Citing First Amendment, judge dismisses charges against antiracist protesters in Chelsea
Updated Feb 22, 2021;
Posted Feb 22, 2021
A Chelsea police SUV drives alongside as protesters march down South Main Street in Chelsea on Friday, July 31 2020. The march and police department sit-in was organized by Anti-Racist Chelsea Youth.Jacob Hamilton/MLive.com
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CHELSEA, MI Impeding traffic charges have been dismissed against several of the protestors who participated in demonstrations last summer in the city of Chelsea.
Washtenaw County 14A-3 District Court Judge Anna Frushour declined to charge members of an antiracist activist group on impeding traffic violations, ruling that punishing the individuals would be in violation of the First Amendment of the United Sates Constitution.
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February 22, 2021 By Jon King / jking@whmi.com
A Washtenaw County judge is set to rule today on whether citations issued last summer during a racial injustice protest in Chelsea should be dismissed.
That follows a protest Friday in front of the Chelsea Police Department after Chief Edward Toth said his department will not dismiss the civil charges against 29 people issued $180 tickets for impeding traffic. All of those who were ticketed last July, including seven minors, were members of the youth-led Anti-Racist Chelsea Youth (ARCY) group. They alleged that Chelsea Police targeted them exclusively, including taking surveillance pictures. Earlier last week, Chelsea City Council voted unanimously to recommend that Chief Toth dismiss the charges.
Chelsea police chief won t drop charges against protesters, legal battle continues Omar Abdel-Baqui, Detroit Free Press Protesters demonstrated in front of the Chelsea Police Department Friday, confronting Chief Edward Toth after he said the department will not dismiss charges against people who protested in the streets over the summer in a case that has divided the small town and has led to a constitutional court battle.
Toth said Friday that it is not within the Police Department’s authority to drop civil charges after they have been submitted to the court and that it is up to a judge to rule on the charges, which is scheduled to occur Monday. This follows a City Council meeting earlier this week in which the body voted unanimously to recommend that police drop pending charges against protesters for impeding traffic.