Day 3: ‘We Must All Protest’
(Photo: Baylor.edu)
Spectators were allowed into the courtroom today. Instead some of our star witnesses were banned.
We had hoped to let the jury hear a Veterans Administration doctor talk about injuries suffered by American soldiers in Iraq. We also wanted Cincinnati City Councilman David Crowley to testify about the loss in federal funds stemming from the war’s $382 billion price tag so far. But Hamilton County Municipal Judge David Stockdale ruled that neither witness may testify.
That leaves it up to us, the defendants, to try to describe the crime scene to the jury. Our goal since our arrest has been to put the war on trial. In our view, the crime scene is Iraq.
The Rev. John Rich, who earlier pleaded no contest and was found guilty of criminal trespass, testified about his reasons for participating in the sit-in at Congressman Steve Chabot’s office. He described his efforts, here and in Chicago, to stop the war: marching, writing letters, signing petitions, making phone calls to elected officials.
“We had tried everything else,” Rich said. “This was the only option we had to try to stop the war in Iraq and save lives. It seemed the only nonviolent solution left. I thought that, instead of words, I would put my body in the way.”
Sister Mary Evelyn Jegen also took the stand today. She described her work, beginning during the Vietnam War, with the Fellowship of Reconciliation and Pax Christi. During the Balkans War in the 1990s, Jegen went to the war zone to document a peace effort that was underway in the former Yugoslavia.
The key to our defense is the fact that we acted out of necessity, because human lives were at stake. Our goal wasn’t to bother Chabot’s staff, after all; it was to stop the killing in Iraq.
“I thought there was a very realistic possibility that we would be saving human lives,” Jegen testified.
The jury watched a police video of our arrests. City Prosecutor Jay Littner warned jurors that what they were about to see was nothing like the TV series Cops.
“This is probably the most polite, courteous and boring arrest you’ll ever see,” Littner said.
The video showed our co-defendant, Ellen Dienger, thanking Chabot’s staff for their hospitality during the sit-in and thanking the arresting officers for explaining to us what was about to happen.
Attorney Bill Gallagher gave an eloquent opening statement, quoting the late Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.: “Somehow this madness must cease. I speak as a child of God and as a brother to the suffering poor. … We must all protest. We must move past indecision to action.”
The trial resumes at 1 p.m. Friday, in Courtroom 174. The spectators are a warm bunch of peace lovers. Come join us!
— Gregory Flannery
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March 7, 2007 at 10:40 pm
I sincerely hope and pray that the seeds sown by the defendants grow into and raise awareness — the killing must be stopped.
March 8, 2007 at 11:47 am
Thank you to the ‘defendants’ for having the courage to do what so many of us have not done–to stand up for the end to this war. As a single citizen, sitting comfortably in my warm and cozy home in middle America, I sometimes feel helpless that anything I might do (letters to congress, telephone calls, protests) will make a difference–when in fact, if we all did something–it just might have an effect. Maybe April 15–tax day–should be a moment of protest around the nation–at post offices in large and small towns all over the US…Perhaps we should all take the time to stand up and be heard?? Look for me, I’ll be the one with the sign that reads “another vet opposed to this war.”
In peace.
March 8, 2007 at 2:01 pm
I admire your courage. It is never easy to swim against a strong current or face a hurricane head on. You have chosen a task equally as difficult. Unfortunately, if you should emerge victorous, there are other much more difficult tasks lying ahead. Right here at home, our nation is being invaded by corporate america hell-bent on destroying the middle-class. These corporate terrorists are responsible for us being in Iraq. They are responsible for skyrocketing health care costs; the loss of millions of good paying jobs, and they are responsible for the invasion of this country by illegal immigrants. Your Congress and your Senate are controlled by these domestic terrorists. Our work is cut out for us, if we intend to return this nation to some form of sanity.
March 8, 2007 at 6:56 pm
Could someone with a better understanding of the law than I have explain how a judge can refuse to let witnesses for a defendant testify? It seems to me that although there was a great deal of effort to choose jurors who did not have preconceived notions about the trial, the judge has made it clear that he does. He previously refused to let Chabot, an unwilling witness, be subpoenaed. Now he has refused to let willing witnesses testify. If he has preconceived ideas, then perhaps he should have recused hiimself.
March 9, 2007 at 11:45 am
Bill, I echo your thoughts, even though I don’t claim to have a good handle on how our system really works.
March 9, 2007 at 11:50 am
Bill, the judge used the same standard in quashing Chabot’s subpoena and in refusing to allow our other witnesses: Because they weren’t present at the sit-in Sept. 27, they have no relevant testimony about the alleged crime. We disagree, of course, but that’s how the judge ruled.