NAACP, community members call for charges against Lexington protesters to be dropped
While charges against protesters in summer marches for racial justice have been dropped in some cities, Lexington protesters’ cases continue to move toward trial.
Despite calls from the local branch of the NAACP and community leaders to dismiss charges, the cases of about about 10 protesters facing misdemeanor charges were scheduled Thursday in a Fayette County District Court hearing for tentative August jury trial dates.
The Lexington-Fayette County Branch 3097 of the NAACP this week called for the dismissal of charges against all of the Lexington protesters, saying that the protests were peaceful and without injury or property damage. Last summer, the organization said the arrests and charges were police retaliation against protesters.
“Around the country, prosecutors in similar circumstances are dropping charges — even where property damage or injuries to police officers occurred,” the group said in the release. “Mayor Linda Gorton, on numerous occasions, has credited the protests for helping her see the need for the Commission on Racial Justice and Equality that recently delivered a 68-page report with over 50 policy recommendations on ways to improve the lives of Lexington’s Black community.”
The protesters who were arrested during the Lexington demonstrations were charged with multiple counts each, ranging from inciting a riot and resisting arrest to disorderly conduct.
“They’ve targeted us and trumped up these charges because they don’t like that we’re demanding change,” protest organizer Sarah Williams said in the NAACP’s announcement. “Our police force needs to be accountable to the public and transparent about what they do and why. Right now, they only answer to themselves. They’re trying to intimidate us into backing off.”
Williams, who was among the arrested protesters, was also charged with possession of marijuana, an accusation she has disputed. Protesters have asked for police body camera footage related to the arrests and to the accusation of drug possession, but police have refused because the case is pending, the NAACP said in its release.
Lexington defense attorney Daniel Whitley, Sr., who is defending several of the protesters facing charges, said he does not know why the charges against his clients have not been dismissed.
“We have cases that involve real victims that are dismissed every day,” Whitley said. “Their cases honestly only involve the police. We are wasting valuable tax dollars prosecuting my clients. It is truly unfortunate the judicial system is being used as a tool to punish individuals for exposing the inequalities in the business of policing.”
The local branch of the NAACP, local religious leaders and others have written letters to city officials asking for the charges against protesters to be dropped. A petition on Change.org calling for the charges to be dropped had been signed more than 4,300 times as of Wednesday afternoon.
Fayette County Attorney Larry Roberts, whose office is prosecuting the misdemeanor cases against protesters, said he does not comment on pending cases and therefore could not address the cases involving the protesters. The Lexington Police Department also declined to comment on the cases since they are now in the hands of the county attorney’s office.
This story was originally published February 3, 2021 at 4:15 PM.
