fact that Fisher is being punished primarily for her political views rather than any so-called violation of the law.
Carol Fisher, based on this judge's despicable actions, should, in fact, be seen as a political prisoner and people should respond to her case appropriately!
If your stomach is turned by these Kafkaesque developments, help the widespread popularization of the facts in this case and join with others to take up the challenge this judge is throwing down.
His attack is aimed not only at Carol, but at all of us who actively seek to change the world for the better. What this judge is doing to Carol, in a very real sense, he is doing to all of us.
Please have your listserv or organization discuss this case and take a stand against this outrage (see the last section of this post for suggestions on what you can do).
People must boldly denounce this disturbing turn. Judge McGinty must not be allowed to get away with this, politically motivated, judicial assault on Carol Fisher!
Opposition to the Bush Agenda should not be a criminal offense.
It does not make one delusional to repudiate war and repression.
Defend Carol Fisher!
------ Forwarded Message Date: Wed. May 10, 2006
JUDGE ORDERS WORLD CAN'T WAIT ACTIVIST TO JAIL PSYCH UNIT!
CAROL FISHER REMAINS STRONG AND UNAPOLOGIETIC!
May 9: Judge Timothy McGinty forcibly incarcerated Carol Fisher in the psych unit of the Cuyahoga Country Jail in downtown Cleveland, where she now sits for an indefinate period of time.
In a hastily called hearing yesterday, Judge McGinty made a highly unusual and outrageous decision to force Carol to undergo a state pyschological exam as part of her pre-sentencing investigation. From the very start of Carol's case, the judge has openly said that she must have mental problems for resisting an unlawful and brutal encounter with Cleveland Heights police.
He went even further in yesterday's hearing, saying that her opposition to the Bush regime makes her "delusional."
The small courtroom on the 21st floor of the Justice Center was ringed with 5 armed court baliffs. McGinty started off the hearing by making Carol stand up and had one of her attorneys read her t-shirt,
which said:
"Wanted for Illegally Crossing Borders: The Bush Regime
"If you are going to insist that crossing borders illegally is a crime which cannot be tolerated, how about George Bush, Dick Cheney, Donald Rumsfeld, Condoleezza Rice (and yes, Colin Powell) and the rest of that gang, with their highly illegal, and violent, 'crossing of the border'-into Iraq, among other places?!"
McGinty then said this was proof of her delusion! He also kept saying that Carol "wants" to go to jail, and that she has a "martyr complex." When Carol tried to explain why she wouldn't take this test, the judge's only response was, "I do not negotiate with felons."
Does Carol really want to go to jail? No! But she is not willing to comply with a vindictive court ordered test to "prove" her sanity. And more than that, she is taking a stand for everyone who is angry and fearful of a government that, under the rubrick of "national security and the war on terror," willfully and unapologetically tramples on the most basic rights of privacy. Think about this in light of the NSA spying scandal, and now Bush wants to install the head of the notorious NSA to be CIA chief! As Carol said before she went to jail, "I'd be crazy to go along with this shit! That which you will not resist and mobilize to stop, you will learn - or be forced - to accept."
Just look at this whole case: a woman posts a "Bush Step Down" poster on a telephone pole, being brutalized by the police in the process, and now not only faces 3 years in prison but also a mandatory pychological exam. As Terry Gilbert, one of Carol's attorneys said, "This is Gulag stuff. Saying that people who are dissidents are crazy." He further added that in his 33 years of practicing law, he has never seen anything like this.
Is this the kind of country you want to live in?
On the phone this morning, Carol Fisher stated that, in addition to sending her to the psych unit, McGinty has also put her on "suicide watch!" They have taken away her eyeglasses. And if she refuses the psychological exam, she will be forcibly sent to North Coast Mental Institue for a 20 day evaluation.
Legal challenges are continuing, including issuing a writ of habeas corpus.
Transcripts of the hearing will be available to the public as soon as they are available.
WHAT YOU CAN DO:
* Donate to Carol's legal defense. It costs a lot of money to
get transcripts, file appeals, etc. Make checks payable to
* Call Judge Timothy McGinty and express your outrage: 216-443-8758
* Join us at a Speak Out! for Carol Fisher Saturday, May 13 at 7pm
at the corner of Coventry and Euclid Heights Blvd in Cleveland Heights
* Get your legal organization to be part of Carol's defense;
statements, friend of the court briefs, etc.
* Have your church, school group, organization or club join this battle
by sending statements of support, donating funds, etc.
* Write letters to the editor of the Cleveland Plain Dealer,
the Free Times, the Sun Press, etc.
* Post on blogs and listerves
* Request that radio stations play Tom Petty's "I won't backdown"
and dedicate it to Carol Fisher
More info contact: World Cant Wait, Cleveland 216-633-6200
----------------------------------------------------------------
Fisher guilty: she fought the law and the law won
Thursday, May 04, 2006
By Jeff Sikorovsky
The Sun Press
CLEVELAND _ It took a little more than a day for the jury to find political activist Carol Fisher guilty of two felony counts of assault on two Cleveland Heights police officers.
Fisher was arrested Jan. 28 after police ordered her to stop posting fliers on utility poles along Lee Road, which is illegal in Cleveland Heights.
The jury determined that Fisher was the aggressor and non-compliant when one of the arresting officers requested ID from her to write up a ticket for the minor misdemeanor.
Fisher, 53, a former Heights resident now living in Cleveland, was taken into custody after the verdict Friday but is out on bond until her sentencing at 10 a.m. June 2 at the Justice Center downtown.
No apologies. I intend to continue this battle. I knew what we were up against, and my supporters said there's no way we can stop now, Fisher told The Sun Press on Saturday.
Fisher's attorney Terry Gilbert said, My sense is that the case will be appealed. There were some errors we believe in the introduction of evidence and the instructions to the jury.
Gilbert said the decision to appeal would be made after sentencing.
The fliers advertised two Bush Step Down protest rallies the following week organized by The World Can't Wait: Drive the Bush Regime Out! movement.
A physical struggle ensued, leaving two officers and Fisher injured with cuts, scrapes and bruises needing medical treatment.
Testifying against Fisher at the start of the three-day trial, arresting officers Daniel E. Downing and Michael B. Frinzl showed the jury scars from scratch wounds Fisher inflicted on them.
MORE...
Link Here
Thu, 11 May 2006
Hello All,
Here is the latest on Cleveland's Carol Fisher, a World Can't Wait
activist, who faces some real time for events surrounding the Cleveland Heights Police response to a relatively minor infraction, the charge of posting anti-Bush flyers on a telephone pole.
The judge's latest maneuvers and statements in this case clearly demonstrates his political agenda and bias. They also sharply illustrate the fact that Fisher is being punished primarily for her political views rather than any so-called violation of the law.
Carol Fisher, based on this judge's despicable actions, should, in fact, be seen as a political prisoner and people should respond to her case appropriately!
If your stomach is turned by these Kafkaesque developments, help the widespread popularization of the facts in this case and join with others to take up the challenge this judge is throwing down.
His attack is aimed not only at Carol, but at all of us who actively seek to change the world for the better. What this judge is doing to Carol, in a very real sense, he is doing to all of us.
Please have your listserv or organization discuss this case and take a stand against this outrage (see the last section of this post for suggestions on what you can do).
People must boldly denounce this disturbing turn. Judge McGinty must not be allowed to get away with this, politically motivated, judicial assault on Carol Fisher!
Opposition to the Bush Agenda should not be a criminal offense.
It does not make one delusional to repudiate war and repression.
Defend Carol Fisher!
------ Forwarded Message Date: Wed. May 10, 2006
JUDGE ORDERS WORLD CAN'T WAIT ACTIVIST TO JAIL PSYCH UNIT!
CAROL FISHER REMAINS STRONG AND UNAPOLOGIETIC!
May 9: Judge Timothy McGinty forcibly incarcerated Carol Fisher in the psych unit of the Cuyahoga Country Jail in downtown Cleveland, where she now sits for an indefinate period of time.
In a hastily called hearing yesterday, Judge McGinty made a highly unusual and outrageous decision to force Carol to undergo a state pyschological exam as part of her pre-sentencing investigation. From the very start of Carol's case, the judge has openly said that she must have mental problems for resisting an unlawful and brutal encounter with Cleveland Heights police.
He went even further in yesterday's hearing, saying that her opposition to the Bush regime makes her "delusional."
The small courtroom on the 21st floor of the Justice Center was ringed with 5 armed court baliffs. McGinty started off the hearing by making Carol stand up and had one of her attorneys read her t-shirt,
which said:
"Wanted for Illegally Crossing Borders: The Bush Regime
"If you are going to insist that crossing borders illegally is a crime which cannot be tolerated, how about George Bush, Dick Cheney, Donald Rumsfeld, Condoleezza Rice (and yes, Colin Powell) and the rest of that gang, with their highly illegal, and violent, 'crossing of the border'-into Iraq, among other places?!"
McGinty then said this was proof of her delusion! He also kept saying that Carol "wants" to go to jail, and that she has a "martyr complex." When Carol tried to explain why she wouldn't take this test, the judge's only response was, "I do not negotiate with felons."
Does Carol really want to go to jail? No! But she is not willing to comply with a vindictive court ordered test to "prove" her sanity. And more than that, she is taking a stand for everyone who is angry and fearful of a government that, under the rubrick of "national security and the war on terror," willfully and unapologetically tramples on the most basic rights of privacy. Think about this in light of the NSA spying scandal, and now Bush wants to install the head of the notorious NSA to be CIA chief! As Carol said before she went to jail, "I'd be crazy to go along with this shit! That which you will not resist and mobilize to stop, you will learn - or be forced - to accept."
Just look at this whole case: a woman posts a "Bush Step Down" poster on a telephone pole, being brutalized by the police in the process, and now not only faces 3 years in prison but also a mandatory pychological exam. As Terry Gilbert, one of Carol's attorneys said, "This is Gulag stuff. Saying that people who are dissidents are crazy." He further added that in his 33 years of practicing law, he has never seen anything like this.
Is this the kind of country you want to live in?
On the phone this morning, Carol Fisher stated that, in addition to sending her to the psych unit, McGinty has also put her on "suicide watch!" They have taken away her eyeglasses. And if she refuses the psychological exam, she will be forcibly sent to North Coast Mental Institue for a 20 day evaluation.
Legal challenges are continuing, including issuing a writ of habeas corpus.
Transcripts of the hearing will be available to the public as soon as they are available.
WHAT YOU CAN DO:
* Donate to Carol's legal defense. It costs a lot of money to
get transcripts, file appeals, etc. Make checks payable to
* Call Judge Timothy McGinty and express your outrage: 216-443-8758
* Join us at a Speak Out! for Carol Fisher Saturday, May 13 at 7pm
at the corner of Coventry and Euclid Heights Blvd in Cleveland Heights
* Get your legal organization to be part of Carol's defense;
statements, friend of the court briefs, etc.
* Have your church, school group, organization or club join this battle
by sending statements of support, donating funds, etc.
* Write letters to the editor of the Cleveland Plain Dealer,
the Free Times, the Sun Press, etc.
* Post on blogs and listerves
* Request that radio stations play Tom Petty's "I won't backdown"
and dedicate it to Carol Fisher
More info contact: World Cant Wait, Cleveland 216-633-6200
----------------------------------------------------------------
Fisher guilty: she fought the law and the law won
Thursday, May 04, 2006
By Jeff Sikorovsky
The Sun Press
CLEVELAND _ It took a little more than a day for the jury to find political activist Carol Fisher guilty of two felony counts of assault on two Cleveland Heights police officers.
Fisher was arrested Jan. 28 after police ordered her to stop posting fliers on utility poles along Lee Road, which is illegal in Cleveland Heights.
The jury determined that Fisher was the aggressor and non-compliant when one of the arresting officers requested ID from her to write up a ticket for the minor misdemeanor.
Fisher, 53, a former Heights resident now living in Cleveland, was taken into custody after the verdict Friday but is out on bond until her sentencing at 10 a.m. June 2 at the Justice Center downtown.
No apologies. I intend to continue this battle. I knew what we were up against, and my supporters said there's no way we can stop now, Fisher told The Sun Press on Saturday.
Fisher's attorney Terry Gilbert said, My sense is that the case will be appealed. There were some errors we believe in the introduction of evidence and the instructions to the jury.
Gilbert said the decision to appeal would be made after sentencing.
The fliers advertised two Bush Step Down protest rallies the following week organized by The World Can't Wait: Drive the Bush Regime Out! movement.
A physical struggle ensued, leaving two officers and Fisher injured with cuts, scrapes and bruises needing medical treatment.
Testifying against Fisher at the start of the three-day trial, arresting officers Daniel E. Downing and Michael B. Frinzl showed the jury scars from scratch wounds Fisher inflicted on them.
MORE...
Link Here
posted by Kangaroo Brisbane Australia at 4:17 PM
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