[Peace-discuss] P4P sidewalk driver update

[jencart]

Hi Ricky and Friends,

I'm willing to be part of the group to meet w/ the police, if you wish.

Jenifer
--------------------------------------------------------------
Jenifer-

I think your point is a very good one, and one of the
issues we need to discuss with the police.

Thanks for the kind words, everyone.
Ricky
--- jencart at mailstation.com wrote:
> 
> Thanks for handling this, Ricky.  I think we've made
> our point, glad the guy sounded apologetic, I'm
> willling to consider it a done deal.  I do agree
> that we need to meet w/ officers and Chief of Police
> to be assured that we will be safe, protected and
> supported when we choose to exercise our first
> amendment rights in a lawful fashion.   
> 
> BTW, I'm uncomfortaable that it's our job to id the
> face of the driver, when the police have already
> made the contact and the fellow has admitted to
> breaking the law..... Smells fishy to me, but let
> that one go....
> 
> Jenifer C.
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Ricky Baldwin <baldwinricky at yahoo.com>
> Sent: Jan 29, 2004 2:39 PM
> To: peace discuss
> <peace-discuss at lists.cu.groogroo.com>
> Subject: [Peace-discuss] P4P sidewalk driver update
> 
> Sidewalk Driving Update
> 
> At the meeting two weeks ago folks suggested that I
> call Lt Gallo of the Champaign Police and offer not
> to
> press charges against our Naval Reservist friend who
> swerved at us on Prospect Dec 13 (Casey, as it turns
> out)-- IF Casey would be willing to meet with me and
> a
> couple of others to apologize/talk.  We discussed a
> letter of apology, but decided that it was too
> impersonal.  
> 
> So I called Lt Gallo on that Monday, and again on
> Tuesday, and  again during the week, but heard
> nothing.  I called again the following Monday, and
> he
> finally called me back.  He apologized for yet
> another
> delay.  I explained the proposal to him, and he
> agreed
> to call Casey.  He emphasized that he could not
> force
> Casey to comply, and reiterated his misgivings about
> pressing charges.  He reminded me that I could not
> identify the driver (none of us could, in fact).  He
> also insisted for the first time not only that I had
> told Officer Hockings ( I apparently misspelled it
> before) that we didn’t want to press charges, but
> that
> I had told him (Lt Gallo) this, too.  I did not -
> obviously, since I initially called Lt Gallo in part
> to complain about Hockings not filing anything on
> the
> incident - and reminded Lt Gallo of this.
> 
> At any rate, Lt Gallo did call me again yesterday to
> let me know he had spoken with Casey and that Casey
> would be calling me.  Lt Gallo also said Casey is
> 24,
> not 19 (as Lt Gallo had told me before) and is
> apparently a student here as well as a Naval
> Reservist.  Turns out, Casey only started college
> after returning from active duty.
> 
> Casey did call within the hour, very apologetic, and
> sounded sincere.  
> 
> Casey also said he was not angry with us,
> interestingly enough.  In fact, he said, the reason
> he
> is in the service, as he sees it, is to defend our
> right to protest (I didn’t argue).  And far from
> being
> angry, he says he was trying to impress his friend
> in
> the passenger seat by doing something crazy (I must
> admit I have been there, too) and didn’t even expect
> anyone to pay attention.  In retrospect, he
> acknowledges that this was stupid and dangerous, and
> sounded embarrassed about it.  
> 
> I told him about last year’s sidewalk driver, and he
> seemed surprised.  He said he fully understood why
> we
> would be concerned, that we had to protect
> ourselves

> etc.  He also seemed a little frightened, or, I
> guess,
> nervous, but was more than willing to meet.