Anderson goes back to the Court of Appeals

In People v Anderson, the Supreme Court ordered on July 24, 2012 , in part, that: "in lieu of granting leave to appeal, we VACATE the judgment of the Court of Appeals and we REMAND this case to the Court of Appeals for reconsideration in light of Kolanek and King."  The SCt order can be found here: http://coa.courts.mi.gov/documents/sct/public/orders/20120724_s143339_57_143339_2012-07-24_or.pdf

Mr. Targowski was pleased with the Supreme Court's order, and looks forward to the Court of Appeals' opinion on remand. 

Sticker of punk band 'This Bike Is a Pipe Bomb' lands Occupy Kalamazoo protestor in court

KALAMAZOO, MI -- Gordon Holdridge says he was shocked when a police SWAT team showed up as he and a friend staged a protest in front of the U.S. Federal Building in downtown Kalamazoo.

Police were called to the scene along Kalamazoo Avenue June 13 by a federal security guard who noticed that Holdridge's bike, parked near the two protesters, had a homemade sticker that read "This bike is a pipe bomb." 

Holdridge said the sticker is a reference to a Florida-based punk folk band by that name and that he forgot the sticker was even on the bike. But he didn't tell police that.

"I didn't enlighten them. I was naive," said Holdridge, whose protest was part of the Occupy Kalamazoo movement. A 53-year-old Kalamazoo resident, Holdridge is unemployed and on disability.

Instead, Holdridge told the officers that the sign was "was just a joke" and that he prefers comedy to make a point. He also said that pipe bombs "can be purchased at Wal-Mart for $99.99."

Officers were not amused.

Holdridge was arrested on a charge of making a false bomb threat, a felony, and he spent the next 24 hours in the Kalamazoo County Jail. 

The Kalamazoo County Prosecutor's Office reduced the charge to disturbing the peace, a misdemeanor.

However, Holdridge's attorney, John Targowski of Kalamazoo, said officials weren't aware until a meeting Wednesday with an assistant prosecutor that the sticker was referring to a punk band. When Targowski told the assistant prosecutor that the sticker actually was the name of a band -- and called up the band's website on his smart phone to prove his point -- the assistant prosecutor offered a plea bargain that included dropping the charge in exchange for 40 hours of community service and psychological counseling.

Holdridge refused, and wants a jury trial to prove his innocence. That trial is set for 8 a.m. Aug. 28 in Kalamazoo County District Court.

"I don't want to do this," Holdridge said. "I feel responsible to the (Occupy Kalamazoo) movement to shine a light on this. ... It's costing me hundreds of dollars and the city thousands of dollars, but I need to prove a point."

And that point is?

"The point is, we live in a police state," Holdridge said. "I didn't do anything wrong. I was well within my rights to sit on the sidewalk in front of the Federal Building. ... (They) way, way overreacted."

While perhaps Holdridge should have mentioned to the officers that the sticker was referring to a punk band, Targowski said, "he was swarmed by all these SWAT-type, ninja guys and he got intimidated.  ... At that point, I think he figured he couldn't talk his way out of it.

"It was all a big misunderstanding," Targowski said.

Kalamazoo County Prosecutor Jeff Fink said he's limited in what he can say about a pending case. But, he said, "these are always difficult cases" when someone might appear to be making bomb threat.

"We have to take every threat seriously and it does involve police time and it does disturb a lot of people," Fink said. "We have to balance the impact on security concerns versus the actual actions of the person."

The Wikipedia entry for This Bike Is a Pipe Bomb lists four incidents between 2001 and 2011 when police where called because of a bike with a sticker promoting the band, including a 2009 evacuation of a terminal at Memphis International Airport.

The Pensacola, Fla., band was formed in 1997 and broke up in 2011. They started out playing new wave music, the switched to country, but they are most associated with performing punk-folk music.

Julie Mack is a reporter for the Kalamazoo Gazette.

http://mobile.mlive.com/advkzoo/pm_106584/contentdetail.htm?contentguid=GxPHtrCA

Favorable Court of Appeals decision - Section 4 defense

The Michigan Court of Appeals released its opinion in People v Nicholson, No 306496, on June 26, 2012. The court found that the defendant was not immune from arrest for marijuana possession because his application paperwork for a registry identification card was not reasonably accessible at the location of his arrest. However, because defendant did possess a registry identification card that had been issued before his arrest when being prosecuted, he was immune from prosecution unless there was evidence to show that his possession of marijuana at the time was not in accordance with medical use as defined in the Michigan Medical Marihuana Act or otherwise not in accordance with the provisions of the act. Daniel Grow commented, "This opinion is important because it allows a patient or caregiver to present registry cards in support of his or her defense, even if the cards were not on hand at the bust."

Targowski & Grow and ACLU to represent victims of police harassment during “Occupy the PGA”

Targowski & Grow, PLLC, has joined with ACLU to represent two victims of police harassment during the “Occupy the PGA” protests. The two were issued citations for allegedly violating a noise ordinance. Occupy the PGA marched through Benton Harbor to protest the 73rd Senior PGA, expressing strong grievances relating to the development, including that Harbor Shores illegally acquired 22 acres of the city-owned Jean Klock Park. The group was led by Rev. Edward Pinkney of Benton Harbor, who called for boycotts of KitchenAid (the Senior PGA's presenting sponsor) and Whirlpool, which is part of a three-company group that oversees Harbor Shores. While Rev. Pinkney was himself not arrested, he and others were harassed, and at least two protesters were issued citations for noise violations. Participants gathered at City Hall, and after Pinkney and others spoke, they marched through downtown, past a Whirlpool office, along Riverview Drive, and then behind the golf course to Jean Klock Park. The confrontation with police apparently occurred at the park, and when their cases are heard in court on June 21, Targowski & Grow will be there to defend the rights of the protesters charged with the violations. Simply stated, political speech is the most highly guarded form of speech, and is critical to a free society.

WOOD-TV interviews John Targowski

Following the release of the Supreme Court's opinion in King and Kolanek, WOOD-TV contacted John for some expert insights as to the importance of the opinion.

Check it out: http://www.woodtv.com/dpp/news/michigan/mich-sup-ct-issues-1st-med-pot-rulings