Click here to go to home page

Drop the Charges Against the Anti-NATO Defendants!

Tell Cook County State's Attorney Alvarez, Cook County Sheriff Dart, Chicago Police Superintendent McCarthy, Chicago Mayor Emanuel, President Obama, Attorney General Holder, DOJ Inspector General Fine, the Senate and House Judiciary Committees, Congressional Leaders, U.N. Secy Gen Ban, and members of the media to DROP ALL CHARGES AGAINST THE ANTI-NATO PROTESTERS AND RELEASE ALL PROTESTERS NOW!
Initiated by the Committee to Stop FBI Repression stopfbi.net stopfbi@gmail.com


Sign the petition below! (scroll down to see petition text)


Step 1: Enter your contact/signature information:

Honorific
First Name*:
Last Name*
Address
Address 2
City*
State/Region*

Zip/Postal Code
Country*

Area Code and phone
Email*
Organization
Title
Please list my name as a signer:
Please list my organization as a signer:
I want to volunteer to help:
Sign me up for the stopfbi announcement listserv from stopfbi.net, local organizing updates and anti-war and social justice action alerts from action.alerts@organizerweb.org (low volume)
Sign me up for updates through the mail.
Comment:
*=required field

Petition Text:

To: State’s Attorney Anita Alvarez, Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart, Chicago Police Superintendent Garry McCarthy, and Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel

cc: President Obama, Attorney General Holder, DOJ Inspector General Fine, Secretary of State Clinton, the Senate and House Judiciary Committees, Congressional Leaders, U.N. Secy Gen Ban, and members of the Chicago and National media

** Drop all charges against the NATO 5 and all anti-NATO protesters!
** Release all protesters still being held in Cook County Jail in Chicago NOW!

Eight people continue to be held in jail in Chicago, arrested before or during the protests against the NATO summit in Chicago in May.

Four of the men face terrorism-related charges and the other four serious felonies, while the NATO generals responsible for the deaths of tens of thousands have left town to return to their occupation of Afghanistan and plotting for their next war.

Brian Church, Jared Chase, Brent Vincent Betterly and Sebastian Senakiewicz have been charged under a State of Illinois anti-terrorism law passed after 9/11 that has never been used. Together with Mark Neiweem, they’ve been called the NATO 5 for the seriousness of their charges and because they were all targeted by undercover officers exposed by the National Lawyers Guild. The agents went by the nicknames “Mo” and “Gloves.”

The NATO 5 were arrested without any evidence of their involvement in violence, other than the statements of undercover provocateurs. The first three arrests took place in an unlawful police raid of a home on Wednesday night, May 16, during which the police kicked in doors without presenting a warrant, beat up people, shackled protesters hand and foot, and then “disappeared” 11 people for up to 40 hours. The National Lawyers Guild and Occupy Chicago activists faced repeated denials by the Chicago Police in their attempts to locate those arrested.

The next two were arrested several days later. Again, no evidence has been presented other than the statements of the undercover police. Both of those men were held longer than the 48 hours required by law before being given access to use of a telephone or to speak with an attorney.

The remaining three who are still being held were involved in a protest action at the point which the police turned violent, causing over 70 injuries from baton blows, including many serious head injuries. Over 24 protesters had to be treated at area hospitals for broken bones, knocked out teeth, concussions and wounds requiring stitches or staples.

On top of the arrests and charges, the protesters are being held with outrageous bails: $1.5 million each for the first three facing terrorism charges; $750,000 for the fourth charged under the same state terrorism law; $500,000 for the last of the NATO 5; and as high as $250,000 for the rest.

It is the Chicago Police Department that is responsible for the violence that took place during the anti- NATO protests. The Chicago Police Department and the State’s Attorney are violating the law and the Constitution.

Charges of terrorism, preemptive raids and prosecution, charges based on entrapment and violence against protesters are all standard procedure when the U.S. government declares a National Special Security Event, as they did with the NATO summit. These tactics were employed at the Republican National Convention in 2008, resulting in the cases of the RNC 8; the 23 anti-war activists raided by the FBI and subpoenaed to a grand jury for investigation of support for foreign terrorists; and the trial of Carlos Montes in Los Angeles. Now in Chicago, they’ve added the element of excessive bail.

The charges against the NATO 5 and the other defendants are false. Drop all these charges immediately, and release all those still being held, NOW!

Sincerely,
(Your signature will be appended here based on the contact information you enter in the form above)

Contact the Committee to Stop FBI Repression
at stopfbi.net
stopfbi@gmail.com

updated June 24,, 2012

Campaign to Drop All Charges on Anti-NATO Defendants

Sponsored by:
Committee to Stop FBI Repression
stopfbi.net
stopfbi@gmail.com

International Action Center
www.iacenter.org
c/o Solidarity Center
55 West 17th St 5C
New York, NY 10011
For further information call: (212) 633-6646

Loading

UPDATED Sep 28, 2010 10:10 AM
LOCAL    Atlanta | Baltimore | Bay Area-Oakland | Boston | Buffalo/Western NY | Charlotte, N.C. | Detroit | Jersey City and Newark | Los Angeles
Western Massassachusetts | New York City | Philadelphia | Raleigh, N.C. | San Diego | Seattle | Tucson
RELATED LINKS   Occupy 4 Jobs | PeoplesVideo on YouTube | Bail Out the People Movement | FIST Youth
Stop War on Iran Campaign | Poison DUst | Millions for Mumia | Peoples Video Network
United American Indians of New England | and more links
ON-LINE PETITIONS    Stop FBI Repression of Anti-War Activists | Free SPC Bradley Manning | Condemn Political Repression in Honduras
Say No! to Racist Arizona-Style Anti-Immigrant Laws | Solidarity with Iran
International campaign for a civil rights investigation of the case of Mumia Abu-Jamal
Stop war on Iran | Food not troops - End the U.S. military occupation of Haiti | For the safety of Leonard Peltier
  Archives
International Action Center • Solidarity Center • 147 W. 24th St., FL 2 • New York, NY 10011
Phone 212.633.6646 • E-mail: iacenter@iacenter.org • En Español: iac-cai@iacenter.org