Questioning Respect for Our Inalienable Rights Part Two.

[CCarl]

On June 27th, 2023 Longton resident Robert Walker had an altercation with two Elk County Deputies at the Sheriff's Office (SO) in Howard. The link below goes to Robert's comments on the altercation that resulted in his arrest. Please read his Facebook post. And take a close look at the picture [labelled 6/27/23  12:33] of a handcuffed Robert being choked by Deputy Watts. Hold that image.

https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=pfbid02bmr1JrYwbn4Ly3fBtB5ubbqHXrWVFf4JZx8teuBJ5n7FwVPZQCMhKHfvbLjx3HV8l&id=100090454430771

Here is my brief take on it [I was not there]. The statements and opinions that follow are protected free speech.
That Tuesday, Robert went to the courthouse to buy tags for a vehicle and pay taxes. When he pushed the door buzzer he was asked his name. He knew it was unlawful to do so, so he refused. The County would not let him in, so he went to the SO, asked dispatch to see the sheriff, and was told the sheriff was out of the office. Before he could leave the premises Deputy Bliss arrived to arrest him. I'm unclear what law he had broken at that point, but he was arrested, handcuffed and taken for processing. Is officially complaining somehow illegal? While he was being processed loud words were exchanged, cuss words on Robert's part. When he stood up, or tried to, he was immediately approached and choked by Deputy Watts. That picture certainly looks like a choke to me. I'm not sure what law he had broken at this point, either.
Does the DA intend to defend the SO's actions by insisting that just standing up while handcuffed is deemed an aggressive move sufficient to raise the charges to a felony? Or did Deputy Watts have to claim he was injured by Robert for that to happen? Watts admitted scraping his hand. And Robert, still in handcuffs, is blamed for that 'injury'? Did Watts, twenty-five days later, deliberately add a back injury to his report to strengthen the felony charge? Is that how loose the SO and the DA are with the law?
Robert was held in the Chautauqua County jail for six days, from June 27th to July 3rd. He was initially charged with four misdemeanors; disorderly conduct, interference with law enforcement, and two counts of battery on law enforcement. Which one of those charges pertains to refusing to give his name at the door? Which charge started all this disregard for what we call Constitutional or Inalienable Rights?
I have little doubt Robert struggled and resisted being choked. Wouldn't you try to breathe? I would, and I would not call it disorderly conduct or interference with law enforcement, I would call it self defense at that point. After-all, a choke hold would be a threat to your or my life. That is why it is no longer taught or (supposedly) used by law enforcement any more. [Might the use of a choke hold by a deputy constitute battery?]
The DA offered him a deal to plead guilty to disorderly conduct and one battery charge. He declined because he hadn't touched anyone. On July 17th the DA said if Robert didn't accept the plea deal, she would up the charges to a felony. Robert refused the plea and the DA filed felony charges on September 27th after Watts had reported five days earlier that he 'hurt his back'. How can two misdemeanors become the equivalent of one felony because a defendant refuses a plea deal?

When Sheriff Walker was seeking signatures on a petition to run for office, he approached me to sign. The first thing he said was, "I know folks in Elk County like to be left alone, so that is my attention if I become Sheriff." Does it seem like the SO is NOT doing such a good job of that?
After his arrest and subsequent release from jail, Robert visited the courthouses in these counties; Montgomery, Wilson, Greenwood, Butler, Cowley, and Chautauqua. He encountered no questions and no problems entering any of those facilities, without showing ID, or giving his name. He was allowed to walk around those buildings without harassment. Apparently those counties understand the implications of the Fourth Amendment in our Bill of Rights.
Go to the State Attorney General's website and email the question of whether you need to identify yourself before entering a courthouse. You will get a written response similar to this; "You should not need to identify yourself upon entry, though you may be asked to step through a metal detector for screening." If that is the AG's opinion, shouldn't it also be the County DA's opinion? Shouldn't Elk County obey the same laws the State AG does?

Robert's trial is March 19th, in Howard. If you are concerned about the handling of his case by the Elk County SO and DA, I encourage you to attend the trial and lend your support to Robert.

But, trial date aside, the best outcome here for Robert, and for the taxpayer, is to have the County simply drop all charges. To strengthen that position, let me add that the County was the first party, and probably the only party, to break the law. It breaks the law every time it does not allow a person in the courthouse without identifying themselves. The Right to Privacy in the earlier post applies.
In addition, cussing is protected free speech as mentioned in the previous post. We have a Right to express our displeasure when the law is broken, especially when the people retained by the taxpayers to serve and protect us are the ones breaking the law. Cursing even seems warranted.

I honestly do not see where Robert broke any law. The County appears to be in the wrong in this case. Save the taxpayers a bundle of money, drop charges against Robert Walker. Let's support Robert Walker to make it so.

[CCarl]

Fast forward two-plus months and here is hoping a few of the Youtube lovers watched the 13th Judicial District pre-trial conference for Elk County's denial of Robert Walker's Rights protected by the First and Fourth Amendments (See Part One).

The outcome of the pre-trial conference was to delay the trial until July. Why? For some reason the Elk County DA has not shared Discovery with Walker's attorney since November 13th, nearly four months. Huh? Could it be the DA was hoping to hide something?

Among all that legal back and forth in the conference I hope you heard that Judge Ricke caught the DA lying three times!!

Here's lie #1: The judge wanted to know why the DA initially filed charges as a misdemeanor, then changed them to a felony two months later. The DA went into a legal BS rant for several minutes that did not answer the judge's question. The judge thanked the DA for the (un-necessary) legal lesson, and asked again what happened that the DA felt the need to change charges to a felony. The DA said Deputy Watts had injuries to his back when he was TAKEN TO THE GROUND by the defendant. When questioned by Robert's attorney, the DA just continued her storyline. Watts was never accosted by Robert. Robert had his hands cuffed behind him, how could he possibly tackle someone, much less a burley cop?

Here's lie #2: The DA said Deputy Bliss was off work for seven days because the defendant BENT HER ARM BACKWARDS AND POPPED HER ELBOW. Robert's lawyer asked how Robert could possibly have done that with his hands double cuffed behind his back. The DA didn't answer that, she kept rambling her storyline. Reader, tie your hands behind your back . . . there, now try to bend an adult's arm the wrong way until it pops. I don't think Robert is a contortionist, nor trained in aikido.

Here's lie #3: The judge asked the DA if she had anything further. She didn't. The judge asked Robert's attorney the same thing. He said there was still a motion to dismiss due to keeping the defendant in jail for six days instead of charging him and letting him bond out. The judge asked the DA to respond. She said the motion to dismiss had already come before the court and had been DENIED. The judge didn't see anywhere in his file where it had ever been decided. Robert's attorney agreed, and said that Judge Lee had stated last September he would defer the motion and let Judge Ricke rule on it. The DA re-insisted it had been denied.

Both judges and the Court record apparently agree the issue of dismissal has not been determined. So why is the DA persisting, albeit, there is a small chance a Court recorder erred, and the DA is the only one to catch that error. But Court proceedings are recorded by audio and video, and possibly still by hand, so a recording error is so unlikely . . . . the DA is ninety-nine point five percent wrong, IMO.

Why the judge didn't call the DA out for the lies I do not know. He should have. Hell, the outcome of this should be firing and disbarring the DA for knowingly lying to the Court. See the Canons of Professional Ethics of the American Bar Association for the consequences of an attorney willfully lying in Court (it differs from perjury). Why Judge Ricke gave her until the next pre-trial conference in July to show proof of the denial of the motion to dismiss I will never understand. Then again, the idea of giving the DA more rope to hang herself may be in play.

Is this how the Sheriff's Office and District Attorney's Office routinely operate in Elk County, or is this an exception? An initial arrest for no lawful reason? Elevation of charges based on lies of the deputies, and then lies from the DA right to the Court's face?

Put dramatic music to the above and the Elk County Courthouse plays like a soap opera. The residents and taxpayers of Elk County are being very poorly represented and served. Is the DA up for re-election this year? We need a new DA. The sheriff is up for re-election this year. We need a new sheriff. Come election time for those positions, remember this court case!!