September 2007

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Franson: Still a Dick

Dick Franson, the longer-than-long-shot DFL candidate for Senator, is at it again, throwing around faxed press releases like Zeus frying the peasants with lightning bolts of wisdom. First he took his Senatorial race competition to task by demanding they undergo drug tests. Brzap! Then, when we had the audacity to question his actions, he called us anti-veteran. Ka-zang!

Now, he's set his electric wit against DFL Education Foundation, an organization that apparently "failed" to invite him to their round table discussion of the involvement of the DFL in Vietnam War politics.

"Thanks for not inviting me to sit on the Round Table Discussions," he wrote in a faxed open letter to the group and one of their organizers, former Minneapolis mayor Don Fraser. "In 1968 I was a member of the DFL State Central Committee and Chairman of Democratic Committee organized to censure U.S. Senator Eugene McCarthy for being 'soft' on communism."

A brief history lesson: Eugene McCarthy had the distinction in 1968 as the only Democrat running for President on an anti-war platform.

So let's recap - Dick "Little Engine That Can't" Franson once led an organization to censure the only politician brave enough to speak out against the foolishness of the anti-Communist movement and the cluster-fuck that was the Vietnam War. Now he's throwing a hissy because he's not being properly recognized for his "accomplishments."

Sorry, Mr. Franson - this one fizzled on the ground.

Posted by Ward Rubrecht at September 28, 2007 6:19 PM | Comments (4)

 

Strib hires City Pages gofer as Ombudsman

Filed under: Media

MINNEAPOLIS -- City Pages is pleased to announce that Matt Snyders has been hired by the Star-Tribune to serve as the new Reader's Representative.

Starting next week, Snyders, a 23-year-old City Pages fellow, will take calls and letters from concerned readers and attempt to sympathize with their grievances.

The position opened up when longtime Reader's Representative Kate Parry was reassigned to the position of healthcare editor. The unorthodox decision to tap a green reporter from a competing publication was evidently made in light of the recent financial woes endured by the daily.

“Matt Snyders's proven track record of taking odd jobs with little-to-no-pay is consistent with the Star-Tribune's goal of providing local news on the cheap,” said Strib Managing Editor Scott Gillespie.

Snyders—who honed his work-for-no-pay skills as Jann Wenner's cashew-fetcher while interning at Rolling Stone—seemed excited by the new opportunity.

“It's a perfect match,” he shrugged. “They're a paper struggling to stay afloat in a cutthroat industry and I’m an inexperienced quasi-slave willing to do anything to get a leg up.”

Added Snyders: “You need anything? A coffee or something?”

Concerned Strib readers can call the new Reader's Representative with questions 612.372.3722 or email them to msnyders@citypages.com.

Posted by Kevin Hoffman at September 28, 2007 3:54 PM | Comments (1)

 

Strib cuts reader's rep position

Filed under: Media

In a bold move to eliminate as many full-time positions as possible incubate a first-class health care reporting team, Strib editor Nancy Barnes announced today that Kate Parry, the paper's ombudsman for the last three years, will be taking over as health care editor.

And replacing Parry? Well, no one. At least not for now. According to the newsroom memo, the reader's rep job will, if it gets filled at all, likely be part-time.

OK, Nancy, fine. But really: any newspaper bigwig with half a brain could come up with offing a full-time position by shortchanging reader concerns. It's too easy. If you're truly dedicated to the goal of churning out award-winning copy on the cheap, why not throw down the gauntlet? Why not eliminate health care bennies for everyone on the vaunted new health care team?

Think of the stories of woe just waiting to be told, and in a narrative style your readers will love! And at such a savings!

Oh, the union might grumble, but fuck 'em. Just say it's either that or the whole unit's axed.

Posted by Jonathan Kaminsky at September 27, 2007 1:04 PM | Comments (1)

 

Strib editorial page editor steps down

Filed under: Media

After 14 years at the helm of the Star Tribune's editorial page, Susan Albright is leaving the newspaper next month. The change was announced in a memo from publisher Chris Harte sent out to Strib staffers this afternoon. Managing editor Scott Gillespie will take over the helm of the editorial page on an interim basis.

Harte cited competing philosophies for the future of the opinion pages as part of the reason for Albright's departure. "We have a professional disagreement about the role of the editorial pages and how they should be edited," he writes in the memo. "The main shift I want to see is toward even more locally focused editorial pages."

In other words: no more unpleasantly hostile verbiage about the Bush administration's catastrophic war in Iraq and more reasoned argument about the Hopkins School District's curriculum. The move also undoubtedly means that the newspaper's historically left-leaning editorial voice will drift rightward in the coming months.

Posted by Paul Demko at September 26, 2007 3:46 PM | Comments (7)

 

Requiem for a Stadium

Filed under: Pop Culture

This week's City Pages features the 10 best and 10 worst moments at the Metrodome. Use this comments thread to debate our choices and provide some of your own.

Over at MnSpeak, Max Sparber has started a thread asking commenters to talk about their own best and worst moments. And here’s a YouTube clip of Best Moment No. 3, Kent Hrbek’s controversial tag of Ron Gant. Please to enjoy.

Posted by Kevin Hoffman at September 26, 2007 12:56 PM | Comments (2)

 

Ridiculous! Unapologetic! Preposterous! Drivel!

Filed under: Politics

Dueling ads in senate campaign

Sen. Norm Coleman placed a full page ad in today's Star Tribune taking a potshot at challenger Al Franken for calling the senate resolution chastising Moveon.org "ridiculous." Over a washed out photo of Franken, the ad attacks the comedian for helping to raise money for the liberal advocacy group.

Today the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee released its own ad critiquing Coleman's voting record. Featuring a beaming photo of Minnesota's senior senator with President Bush, it notes that Coleman votes with the White House 90 percent of the time.

See the ads after the jump:

Posted by Paul Demko at September 25, 2007 2:20 PM | Comments (7)

 

Bella Abzug is taking over Maplewood's government!

Filed under: Suburbs

Minnesota's most dysfunctional suburb has not disappointed this election season. The city council primary campaign featured eight candidates vying for four slots on the November ballot. Incumbent Will Rossbach and newcomer John Nephew easily outdistanced their opponents, each garnering support from roughly a third of voters. Rebecca Cave, a member-in-good-standing of the city's current ruling troika, and ally Delray "Rocky" Rokke secured the final two ballot spots. They'll battle it out for two council spots in November.

But the real fun has occurred away from the polls. On September 4, Robert Schmidt, chair of the Maplewood Voters Coalition, filed a complaint with the state's Office of Administrative Hearings charging that Cave violated election laws by distributing misleading campaign materials. Cave's lawn signs stated that she was endorsed by "Maplewood Fire"--even though the fire department doesn't actually endorse individual candidates.

On September 14, an administrative law judge ruled that probable cause existed that Cave had indeed violated campaign laws. The matter will now proceed to a three-judge panel on Monday. Cave has since altered her signs, but Schmidt argues that the damage has already been done. "The courts will decide what punishment is appropriate if any," he says. "We can't rectify what has been done."

The high point of the Maplewood election season so far, however, has to be a mailing sent to Rossbach. It features a picture of Paul Wellstone on the front, along with this warning: "A Will Rossbach role model." The back of the postcard features a rogues gallery of liberal bogeymen, including Jesse Jackson, Janet Reno, Ted Kennedy--and Bella Abzug (who it should be noted has been dead for a decade)!

It's unclear whether the mailing was sent out to other residents, but Rossbach notes that it had a bulk mailing stamp on it. "It just seems like a very desperate type of move," he says. "They apparently will say and do anything to try and keep me from getting reelected."

(Postcard cribbed from What's Left of Maplewood)

Posted by Paul Demko at September 25, 2007 1:16 PM | Comments (2)

 

Senators Klobuchar and Coleman vote to condemn MoveOn.org

Filed under: Politics

In a touching display of bipartisan unity and legislative elbow grease, senators Norm Coleman and Amy Klobuchar joined forces yesterday to help pass a resolution condemning the use of character-assailing puns in newspaper ads.

Our senators joined 70 others in voting to rebuke MoveOn.org for their placement of an anti-war ad in The New York Times questioning the factual accuracy of General David Petreaus’s past assessments of the war in Iraq.

But the main point of contention had to do with a pun present in the ad's title ("General Petraeus or General Betray Us?"), as Klobuchar explains:

"To juxtapose a military commander's given surname with a negatively connoted, rhyming phrase is downright deplorable," she said* earlier today. "As such, I can think of no better use of the Senate's time and energy than passing this much-needed piece of pseudo-legislation."

Meanwhile, a source close to the general has confirmed that his surname is indeed pronounced puh-TRAY-us.

Fortunately for fans of talk radio and Fox News, it's still reportedly fair game to accuse anti-war officials of betraying America, provided of course, the allegation doesn’t come in pun form.

Liberal wordsmiths contacted by City Pages declined comment, save for one punster who denounced the vote as "Bush league."

.

*City Pages apologizes for this wanton fabrication. Here's Klobuchar's actual quote via her press secretary Linden Zakula: "I support all the brave men and women in our military who serve our country. They deserve our respect, whether or not we agree on their mission, and as such I did not think this particular ad was appropriate."

Posted by Matt Snyders at September 21, 2007 5:14 PM | Comments (9)

 

U of M strike over; workers blink first

Filed under: Education

U of M administrators are no doubt breaking out the bubbly this afternoon.

Union negotiators decided today to end the more than two-week strike by clerical, technical and health care workers at the school, and to take the administration's offer to a vote of the membership. Union leadership is neither endorsing nor opposing the current offer.

Going into the strike, the union had demanded raises beyond the 2.25 and 2.5 percent annual increases offered by the school. But the school didn't budge. Instead, it has offered $300 lump-sum payments in each of the two years of the contract for all employees.

In other words--and it's hard to put this in other words--the strike was a failure.

Posted by Jonathan Kaminsky at September 21, 2007 1:46 PM | Comments (17)

 

Timeline for a Timebomb: Rachel Paulose

Filed under: Minnesota Politics

Eric Black has been doing his homework...as usual. His post on the investigation of U.S. Attorney Rachel Paulose provides a folly of a footnote to a story that ties Minnesota to the national scandal that led to the resignation of Attorney General Alberto Gonzales--but that's not what the investigation is about.

Of the investigation by the U.S. Office of Special Counsel, underway since June, Black writes:

"The conflicts enumerated in this matter are not explicitly political or ideological, except for one instance in which Paulose allegedly made false statements about a job candidate who had liberal associations.

"But the pattern of the matters under investigation by the special counsel may shed some light on the gray area between issue of 'management style' and issues of politics.

"When Paulose took over the office, she told several of the career officials there that she demanded total personal loyalty. At least one replied that loyalty was owed to the Constitution, not to her. Many of the allegations raise the possibility that Paulose crossed the line while seeking to punish personal disloyalty."

In the spirit of homework, here's an abridged timeline of the entire Paulose debacle. It begins with a choir and a color guard. Where it ends...well, stay tuned.

TIMELINE FOR A TIMEBOMB

DECEMBER 2006: Rachel Paulose is confirmed as the federal government's top prosecutor in Minnesota. Senator Norm Coleman, who nominated Paulose for the post, releases a statement praising her as "extremely competent."

Paulose is the first woman to fill the post in Minnesota, something her former colleague Scott Johnson at the conservative blog Power Line apparently found novel. Just before the confirmation, Johnson wrote that he had told Paulose that if her legal career didn't work out, she could always go into modeling. Good God Scott Johnson--take that act back to 1950. Better yet, retire it altogether.

JANUARY 2007: McClatchy Newspapers reports that Paulose is or has been a member of the Federalist Society, a distinction she shares with the likes of John Ashcroft, Orrin Hatch, William Kristol, and Antonin Scalia. The organization is perennially alarmed by "orthodox liberal ideology" in law schools and the legal profession.

In addition to the Federalist Society revelation, McClatchy also identifies Paulose as one of at least nine recently named U.S. Attorneys with close Bush administration ties--in her case, a stint as counselor to the deputy attorney general.

MARCH 9, 2007: Rachel Paulose is sworn in as U.S. Attorney for Minnesota. Government watchdog groups call the unusually large ceremony inappropriate. Paulose persuaded the University of St. Thomas to provide a $1,500 rental space for free. According to a 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS report, the ceremony--some say coronation--included a processional, a professional photographer, a color guard and a choir.

Also in March, there are growing rumblings from Minnesota to Washington DC that the resignation of Paulose's predecessor, Thomas B. Heffelfinger, may have been something more complex than the "gotta look out for my family" story Heffelfinger told to the press.

APRIL 2007: Three top aides to Paulose revolt against her and resign their posts. Her human resources officer follows. A federal attorney, speaking to the Star Tribune anonymously, explained the departures with an observation on Paulose's leadership style: "Disagreement is treated as disloyalty."

MAY 2007: The now famous Monica Goodling testifies before the House Judiciary Committee about her role in administering the Justice Department's purge. Minnesota Representative Keith Ellison (D-5th) has the following exchange with Goodling over Paulose...

Ellison: Did Rachel Paulose's political affiliation play any role in her hiring?

Goodling: Yes, it did.

Ellison: And that would be that she was a Republican?

Goodling:Yes.

Also in the exchange was a revealing tidbit about Heffelfinger's standing with DOJ before his resignation. Apparently Goodling and her colleagues felt the U.S. Attorney was spending too much time on American Indian issues. "Shame on them," was Heffelfinger's blunt response.

JUNE 2007: Paulose attends a ceremony for a retiring colleague. When the colleague praises the dissenters in her office (the three aides and her HR officer who resigned in protest of her behavior) the room erupts in thunderous applause.

SEPTEMBER 2007: Eric Black posts a "modest scoop" on his blog, namely, that a Office of Special Counsel investigation into Paulose's tenure is focusing on allegations that she "mishandled classified information, decided to fire the subordinate who called it to her attention, retaliated against others in the office who crossed her, and made racist remarks about one employee."

The racist remark? Black only reveals that it utilized the words "fat," "black," "lazy" and "ass."

The "mishandled classified information" is apparently a matter of Paulose leaving classified war on terror documents laying around her office. Reckless if true--and true to her recklessness.

Rachel Paulose may or may not live out the last days of the Bush administration as a U.S. Attorney. For now, Paulose says she is "focused on doing the work of the people."

Like Gonzales, it seems inevitable that Paulose will eventually have to walk away from this squandered opportunity.

Someone cue the color guard--a recessional is imminent.

Posted by Jeff Severns Guntzel at September 19, 2007 8:18 AM | Comments (1)

 

William Dean Singleton on the Ridder ruling

Filed under: Media

William Dean Singleton, the vice chairman and CEO of MediaNews, seems to derive quite a bit of joy from twisting the knife into Par Ridder. The self-made media tycoon, who earned the moniker Lean Dean for his cold-blooded approach to newspaper finances, even flew into the Twin Cities to witness Ridder's uncomfortable testimony in the newspaper trial firsthand. But when I spoke with Singleton this afternoon, he seemed uncharacteristically subdued in the wake of his company's legal victory.

"It was the ruling that we hoped for," says Singleton, speaking by telephone from Denver. "It was the ruling that we expected. But in a court of law you never know for sure how a court is going to come down."

Singleton says he expects the case to now proceed to a jury trial. "There are no settlement discussions going on that I'm aware of," he notes. "We had some discussions prior to the hearing, but they were not fruitful."

Posted by Paul Demko at September 18, 2007 2:42 PM | Comments (0)

 

Par Ridder forced out as publisher of the Star Tribune

Filed under: Media

Judge David C. Higgs ruled this morning that Par Ridder must step down as publisher of the Star Tribune. The turncoat newspaper executive will be barred from the post for one year. The ruling stems from a lawsuit filed by the Pioneer Press in April alleging that its former publisher had stolen a laptop containing valuable business information and violated the terms of a non-compete agreement (see "Trials and Stribulations"). Matt McKinney has the nitty gritty details.

Posted by Paul Demko at September 18, 2007 10:02 AM | Comments (7)

 

Crix Nix Hon's Buns

Filed under: Media

Last week, a Blaine moralist named Debbie Vaale sent City Pages an angry email. In it, she complained of being "highly offended by the sexual content in the latest Hardees/Carl's Jr. television commercials." Continued Vaale: "In my opinion, they violate local community standards."

The ad, an undeniably lowbrow takeoff of Sir Mix-a-Lot's classic "Baby Got Back"—"I like them really hot, I like them really flat, I like them lookin' like a pancake stack," exclaims a young man in a classroom, celebrating both his female teacher's backside and Carl's Jr.'s new flat bun patty melt—started airing nationwide last week.

The email also implored City Pages to stop airing the commercial. A strange demand, of course, given that we are a newspaper.

As it happens, Vaale's email was not unique. More than 100,000 identical emails were "written" by other angry, plagiarizing moralists who had received an "action alert" (read: cut-and-paste instructions) from the Mississippi-based American Family Association.

And although many, like Vaale, weren't quite sharp enough to follow the AFA's simple directions to send their missives only to TV stations, enough of them apparently found their mark: A day after the AFA unleashed their Stepford Warriors on the media, the fast food chain announced it was editing the teacher out of the commercial.

Posted by Jonathan Kaminsky at September 14, 2007 6:20 PM | Comments (4)

 

Big Brothers/Big Sisters want you!

Filed under: Media

A couple weeks back, a nice, young PR associate named Michelle Abel sent me an email about Big Brothers/Big Sisters in the Twin Cities needing volunteers to hang out with kids. Naturally, I ignored it. Then she called me, and politely but firmly asked if I would consider writing about her cause. In an attempt to get her off the phone, I asked her to resend the email. Which she did. And then she called me again, still with that polite-but-firm thing.

Now, I don't want to give the impression to all you PR folks out there that all you have to do to get me to write about your particular subject is to hound me endlessly until I feel guilty about brushing you off. You also have to be trying to sell something worthwhile. An MTV show featuring women talking about their intimate same-sex relationships doesn't qualify, for example. Neither does a has-been (or a never-will-be) musician happening through town.

But Big Brothers/Big Sisters? There's something I can feel guilty about ignoring!

So, there's the formula: Persistence plus a good cause equals me feeling guilty, equals me eventually writing something about you.

Without further ado, then, Big Brothers/Big Sisters is looking for mentors. It's a neat deal. To learn more about how you can help, call 651-789-2400 or visit www.bigstwincities.org.

Posted by Jonathan Kaminsky at September 12, 2007 3:48 PM | Comments (0)

 

Sen. Coleman's lead evaporating

Filed under: Politics

A new Rasmussen poll points to more political trouble for Sen. Norm Coleman. The first-term Republican holds narrow leads over his two announced 2008 challengers, comedian Al Franken and attorney Mike Ciresi. According to the survey, which was conducted on September 6, Coleman holds a 46-41 advantage over Franken, while maintaining a 46-42 lead over Ciresi. With the margin of error at +/- 4.5 percent, it means both potential races are virtually even. As Joe Bodell points out over at Minnesota Monitor, Coleman's lead has steadily eroded throughout the year.

On the plus side for Coleman, 54 percent of voters view him at least somewhat favorably--indicating a higher level of popularity than recorded in recent SurveyUSA polls. It will be interesting to see how he fares in the wake of this week's Iraq briefings from Petraeus and Crocker on Capitol Hill.

Posted by Paul Demko at September 11, 2007 2:24 PM | Comments (8)

 

Downtown coffee shop owner: I will not be moved!

Filed under: Minneapolis

For the past 16 years, Patteen Leverson has been the woman behind the counter—and the baked goodies—at the fittingly-named Café Patteen in the downtown Minneapolis International Centre office tower.

But because of a mean landlord, she says, her small store may soon be no more. Next month, Caribou Coffee will open a branch in the Oracle Centre—her building’s conjoined twin. Leverson accuses the property’s owner, Welsh Companies, of wooing the megachain in an effort to force her out.

"I was told I was free to leave because the block cannot support two coffee places," says Leverson, who has about six years left on a 10-year lease. "It's a shitty thing to do someone who's been loyal for so long."

Mike Perkins, Senior VP at Welsh Companies, denies Leverson's assertion. "There's no ulterior motive for anything," he says. "As long as she pays her lease, we're happy."

Posted by Jonathan Kaminsky at September 7, 2007 3:55 PM | Comments (17)

 

A hate crime?

Tuesday morning at about 3:30 a.m., seven or eight men emerged from two vehicles and attacked Thom Pham as he was leaving Azia, the restaurant he owns near 26th and Nicollet. Pham, who is a black belt in Judo, fought back, but when it's not the movies, there's really not much one guy can do against eight.

He sustained blunt force trauma to the head, cuts to the skull and face, a broken eye socket, and a concussion, but is, thankfully, on the mend.

The question emerges: Why was he targeted? (Because all indications are that it wasn't a random attack. The assailants didn't take his wallet or steal his car, and Pham tells City Pages that when he arrived at the restaurant at 3:00 a.m., he saw the two vehicles parked nearby. "It looked like somebody knows my routine," said a groggy, heavily-medicated Pham late this afternoon.)

Pham doesn't think it was related to a recent, and well-publicized, incident when he confronted two men who had split on a $400 tab. Two guys who can't afford a nice meal probably can't afford to pay a gang of hooligans to beat him up, Pham points out. (The two men were black, he says, and his attackers were all white or light-skinned.)

One possible motive: Hate. Pham is openly gay, and about a week ago, he says, someone scratched "FAG" in large letters on the back of his car.

Pham says he doesn't know why he was attacked, but wants to find out. "Whatever the reason they're doing it, I'd like to know so I won't do it again," he said.

Friends of Pham have posted a $10,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the perpetrators.

Posted by Jonathan Kaminsky at September 5, 2007 5:10 PM | Comments (4)

 

Limerick contest winners announced

Filed under: Politics

Sadly, it now looks like Senator Larry Craig is having second thoughts about resigning from office. Some people, it seems, have no understanding of when it's time to recede from the national consciousness. Have you no sense of decency, sir? At long last, have you left no sense of decency?

In any event, we have read the limericks, we thank everyone who participated, and we are prepared to announce a winner. It is Todd, for the following bit of poetry:

There once was a Party fixation
on Senator's bathroom vacations
Ignored David Vitter,
prostitutes? "I can't quit her"
Hypocrisy - GOP Nation

Todd will receive a copy of "The Book of SPAM," an admittedly mediocre (if nicely packaged) tome about Minnesota's most famous meat product. (An aside to Kim Curtin at Atria Books: You can stop sending us copies of this book now. Nine is quite enough.)

They're all corrupt somehow, who posted an astounding seven limericks, gets an honorable mention for hard work. While his pieces didn't always follow limerick rhythm rules (a problem common to many otherwise clever and witty entries), you can't deny the effort behind them. They're all corrupt somehow gets a T-shirt commemorating the Twin Cities Pond and Landscapes Tour. (Winners: send me an email with your mailing addresses, please.) Huzzahs all around.

And one last thing: In our small effort to help the nation move on, City Pages hereby announces that this limerick contest, contrary to previous statements, will not be an annual affair.

There. We feel better already.

Posted by Jonathan Kaminsky at September 5, 2007 3:26 PM | Comments (1)

 

War Torn

Filed under: Politics

This week's CP cover story looks at Sen. Norm Coleman and how his support for the Iraq war is threatening his political future. Over the weekend Coleman made another trip to Iraq to assess the situation on the ground. In a conference call with reporters today he announced that he would support Sen. John Warner's call for 5,000 troops to be withdrawn by the end of this year. Can Minnesota's notoriously nimble senior senator find his way out of this potential political quagmire?

Posted by Paul Demko at September 4, 2007 5:51 PM | Comments (3)

 

Update on clash between police and Critical Mass bicyclists

Filed under: General Archive

A video provided to City Pages courtesy of Loring Park resident Paula Hare captures the prelude to Friday's tussle between local law enforcement agencies and cycling advocacy group Critical Mass.

The footage shows an MPD officer—presumably high-ranking—approaching his underlings with candid orders.

"Drive down Nicolet, herd the assholes down this way. Any blocking of traffic, any blocking of anything, arrest them."

The MPD's official explanation for the arrests and their use of force places little emphasis on the blocking of traffic. Lt. Marie Przynski—Friday night’s watch commander—told KARE 11 News last night that officers were "attacked" by cyclists. No police involved in the skirmish have issued comment thus far.

Lt. Bryan Schafer, this weekend's watch commander, was hesitant to speculate as to what sparked the mass altercation.

"I wasn't there," he said. "All I know is that one person was arrested for an infraction and the rest came in surrounded the police."

Witnesses say the cyclists' actions were confined to verbal pleas for police restraint. After the first two cyclists were arrested, some Critical Mass participants began chanting, "Let them go!"

Of the 19 individuals who were subsequently arrested, 16 were adults and charged with third degree riot. The three juveniles were released.

According to state statute, third degree riot is committed "when three or more persons assembled disturb the public peace by an intentional act or threat of unlawful force or violence to person or property."

The charge carries up to one year of imprisonment and/or a $1,000 fine. Due to the Labor Day holiday, the 16 alleged rioters will remain in custody until at least Tuesday when they’ll appear before a judge, Schafer said.

Posted by Matt Snyders at September 2, 2007 2:18 PM | Comments (59)

 

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