Love And Peace, Family And
Friends.
There is another event of
reconciliation approaching between myself and the United States government.
I am informed of there
being a warrant issued for my arrest, stemming from events that occur over 2
years ago. During that period 2 years
ago, on US national election day, I am arrested by Cleveland Heights police for
engaging within an act of civil transcendence (or disobedience): I intercede on the behalf of 2 young men of
African descent during a traffic stop a few hundred meters from the flat where
I reside.
During this intercession,
I carefully approach the scene with the intention to discern from the young men
whether the young men are OK. As I
approach, the 1st police officer on the scene approaches me and
commands me to distance myself. I
approach closer to establish direct contact with the 2 young men. After receiving a communication of wellbeing
from 1 of the young men, and amidst the increasing agitation experienced by the
police officers, I carefully distance myself from the immediate scene.
At this point, a number of
the police officers continue to approach me and interrogate me. Because of the level of agitation, I sit down
on the ground, with my legs crossed, and I respond to the questions of the police
officers. I explain that I am a
spiritual diplomat who builds Peace, Understanding, and Cooperation between
different communities; and that my
interest is simply to confirm the wellbeing of the 2 young men. After a lengthy exchange of perhaps 30 – 40 minutes,
the police seem to be increasingly comfortable with me.
The police officers
communicate the intention of letting me go, but then accuse me of possessing
marijuana. I refuse to be searched, so
the police officers communicate the intention of “running my name through the
system.” Upon doing this, the police
communicate there being a standing warrant issued for my arrest; that arrest warrant stemming from a randomly
issued, and unreceived, solicitation by the Bureau of Motor Vehicles to show
proof of driver’s insurance, occurring years ago prior to that point.
So, based upon that
proclamation, the police arrest me. I
refuse cooperation. After approximately
2 – 3 hours, the police transport me to the Cleveland Heights precinct, and I
am locked up within the detox unit. I
abstain from being photographed, fingerprinted, or processed. After a few days, I talk with the judge and
he lists the charges being placed against me, which include the immediate
incident of the traffic stop. I reply by
citing the 3/5ths Compromise of the United States Constitution. I continue refusal of cooperation.
After a week, the police
communicate the interest of releasing me.
I communicate a willingness to sit at the entrance of the cell and to abstain
from significantly resisting the taking of my fingerprints. A police officer takes my thumbprint and I am
released. There is an absence of any
statement of pending charges or any court date communicated. I am told that I am “free to go,” and the
presumption is that the charges are dropped.
And that is where I leave the circumstances.
Indeed, within the
proceeding 2 years, I have a number of additional challenging interactions with
the police.
On 1 instance, I am playing
football with friends of the campus of 1 of my almae mater, Case Western
Reserve University. Security guards
arrive and kick out a group of adolescent men (also of African descent). The adolescent men are behaving politely, yet
are without required identification. I
proclaim to the security guards that the adolescent men are my guests and the
security guards begin to interrogate me.
A lengthy, respectful conversation degenerates into an
interrogation. As I attempt to leave the
premises, I am grabbed by 1 of the security guards. I sit down in a similar manner of Ahimsa, and
recite a chant (in accordance with my civil transcendence training). The security guards call Cleveland police,
and eventually I am transported to a psych ward; and subsequently spend the next 4 – 5 months
locked away in a halfway house. When the
Cleveland police are called, there is an absence of any mention of a warrant
being issued for my arrest or transporting me to Cleveland Heights to be
detained.
The night before that
incident, I participate within a squatting campaign in the Cleveland area. The police are called, and I refuse to
respond to questioning (during that period, it is late Autumn, it is around
2am, the temperature is cold, and I am concerned with maintaining warmth within
the layers inside the tent I in which am located during that point). I am forcefully removed from the tent and
sent to an emergency room for psych evaluation.
After speaking at length with the ER doctor, I am released from the
facilities. There is an absence of a
mention any warrant being issued for my arrest.
A few months later, I
participate within a squatting campaign (after being threatened with eviction
for providing extended hospitality to street friends in need). During the squatting campaign, I am again
arrested by the Cleveland police. And
again, I refuse cooperation. On this
occasion, I am taken to Cleveland central lock-up, and I spend a few days in
jail. After a few days, I am forcefully
removed from my jail cell, placed within a transportation apparatus, and
carried outside the precinct doors. The
restraints are removed and I am told that I am free to go; without being processed, without charges
raised against me. And again, there is
an absence of any mention of a warrant for my arrest being issued by the City
of Cleveland Heights.
From the Cleveland police
precinct, I walk back to the squatting location. A few hours later, I am visited again by the
police. On this case, the police inform
me of an order being issued for my detainment within a psych ward. Again, I refuse cooperation. I am forcefully transported to a psych ward,
and subsequently transported to another halfway house, where I am held for the
proceeding 6 months or so.
It is during this most
recent detainment, within the past year or so, that I am casually informed, by
my mor (mother), of there being a warrant issued by Cleveland Heights for my
arrest. I initially abstain from
directly responding to this notice because of an acute back injury. After that, there is an interest in me
attending a number of conferences, so I abstain from directly jeopardising my
mobility to attend these conferences.
So, within the past 2 months or so, I arrive at an increasingly open
availability to directly address this issue.
And that is what I am doing.
Within the next week, I am
planning to approach the Cleveland Heights police precinct and directly solicit
reconciliation of this issue. There is
uncertainty regarding any continuing existence of such a warrant and/or what
intentionality there is in enforcing any such warrant. So, if you abstain from hearing from me for a
while, you likely know the reason why.
:-)
I thank you for your
consideration and support.
Love And Peace,
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