“The fact that people were getting arrested and jailed for acting out against the state, is what finally tipped me over in favor of moving to NH. I hope Ademo’s act of free speech and willingness to not cooperate with the state will inspire somebody else.”
The content on this post is organized into:
- Updates
- Free Ademo! video
- Incident Summary
- How You Can Help
1. Updates
- Tue., Feb 8th – UPDATE: Ademo is scheduled to appear before judge Burke on Wed., Feb. 9th per a motion that was filed on his behalf that states that he has served enough time for his actions. Please don’t inundate Burke with calls at this moment – let’s let the motion and Ademo’s statement stand on their own merits and hope Burke does the right thing.
- Mon., Feb 7th – MSSG: Ademo recently finished The Most Dangerous Superstition by Larken Rose and loved it. He’s going to pass along the book to one of his “roommates” (one of the other 47 people caged in D block) who, per their continued conversations, seems open to the ideas of liberty.
Mon., Feb 7th – UPDATE: Letters written to judge Burke were delivered to the court by Heika per her Love Burke to Liberty! project (see #4 below for more). - Sat., Feb 5th – QUICK HIT: Julian’s Heicklen’s Letter to judge Burke
- Sat., Feb 5th – POST: Ademo’s letter to “the best movement in the world”
- Sat., Feb 5th – MSSG: Ademo was told that he would not be given the loose stamps still on their original backing that people included with their letters to him, which goes against the policy verbally communicated to me by Cheshire Co Sgt. Delpha three days prior. I just called Delpha (603.903.1600) to ask why this policy was rescinded and was told that he had mistakenly communicated incorrect information to me originally.
- Fri., Feb 4th – POST: “Cop Block teams up with Liberty Flair to Free Ademo”
2. Free Ademo! The Man, His Stand & How You Can Help
3. Incident Summary
Around 10am on Monday, January 24th I entered Keene district court. I was present to support a couple of friends who had cases. Almost immediately I was assaulted, kidnapped and caged by “public servants” because I wore a hat. I am now charged with disorderly conduct and resisting arrest. But why? Who was the victim?
Watch the video and think for yourself.
The aggressors that day wore badges. Keene police officer James Cemorelis yanked me to the ground and shouted “You’re out of here!” but he never gave me the chance to leave, let alone respond. I was not aggressive in my actions or tone of voice. Yet that didn’t stop Keene police officer Matt Griffin from burying his knee at the base of my neck. Then he and Keene police officer Chris Simonds carried me down a flight of stairs, outside and into a cruiser, which transported me to Cheshire County Jail.
The judge hadn’t been in the room. Minutes after I had been assaulted upon another person donning a hat came into the room but he was not similarly molested. Perhaps because he had a shiny piece of metal on his costume? Also, note that in late 2009 judge Edward T. Burke did not order that a man wearing a cap be arrested.
The following day during my attempted arraignment-by-video, Burke ordered Ademo – a principled activist and close friend to many of us – removed from the room after Ademo vocalized the frustration he felt about the blatant unaccountability we had experienced thus far from the “court”. George Donnelly wrote:
Adam spoke the truth. He couldn’t bear to witness the miscarriage of justice that was Pete’s arraignment. The decision to release Pete was in the hands of his captors. To argue otherwise is to pretend his captors act with legitimate authority, a sad unsubstantiated joke.
Burke, unswayed by Ademo’s tempered recant (“I apologize if my words offended you”), told Ademo that he’d have to spend the next 60 days of his life in a cage because his 40-second statement “offended the court”. Is that justice?
Ademo was transported to Cheshire County Jail, where he remains today. After stints in lockdown and segregation he’s now in general population and can get visitors and letters. And he is eating.
As for me, after not identifying or eating for 3.5 days I processed, reasoning I could have a bigger impact on the outside. Also at one point I was told by jail staff that Ademo was being released, which was a lie. I was released on personal recognizance bail and was ordered to return to court for arraignment on February 9th at 9am.
So, to put it another way – if I were walking down the street and a random dude yelled at me to remove my hat and then his buddies jumped me and threw me in a cage most folks (except maybe the cage manufactures and cage staffers) would rightly say I was victimized. Was my situation different because those who assaulted me wore badges? Not at all. Therefore, would it be out of place for my friend, after witnessing me getting jumped, to shout his outrage? Absolutely not.
Let’s Free Ademo and hold the real criminals accountable! There can’t be one set of laws for us and one set of laws for them. People should be free to act so long as they don’t initiate force on others.
4. How You Can Help
- Find, Share and Utilize Media Contacts to help win in the court of public opinion. Utilize the contacts compiled at the Media Flood for Freedom (thanks Lorri Rodier!) and the Media Call Flood In Support of Adam and Pete (thanks George Donnelly!).
- Print & Send a Free Ademo Postcard or write a letter: Adam Mueller, Cheshire County D.O.C., 825 Marlboro Road, Keene, NH 03431. Ademo LOVES hearing from those on the outside. It really keeps him going. If you do write, it’d be great if you could include a pre-addressed envelope w/ a stamp still on the original backing from the USPS (Cheshire Co. Jail Sgt. Delpha noted that stamps already attached to the return envelope will be taken off as he claims people hide prohibited items under them). Also, send a letter to the cops, jailers, judge and Keene bureaucrats. Here’s a great example. Here’s contact information (thanks Smeg Mclain!). Be a good ambassador. Your five-minute conversation or two-page letter may be the first exposure that an individual has to the ideas of liberty.
- Love Burke to Liberty! Send a principled but firm letter to Burke. This is a specific request from Ademo. Every Tuesday Keene-based activist Heika Courser will hand-deliver your snail mail and email messages to Burke. She notes, “Please feel free to write more than one letter. Let’s see how many we can give him every week!” Mail: Heika Courser, 20 Forest St., Keene, NH 03431 Email: luvburke2liberty@yahoo.com
- Donate to the Liberty Activism Fund The money you donate will be used by Ademo & Pete to advance the voluntary society through LibertyOnTour.com, CopBlock.org and other outlets/tactics.
- Send Ademo a Book! We made a Wish List on Amazon for Ademo. Read books will be passed on to someone else in the movement who will benefit from critically thinking about the ideas proffered by the book.
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Spread the “Free Ademo” meme and introduce those in your sphere to the injustice happening in Keene by making your Facebook profile picture the “Free Ademo” picture.- Join the Candlelight Vigil Monday, January 31st at 5-6pm opposite the Cheshire County Jail on 101 just east of Keene. And visit Ademo between 8am-10pm (exempting 12-1pm and 5-6pm for meals). Conversation is done through phone/computer terminal in 30minute increments. If it’s not busy you can get additional time. Bring a picture ID.
- Advocate an Inside-the-System ma? Connect with Kathy Briedel Kathy loves her son Ademo and is collaborating with others to pursue potential lawsuit/motion/etc. options. If inside-the-system maneuvering is your bailiwick, hit her up!
- Be Creative! Have an idea on how to help Ademo and get accountability? Run with it! Decentralization is our strength!
Free Ademo! Free Speech! is a post from Cop Block - Badges Don't Grant Extra Rights