ST. PAUL, MN—Democracy Now! host Amy Goodman was unlawfully arrested in downtown St. Paul, Minnesota at approximately 5 p.m. local time. Police violently manhandled Goodman, yanking her arm, as they arrested her. Video of her arrest can be seen here.

    Goodman was arrested while attempting to free two Democracy Now! producers who were being unlawfuly detained. They are Sharif Abdel Kouddous and Nicole Salazar. Kouddous and Salazar were arrested while they carried out their journalistic duties in covering street demonstrations at the Republican National Convention. Goodman's crime appears to have been defending her colleagues and the freedom of the press.
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    Ramsey County Sherrif Bob Fletcher told Democracy Now! that Kouddous and Salazar were being arrested on suspicion of rioting. They are currently being held at the Ramsey County jail in St. Paul.

    Democracy Now! is calling on all journalists and concerned citizens to call the office of Mayor Chris Coleman and the Ramsey County Jail and demand the immediate release of Goodman, Kouddous and Salazar. These calls can be directed to: Chris Rider from Mayor Coleman's office at 651-266-8535 and the Ramsey County Jail at 651-266-9350 (press extension 0).

    Democracy Now! stands by Goodman, Kouddous and Salazar and condemns this action by Twin Cities law enforcement as a clear violation of the freedom of the press and the First Amenmdent rights of these journalists.

    During the demonstration in which they were arrested law enforcement officers used pepper spray, rubber bullets, concussion grenades and excessive force. Several dozen others were also arrested during this action.

    Amy Goodman is one of the most well-known and well-respected journalists in the United States. She has received journalism's top honors for her reporting and has a distinguished reputation of bravery and courage. The arrest of Goodman, Kouddous and Salazar is a transparent attempt to intimidate journalists from the nation's leading independent news outlet.

    Democracy Now! is a nationally-syndicated public TV and radio program that airs on over 700 radio and TV stations across the US and the globe.
THIS IS FROM ALLISON KILKENNY'S
UPDATE:

    Goodman was arrested along with Democracy Now producers Sharif Abdel Kouddous and Nicole Salazar. As of 9:15 PM EST, the Ramsey County jail has charged Goodman with "conspiracy to riot" and released her, but is still detaining Kouddous and Salazar. No charges have been pressed against them.

    Laurie, the phone operator at the County Jail says she "hopes charges will be presented within the hour." As of right now, Kouddous and Salazar are being held without charges.

    9:50 PM EST: Kouddous and Salazar are still being held without charges. Laurie, the operator, now expects a few hours to expire before they are officially charged with a crime. She claims the slow process is due to an unusually high number of arrests coupled with many detainees using pseudonyms. More than 100 people were arrested along with Goodman and her producers.

    Early reports indicate Kouddous and Salazar were originally arrested on suspicion of rioting .

    11:00PM EST: The Ramsey County Jail redirected me to something called the "Joint Information Center." Under a little pressure, the operator finally revealed his name (Sgt. William Palmer,) though he asked for my name (had me spell it twice) and asked for my phone number in exchange. Friendly stuff.

    Palmer informed me that Kouddous and Salazar will be held in jail overnight until they are taken to court tomorrow. No one knows what they are being charged with, but Palmer attributes their arrest to "suspicious behavior."

    Kouddous and Salazar are still being held without any formal charges.

    11:33PM: Kouddous and Salazar have been released. Sgt. William Palmer called me back and said they have been released with "Pending complaints," which essentially means they were not charged while in custody, but may yet be charged with some felony at a later date.

    12:00AM: Democracy Now! has posted this update:

    Democracy Now!'s Amy Goodman, Sharif Abdel Kouddous and Nicole Salazar Released After Illegal Arrest at RNC

    Goodman Charged with Obstruction; Felony Riot Charges Pending Against Kouddous and Salazar

    ST. PAUL—Democracy Now! host Amy Goodman and producers Sharif Abdel Kouddous and Nicole Salazar have all been released from police custody in St. Paul following their illegal arrest by Minneapolis Police on Monday afternoon.

    All three were violently manhandled by law enforcement officers. Abdel Kouddous was slammed against a wall and the ground, leaving his arms scraped and bloodied. He sustained other injuries to his chest and back. Salazar's violent arrest by baton-wielding officers, during which she was slammed to the ground while yelling, "I'm Press! Press!," resulted in her nose bleeding, as well as causing facial pain. Goodman's arm was violently yanked by police as she was arrested.

    On Tuesday, Democracy Now! will broadcast video of these arrests, as well as the broader police action. These will also be available on: www.democracynow.org

    Goodman was arrested while questioning police about the unlawful detention of Kouddous and Salazar who were arrested while they carried out their journalistic duties in covering street demonstrations at the Republican National Convention. Goodman's crime appears to have been defending her colleagues and the freedom of the press.

    Ramsey County Sheriff Bob Fletcher told Democracy Now! that Kouddous and Salazar were arrested on suspicion of rioting, a felony. While the three have been released, they all still face charges stemming from their unlawful arrest. Kouddous and Salazar face pending charges of suspicion of felony riot, while Goodman has been officially charged with obstruction of a legal process and interference with a "peace officer."

    Democracy Now! forcefully rejects all of these charges as false and an attempt at intimidation of these journalists. We demand that the charges be immediately and completely dropped.

    Democracy Now! stands by Goodman, Kouddous and Salazar and condemns this action by Twin Cities' law enforcement as a clear violation of the freedom of the press and the First Amendment rights of these journalists.

    During the demonstration in which the Democracy Now! team was arrested, law enforcement officers used pepper spray, rubber bullets, concussion grenades and excessive force against protesters and journalists. Several dozen demonstrators were also arrested during this action, including a photographer for the Associated Press.

    Amy Goodman is one of the most well-known and well-respected journalists in the United States. She has received journalism's top honors for her reporting and has a distinguished reputation of bravery and courage. The arrest of Goodman, Kouddous and Salazar and the subsequent criminal charges and threat of charges are a transparent attempt to intimidate journalists.

    Democracy Now! is a nationally-syndicated public TV and radio program that airs on over 700 radio and TV stations across the US and the globe.
    Mayor Chris Coleman can be contacted at: 651-266-8510 or e-mailed at: https://mn-stpaul.civicplus.com/forms.asp?FID=69
    Governor Tim Pawlenty can be reached at: (651) 296-3391 or e-mailed at tim.pawlenty@state.mn.us
    Ramsey County Jail: 651-266-9350

I was mortified to see reports of a small group of demonstrators destroying property and creating a tiny riot.

I'm in a bit of Conspiracy Theory mode, but they seemed dressed intentionally to look like democrats, and I didn't see any protest signs, and it's just so not the usual Dem M.O. 

On the other hand, I've seen some militant Hillary supporters that scared the bejeezus out of me.  This could have been a stupid bunch of youths going too far with their demonstrations.  To be fair, they could have been Dem youths, or Repub youths trying to make the Dems look bad.

 HoneyBearKelly wrote: 

So we will be spared his stirring, historic "I Have A House" speech.

Rudy (9/11™) had been disinvited.

 MonkeyPod wrote: 
It may be that a massively scaled-down Convention is exactly what they need, because we won't see all the excesses and lobbyist inappropriateness that inevitably would happen.

On the other hand, I have first-hand understanding of the strength and power that comes from invigorating the volunteer base at an event like a convention.  They may avoid some embarrassment, but their weak organization on the ground will slow their get-out-the-vote movements.  With no convention excitement, that volunteer crew may remain pretty sluggish.  Even with the thrill they may feel about Palin.

We may look back and realize that best thing that could have happened for the Republicans was for them to avoid the intense media scrutiny that would have accompanied a national convention. It's a lot easier to spot all the smoke and mirrors if they get pinned down on some of the answers I've heard from the typical GOP operatives lately.

 uselessart wrote: 
  Give it time, it takes a very long time to send a Word document via telegraph.

Was there a memo or something about the convention?  And TPS cover sheets?  I think I missed it.

 Zep wrote: 
With GOP spending, from Gramm-Rudman to Gulf War II as a measure, it's an expense that the Republicans will be more than willing to let us taxpayers make...

Servo wrote:

That's some pretty expensive justice there...

It seems to me like the Republican convention is going to be a total bust.  McCain will be nominated, with no drama of the kind that came from the Hillary situation.  McCain has blown his wad by announcing his running mate before the convention, so there's no anticipation there.  And since both McCain and his token female have been doing a lot of campaigning and press interviews recently, I can't imagine any truly new material for the speeches at the RNC.

At best, the RNC will be a non-event.  But because Obama can also upstage McCain if he wants to (maybe an Obama & Clinton fact-finding trip to Georgia), and because of the storm that is reminding the world of how bad the Bush administration has failed, this seems to be a convention that could easily turn into a PR disaster for the GOP.

Looks like poetic justice to me...

Inamorato wrote:
oh, whoops!  something else to apologize for. 

Ex-Dem Chair Apologizes for Hurricane Remark

August 31, 2008 5:55 PM

ABC News' Teddy Davis Reports: Former DNC Chairman Don Fowler apologized on Sunday for joking in a private conversation that the timing of Hurricane Gustav demonstrates that God is on the side of the Democrats. 

"If this offended anybody, I personally apologize," Fowler told ABC News. "It was a mistake, and it was a satirical statement made in jest. And one that I clearly don't believe." 

Fowler was secretly recorded by the person sitting behind him while flying from Denver, Colo., to Charlotte, N.C., following the Democratic National Convention. His conversation with Rep. John Spratt, D-S.C., was anonymously posted to YouTube and highlighted by RedState.com, a conservative blog. 

"One doesn't anticipate that one's private conversation will be surreptitiously taped by some right-wing nutcase," said Fowler. "But that's the nature of what we're dealing with." 

Fowler, a superdelegate who endorsed Hillary Clinton in 2007, was caught on tape saying: "The hurricane’s going to hit New Orleans about the time they start. The timing is — at least it appears now that it’ll be there Monday. That just demonstrates that God’s on our side. Everything’s cool."

(Full story)

Lazy8 wrote:
I would never! 

n4ku wrote:

Oh good God! Thanks for the translation.

 katzendogs wrote:
Somebody off-camera says that the hurricane is due to arrive Monday. He replies that it shows god is on their side.

C'mon, if the situation was reversed Republicans might crack this kind of joke too.

 katzendogs wrote: 
He said that the timing of Gustav hitting NO on the opening day of the Republican convention was proof that 'God is on our (i.e. The Democrats) side.'

n4ku wrote:
I didn't understand what he said. A lil help please!

 Alpine wrote: 
Seriously.

n4ku wrote:
What a creep.