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KoKo

(84,711 posts)
Tue May 6, 2014, 07:08 PM May 2014

Democracy Now:"Cecily McMillan Convicted of Assaulting Cop, Faces Up to Seven Years" Evidence Denied


An Occupy Wall Street activist has been found guilty of assaulting a New York City police officer in a trial that critics say should have been about the police assaulting her. Cecily McMillan was arrested in March 2012 as protesters tried to re-occupy Zuccotti Park, six months after Occupy began. McMillan was convicted of deliberately striking Officer Grantley Bovell with her elbow, leaving him with a black eye. McMillan says she swung her arm instinctively after being grabbed in the right breast from behind. To support this claim, defense lawyers showed photos of bruising to her chest during trial. In addition to her injuries, McMillan says she went into a seizure as officers pinned her down. She was later treated for post-traumatic stress disorder. After a four-week trial, the jury took just three hours Monday to deliver a verdict. The judge in the case rejected defense pleas to allow her release on bail. McMillan was placed in handcuffs and taken to Rikers Island, where she’ll remain until sentencing in two weeks. She faces up to seven years in prison. We speak to McMillan’s attorney Martin Stolar and her friend Lucy Parks, field coordinator for the Justice for Cecily Support Team.

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Transcript

This is a rush transcript. Copy may not be in its final form.

AARON MATÉ: An Occupy Wall Street activist has been found guilty of assaulting a New York City police officer, but critics say the trial should have been about the police assaulting her. Cecily McMillan was arrested in March 2012 as protesters tried to re-occupy Zuccotti Park six months after Occupy began. McMillan was convicted of deliberately striking Officer Grantley Bovell with her elbow, leaving him with a black eye. McMillan says she swung her arm instinctively after being grabbed in the right breast from behind. To support this claim, defense lawyers showed photos of bruising to her chest during trial. In addition to her injuries, McMillan says she went into a seizure as officers pinned her down. She was later treated for post-traumatic stress disorder.

AMY GOODMAN: But prosecutors rejected Cecily McMillan’s claims and suggested she may have even caused the bruises to her body herself. After a four-week trial, the jury took just three hours Monday to deliver a verdict. The judge in the case rejected defense pleas to allow her release on bail. As outraged supporters chanted "Shame," McMillian was placed in handcuffs and taken to Rikers Island. She’ll remain there until sentencing in two weeks, when she faces up to seven years in prison.

In a moment, we’ll be joined by her attorney and a friend, but first I want to turn back to our interview we did in 2012 that we did in 2012 with Cecily McMillan when she joined us on Democracy Now! just six days after her arrest. This is part of that interview.

AMY GOODMAN: We welcome you both to Democracy Now! Cecily, you limped in here. You’re very bruised. You have a bruise over your left eye. And I can see, with your—the scoop neck of your T-shirt, you are scratched and it is black and blue. It is—

Show Full Transcript AT:

http://www.democracynow.org/2014/5/6/occupy_wall_street_on_trial_cecily

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Democracy Now:"Cecily McMillan Convicted of Assaulting Cop, Faces Up to Seven Years" Evidence Denied (Original Post) KoKo May 2014 OP
What the heck is wrong with this picture? Octafish May 2014 #1
Did ya watch the video? She throws a wicked elbow.. JJChambers May 2014 #2
Are you saying the cop got taken down by that "wicked elbow?" KoKo May 2014 #3
Assault is assault; we should ignore it because the victim was a cop? Or because she was w/occupy? JJChambers May 2014 #4
Ahh...I see. You didn't watch the Video or Read the Transcript.... KoKo May 2014 #5
The video shows an assault; the jury convicted JJChambers May 2014 #6
So the pig gets to cop a feel and a woman can't defend herself...got it... truebrit71 May 2014 #10
Can't view the video at work, so a question: Orrex May 2014 #11
It appeared that they were both walking/she was being shoved... truebrit71 May 2014 #13
it could have been an Niceguy1 May 2014 #26
It could be that there is ohheckyeah May 2014 #27
she does bear some guilt Niceguy1 May 2014 #28
I did both TorchTheWitch May 2014 #22
Victim? LOOLLLOLOLOLO morningfog May 2014 #16
Dat widdle gir hurt da big officer? GOPee May 2014 #23
Really? Did the video show the cop grabbing her breast from behind? Octafish May 2014 #7
Speaking of "wicked", because she was peacefully protesting pacalo May 2014 #24
Sorry, it sounds completely bogus. randome May 2014 #8
Democracy Now fail, I guess they don't have access to YouTube LOL snooper2 May 2014 #9
In the video I watched she seemingly attacked the cop. nt Demo_Chris May 2014 #12
The video shows bruises from where the cop grabbed her. Other photos were KoKo May 2014 #14
The bruises are irrelevant... Demo_Chris May 2014 #15
She was grabbed first. morningfog May 2014 #17
So she says. The jury apparently did not believe her. Based on the video I share their opinion. nt Demo_Chris May 2014 #18
Was the jury presented the question of whether she was grabbed first? morningfog May 2014 #19
No idea, but unless her lawyer is an idiot... Demo_Chris May 2014 #20
The judge does have discretion. He could sentence her to time served morningfog May 2014 #21
Police savagery. It's the American way. JEB May 2014 #25

Octafish

(55,745 posts)
1. What the heck is wrong with this picture?
Tue May 6, 2014, 07:31 PM
May 2014

Justice is in the rear-view mirror. The times are to look forward.

 

JJChambers

(1,115 posts)
4. Assault is assault; we should ignore it because the victim was a cop? Or because she was w/occupy?
Tue May 6, 2014, 08:50 PM
May 2014

Orrex

(63,216 posts)
11. Can't view the video at work, so a question:
Wed May 7, 2014, 10:27 AM
May 2014

Did he "cop a feel" or did he grapple someone and wind up grabbing her breast?

That is, is it fairly clear that it was deliberate?

 

truebrit71

(20,805 posts)
13. It appeared that they were both walking/she was being shoved...
Wed May 7, 2014, 10:55 AM
May 2014

...and that his hand was on her breast...that hasn't been denied especially looking at the evidence of the bruising the polite intelligent gentleman caused on her person...

At worst this should have been a case perhaps of resisting arrest, but assault on the person that had her on handcuffs is beyond stupid...

Niceguy1

(2,467 posts)
26. it could have been an
Fri May 9, 2014, 12:49 AM
May 2014

Accidental grab in the pursuit of restraining a person resisting arrest, which isnt coping a feel, or sexual assault as one claims.

One thing is clear...this case isnt cut or dry, and we dont have all of the info that the jury saw.

Niceguy1

(2,467 posts)
28. she does bear some guilt
Fri May 9, 2014, 01:53 AM
May 2014

Remember, she didnt use the video in her defense. She deserves time, but not 7 years

TorchTheWitch

(11,065 posts)
22. I did both
Wed May 7, 2014, 06:18 PM
May 2014

Watched the video several times... even in zoom and slow motion from other videos on YT. Personally, other than seeing her crouch down and then jump up throwing her elbow back I couldn't tell what the hell happened. i don't know if this was the same video that the jury saw or if they saw a cleaned up version or frame by frame or what, but clearly they didn't see her breast being grabbed or any of her being grabbed.

I also find it interesting that it was the prosecution that brought in the video evidence and the defense that argued that it was too unclear to tell what what happened in the video. If the defense believed that the video evidence showed her to be innocent then why was it that they didn't bring it in themselves and argued against it as too unclear to see what happened?

The still frame used in the OP's video as the "billboard" to show what the video is doesn't come from the video that was shown in the video in the OP.. That still frame is much much more clear, taken from a different angle and much much more close up. What video was it then that the jury saw? That still frame shows her running from the officer while the officer has his arm out with his hand in a grabbing position with his palm parallel to the ground that shows he was attempting to grab her head or shoulder in a downward motion. If he was aiming for her breast his arm would be much lower with his hand in a perpendicular position to the ground to wrap his arm around her chest area in order to grab her breast. What that one still frame (or possibly a single photo) shows with the position of his arm is that he likely did grab her by putting his hand on her shoulder not wrapping his arm around to the front of her body to grab her breast.

As I understand it is that when she hit the ground one of her arms was trapped beneath her body, so I have to wonder of the possibility that it was her own hand that made the mark above her breast as she hit the ground. That makes more sense to me just by the severity of the bruising... it would take a much harder impact to cause that bad of a bruise than just his hand grabbing at her breast. The bruise is also above her breast, not on her breast, so I'm not seeing that it was the officer's intention to grab her breast at all. It doesn't even make sense for an officer to try to stop a running person by throwing their arm around them and grabbing them in the front of their body. They'd have to be right up against their back with the person's running legs tangling up with their own running legs. This one still frame or single photo not from that video shows something entirely different than what she said occurred. It shows her already running from this officer with a scared look on her face with him reaching out his arm to grab her shoulder not that she was suddenly grabbed from behind with an arm going around the front of her to grab her breast while peacefully walking along.

I still can't tell from the video being passed around whether she belted him with her elbow before he grabbed her or not, and that still picture shows something very different then what her attorney has been claiming. I'd still like to know where that picture comes from... if from another video I'd like to see that one rather than the blurry mess that I just can't tell much of anything in, and what video the jury was actually shown or whether they saw one that was cleaned up or frame by frame or what. Clearly they all saw something and in a short time that they believed made her guilty.

I did find it surprising that she claimed all kinds of injuries to her body in the DN interview but never said anything about her neck or head when supposedly this seizure or whatever it was made her head bang on the ground or a hit on the head when she was thrown on the ground caused the seizure or what. Surely she should have had at least tenderness and a bump or few there. Was the seizure from epilepsy or a blow to the head or was it even all fake? It doesn't make sense to me that with other video of her head bobbing up and down supposedly striking the ground hard during a seizure that she'd not complain of any head injury in that interview.

What I'd REALLY like to see is the whole trial. I'd like to see if the defense just didn't do a good job or the demeanor of the witnesses during testimony, what the questioning was, how the law applied, etc. I'd also like to see medical records or doctor's testimony from her hospital visit if there was any.

Octafish

(55,745 posts)
7. Really? Did the video show the cop grabbing her breast from behind?
Wed May 7, 2014, 09:46 AM
May 2014

If it does, the jury should have seen it. They would better understand why she threw a "wicked elbow."

FWIW: Her reaction is not quite instinctual. For self-defense, when attacked from behind, don't waste time. Strike the attacker immediately and get away.

pacalo

(24,721 posts)
24. Speaking of "wicked", because she was peacefully protesting
Thu May 8, 2014, 09:33 PM
May 2014

(see First Amendment), she was manhandled by a group of officers & grabbed forcefully on her breast (leaving bruises). A woman's breasts are just as sensitive as a man's testicles. Here is a man using his uniform to justify roughing up a woman because he enjoys the power he has over civilians. When she elbowed back out of instinct, she gave them what they wanted. The police were there to cause trouble, not to diffuse it.

Why didn't Cliven Bundy's militia team get treated this way?

 

randome

(34,845 posts)
8. Sorry, it sounds completely bogus.
Wed May 7, 2014, 10:00 AM
May 2014

She claims to be a pacifist yet she elbowed a cop? Then she supposedly had a seizure? Then she supposedly needed to be treated for PTSD? Come on, it sounds like a child who keeps coming up with excuses.

And everyone on the jury happens to side with the prosecution?
[hr][font color="blue"][center]I'm always right. When I'm wrong I admit it.
So then I'm right about being wrong.
[/center][/font][hr]

KoKo

(84,711 posts)
14. The video shows bruises from where the cop grabbed her. Other photos were
Wed May 7, 2014, 12:42 PM
May 2014

on evidence at the trial. I don't know if you are talking about another video...but, the bruises verify that she was grabbed harshly enough to cause bruising.

 

Demo_Chris

(6,234 posts)
15. The bruises are irrelevant...
Wed May 7, 2014, 03:51 PM
May 2014

In the video I watched she is running or skipping along and then lunges at an officer, elbowing him in the face. Presumably she was then taken down and bruised, but it did not look as if anyone had touched her prior to this.

 

morningfog

(18,115 posts)
19. Was the jury presented the question of whether she was grabbed first?
Wed May 7, 2014, 04:34 PM
May 2014

You can share your opinion of the verdict with the jury, but how do you know their opinion on whether she was grabbed first?

She was clearly touched by the cop before she elbowed him. The jury could have found her action was too excessive for proper self-defense. I don't know what the jury instructions are that were given. Do you?

 

Demo_Chris

(6,234 posts)
20. No idea, but unless her lawyer is an idiot...
Wed May 7, 2014, 04:47 PM
May 2014

He raised the ONLY piece of exculpatory 'evidence' she had to offer. In any case, unless someone comes up with a new and significantly better tape that might justify a pardon, this girl is going to prison. Which is a shame, because she was one of the few folks there with the guts to actually DO SOMETHING. Unfortunately, her comrades did not share her enthusiasm, so here we are.

 

morningfog

(18,115 posts)
21. The judge does have discretion. He could sentence her to time served
Wed May 7, 2014, 04:52 PM
May 2014

or a weekend of prison time. Hopefully, he will exercise his discretion.

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