Lawyers representing eight people who were charged after a protest over Gov. Mike Parson's agenda for the July 2020 legislative special session are asking a Cole County judge to dismiss the charges.
The protesters were demonstrating against crime legislation that they said did more harm to residents whom they said were facing oppressive actions by authorities in the St. Louis area.
Elijah Foggy, Eva Cloud, Sarah Butler and Alexander Goode, all from the St. Louis area, were charged with interfering with an arrest and peace disturbance after the protest.
Lashell Eikerenkoetter, Abigail Holland and Krutie Thakkar, all from the St. Louis area, were charged with peace disturbance.
Sabrina Ridenhour, of Jefferson City, was charged with interfering with an arrest and peace disturbance.
Jefferson City Police Department officers responded to the area of 100 E. High St. on the afternoon of July 30 "for a group of subjects walking in the roadway," according to a JCPD news release.
"Information obtained indicated a group of protesters were leaving the Capitol grounds and walking eastbound on High Street. Commanders attempted to contact one of the organizers in an attempt to mediate the crowd," according to the news release. "Multiple participants began blocking the roadway at Jefferson Street and Capitol Avenue to traffic. Responding officers gave participants directions to disperse and clear the roadway. The entire intersection was being blocked by participants including some lying in the roadway.
"After multiple commands were given to the participants, the order to clear the roadway was given. The participants blocked the roadway at three different locations prior to an arrest being made."
During a hearing Thursday afternoon before Cole County Associate Circuit Judge Christopher Limbaugh, Holland's lawyer, Joseph Whitener, argued the charges don't fit the crime she is alleged to have committed.
"In the probable cause statement, it says my client and others were given commands to leave the area and they refused, and she was advised she was under arrest for unlawful assembly," Whitener said. "She then allegedly resisted arrest by fleeing the area, according to the statement. The officer was under the impression Ms. Holland committed the offense of unlawful assembly and peace disturbance.
"The probable cause statement reflects those observations, but the prosecutor charged her with peace disturbance - not unlawful assembly or resisting arrest," Whitener added. "Under this charge, she is accused of purposely causing inconvenience to others by unreasonably and physically obstructing traffic by lying down in the street. There is no reference to vehicular traffic being obstructed in the probable cause statement. The charge must be supported by submission of factual evidence."
Cole County Prosecutor Locke Thompson told Limbaugh the prosecutor has "broad discretion" in charging decisions.
"It's not always the case that the charges submitted by the arresting officer end up being the charges actually filed," Thompson said. "The charging documents in this case show defendants were given several verbal commands to leave the area and not block the streets. and they refused to comply with those commands. I think that's sufficient to show that at some point this defendant and the others were engaged in what amounted to a peace disturbance by obstructing roadways."
Whitener also said the protesters had a permit to protest on that day, but Thompson said it was his understanding it did allow them to go out onto the streets. Only a parade permit would allow that, and the protesters did not have that, he said.
Attorney William Waller, who represents the other seven defendants, made a similar argument as Whitener did.
"In one of the probable cause statements, the officer comes right out and says, 'I have probable cause to believe the defendant committed the crime of unlawful assembly and resisting arrest - not peace disturbance," Waller said. "It does not explain how they believe this was an unlawful assembly, and they don't specify that any force or violence was used."
Waller and Whitener also told Limbaugh their clients, under the U.S. and Missouri Constitutions, have the right to peacefully assemble and verbally challenge the authority of law officers and that there is video showing traffic was not impeded and could have easily passed by when this event occurred.
Limbaugh said he would take the arguments under advisement and issue a decision. Currently, each of these cases are scheduled to go to a jury trial, with the earliest scheduled to start at the end of October.