TRI In The News
Rutherford Claims Victory as Man Acquitted in Boar's Head Protest
7/20/2011
TRI IN THE NEWS: RUTHERFORD CLAIMS VICTORY AS MAN ACQUITTED IN BOAR'S HEAD PROTEST
From The Daily Progress
Original article available here.
A Charlottesville man was cleared Tuesday on a charge of trespassing during an environmental protest of the Dominion Virginia Power's shareholders meeting in May.
Chris Walters, 57, was found not guilty after a hearing in Albemarle County General District Court, according to a media release from the Rutherford Institute.
The not guilty verdict came shortly after prosecutors agreed to dismiss the charge against Walters, he said in a phone interview Tuesday.
"When the officer put the handcuffs on me, I knew I would be exonerated," Walters said. "The police were very polite … even if they were doing the wrong thing, they were polite."
The Albemarle Police arrested Walters on May 12 after he refused to move across the street during a protest in front of the Boar's Head Inn, the release said.
He and others were protesting Dominion's consumption of coal mined by the process of mountaintop removal, the release said.
"This is a victory for the First Amendment right to assemble and protest," said John H. Whitehead, president of the Albemarle-based Rutherford Institute. "Hopefully, the police will know better next time and not impede the constitutional rights of protesters."
Albemarle Police Col. Steve Sellers said he became aware of the circumstances around the arrest early on and had talked to prosecutors about dropping the case against Walters.
He said all of his officers were already scheduled later this year to receive additional training in how to safely and properly handle protests.
"The officer made a decision and he made it in good faith," Sellers said. "We're going to provide some training for our officers on how to be better prepared when cases like this arise in the future."
Shareholders from Dominion Virginia Power were holding a meeting at the hotel and Walters and others were standing on the shoulder of Route 250 West protesting.
Hotel officials called the police and officers arrived to move the protestors across the street, Walters said.
Walters was handcuffed and taken down to the police station after he failed to obey the officer's commands to move on.
"I was very surprised that I was the only one who stayed there," Walters said.
During the hearing Tuesday, Walters' attorneys pointed out that a document filed by the Albemarle County commonwealth's attorney showed the place where Walters was standing was not part of the Boar's Head property, the release said.
Whitehead said he hopes this legal victory will keep police from making other unnecessary arrests in the future.
"I hope it also encourages other people to stand up for their rights," Whitehead said.
Walters said being arrested at his first protesting event would not keep him for standing up again for something he believes in.
"Mountain top removal is a heinous crime and thousands of species of plants and animals are in danger because of it," Walters said. "It's a terrible wrong and I'll continue to take a stand against it."
