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Monday, June 27, 2005 THERESA DANG'S ARRAIGNMENT HEARING CONTINUED UNTIL WEDNESDAY, JULY 27TH The bailiffs at West Justice Center ask to examine a tiny black pouch I was carrying By DUANE J. ROBERTS [EMAIL PROTECTED] WESTMINSTER, CA -- As I entered Department W4 at the West Justice Center, I quickly noticed there were four bailiffs standing inside the courtroom. As a former employee of the Orange County Superior Court, I knew that this wasn't normal. Some kind of a security alert had been issued for that day, perhaps in response to an email I sent out over the internet about a week ago urging people to "pack the courtroom". I proceeded to find a seat in the last row, along with a friend of mine who had been at the May 25th demonstration. I had barely begun to make myself comfortable when suddenly one of the bailiff's positioned himself behind where I was sitting. Another standing at a podium in front of the courtroom looked me square in the eye and said, "You in the denim jacket, come up here." I was puzzled. What had I done? I got up from my seat and casually walked toward him. "What's that?" the bailiff asked, pointing to a tiny black pouch I was carrying in my left hand. I brought it up to him closer, carefully opened it, and slowly pulled out the object it contained so he could examine it further: "It's my cellphone; I turned it off as you requested." "O.K., thanks," he responded politely. I went back and sat down, where that bailiff still stood behind my seat like a quiet sentry. Other people entered the courtroom with backpacks, purses, and pouches, but not a word was said to them. At times, it appeared that some bailiffs were staring at me; I couldn't help but smile back. This is what happens when you confront the organized might of the capitalist state. But this was not harassment with an iron fist; but of a velvet glove. The bailiffs assigned to protect Department W4 this morning not only seemed to be pretty confused, but looked like they were scared; perhaps they didn't know what to expect. But when they finally came to the realization that none of the 30 people who came to support Theresa Dang that morning arrive with the intention of committing any devious acts, the bailiffs started slowly exiting the courtroom one by one; even the hefty fellow standing guard right behind me soon wandered off into the hallway. (only to come back later and position himself elsewhere) And was it a coincidence that Orange County Superior Commissioner Lon F. Hurwitz called out Dang's name first? This case has badly stung the Orange County District Attorney's Office and the Garden Grove Police Department. It's clear they want to get it out of the system as rapidly and quickly as possible to avoid any further negative publicity; but they don't want to drop it, at least not yet. When Dang told Commissioner Hurwitz that her attorney, B. Kwaku Duren, of Los Angeles, hadn't arrived yet, and that he was probably stuck on the freeway in traffic, he smiled sheepishly. Not a problem, he told her. "I'll just put it on second call" he said in a rather soft voice. He smiled again. At around 9:20 am, Duren arrived. He and Eric Petersen, the Deputy District Attorney assigned the task of handling today's arraignment, spoke briefly. Petersen released to him copies of the police report and other documents, as is required by law. When they were ready, Duren asked Commissioner Hurwitz for a continuance of the arraignment to the morning of Wednesday, July 27th. The Deputy District Attorney Petersen agreed. And so it was granted. No pleas were to entered today. As both Dang and her attorney proceed to walk out of the courtroom, everybody that had attended her hearing began getting up from their seats, almost in unison with one another. The noise they generated by doing this sounded like gentle claps of thunder. Commissioner Hurwitz, Deputy District Attorney Petersen, the bailiffs, and other court personnel were expressionless and silent as they watched people leave through the double doors. A small crowd of Dang supporters assembled outside near the main entrance to the West Justice Center. Reporters from the Nguoi Viet Daily News and The Los Angeles Times just went about their work, asking questions about today's hearing. About 100 feet away, two bailiffs and four Westminster Police officers kept a close eye on everything that was going on. A quiet uneasiness pervaded the air. What will happen next? Only history can tell. But if the rumors I've been hearing about Dang's case prove to be true, public exposure of them will be of considerable embarassment to the entire system of "criminal justice" here in Orange County. Is it no wonder why so many men in powerful positions are incredibly nervous about what the Garden Grove Police have done? ----------------------------- Permission granted for reproduction for the above work in any non-profit publication provided that credit is given to the author of this work. ----------------------------- To learn more about how you can help Theresa Dang and the five other young men who were arrested by Garden Grove Police on the night of May 25th, please go to www.may25.org or email [EMAIL PROTECTED] Please consider making a financial contribution. Also check la.indymedia.org regularly for the latest news on this matter as they are covering this matter very aggressively. -------------------------------------- SEE THE FOLLOWING LINKS FOR MORE INFO -------------------------------------- Minuteman Flap Leads to Home Search Daniel Yi 6/18/05 The Los Angeles Times http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-flashlight18jun18,1,1495011,full.story?coll=la-headlines-california -------------------------------------- GG Police pursue phony criminal charge against woman hit by Minuteman supporter Duane Roberts 6/17/05 la.indymedia.org http://www.la.indymedia.org/news/2005/06/129491.php -------------------------------------- No probe of police conduct at anti-Minuteman protest Eleeza Agopian 6/15/05 The Orange County Register http://www.ocregister.com/ocr/2005/06/15/sections/local/local/article_560039.php -------------------------------------- Minutes of Tuesday, June 14th meeting of the Garden Grove City Council where Theresa Dang spoke critically of the police 6/14/05 City of Garden Grove http://ch.ci.garden-grove.ca.us/internet/pdf/afm/cc/f06142005.pdf -------------------------------------- The first photo on this page is of Theresa Dang, one of four persons struck by a minivan driven by Hal Netkin LA-IMC 5/25/05 la.indymedia.org http://www.la.indymedia.org/news/2005/05/127222.php -------------------------------------- Garden Grove Police Lt. Mike Handfield sends me a message about Theresa Dang Duane Roberts 6/21/05 la.indymedia.org http://www.la.indymedia.org/news/2005/06/130193.php -------------------------------------- __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Tired of spam? Yahoo! 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