Free speech and assembly is costing the NC taxpayers a nice chunk of change. Costs currently are running at $11,000 but are likely to rise if Moral Mondays continue.
RALEIGH—Over the two months, there have been five “Moral Monday” protests at the General Assembly, with more than 300 arrests.
Thursday, the group announced there would be a sixth protest next week.
All the protests have been nonviolent acts of civil disobedience, hoping to get state lawmakers’ attention on issues like public education, voting rights and economic justice.
But what doesn’t make the headlines is how much these protests are costing taxpayers.
“We ran [the numbers], after the first four [protests] to see what it had cost, and we incurred $11,000 in overtime,” said Chief Jeff Weaver with the General Assembly Police Department.
That figure is just the General Assembly Police Department. They also have to bring in Raleigh Police, State Capitol Police, and Department of Corrections buses to transport arrested protesters to jail.
“You’ve got the additional detention people at the Wake County Detention Center with the Wake County Sheriff’s Office. You’ve got additional people being pulled in for CCBI (Raleigh/Wake City-County Bureau of Identification) to do the photographing and fingerprinting. You’ve had the additional costs at the magistrate’s (office) bringing in additional personnel,” said Weaver.
District Attorney Colon Willoughby said the costs to Wake County taxpayers will keep adding up when all those cases make it to the court system.
“We’ve got 300 cases already,” Willoughby said. “By the time the General Assembly recesses, we may have 1,000 cases or more to deal with. All these cases are coming to the courts and will take up time of judges, prosecutors and clerks, all of which are scarce.”
Read the whole thing.
More drama on the horizon as G.K. Butterfield decides to join in. Via News and Observer:
Democratic Congressman G. K. Butterfield of Wilson will join the Moral Monday protests at the Legislative Building to voice his opposition of the GOP-led legislature.
Butterfield, a former N.C. Supreme Court Justice, said “I’ve been deeply troubled by the severe and unilateral cuts being made by the Republican-led legislature in North Carolina. The cuts to health care, education and unemployment to name a few, disproportionately target low-income people, many of whom I represent in the U.S House of Representatives.”
He noted that he will be joined by many religious leaders on Monday including several Durham pastors such as the Rev. Jimmie Hawkins of Covenant Presbyterian Church and Re. William Turner of Duke University School of Divinity, and the Rev. Jonathan Wilson-Hartgrove of St. John’s Missionary Baptist Church.
Butterfield noted that he participated in the March on Washington in 1963.
“I have seen firsthand how peaceful, civil demonstrations can affect change,” he said.
Not to be outdone, the Chairman of the Black Legislative Caucus wants to meet with McCrory over Moral Mondays. Via News and Observer:
Rep. Garland Pierce, the chairman of the black legislative caucus, has asked that Gov. Pat McCrory meet with representatives of the clergy during the Moral Monday protests.
Pierce, who is a Baptist minister, said a significant number of clergy are expected to attend the protest money to express their unhappiness with certain legislative action such as the decision not to extend Medicaid benefits to and shorten the period a person can receive unemployment.
“As clergy of this state, we pray that you will lend us your ear,” Pierce write in his letter to McCrory. “Our goal is to tell you the plight of the “least of these” in this state and report to them how you can help guide us out of these harsh times. We pray that we can help you to improve the lives of the citizens of this state.
“The clergy will meet in Raleigh, Monday, June 10 at 5pm,” Pierce wrote. “In our opinion this would be a wonderful time for the highest elected official in North Carolina, a deeply religious state, to speak with its faith leaders.”
When asked on Monday whether he was willing to meet with the protesters, McCrory noted that he had met on several occasions with groups that disagreed with his positions including with members of the legislative black caucus.
Pierce is a Democrat, while McCrory is a Republican.
I suppose we can look forward to these gentlemen adding to the arrest tally? Half of the politicians in Carborro did it after all.
Speaking of arrests, I was able to locate the people that were arrested on ‘Mega Moral Monday’ on June 3rd. There are 141 of them from WakeMugs.com, all charged with 2nd Degree Trespass.The youngest I believe was 21 and the oldest in their late 70’s. The bulk seemed to be between ages 45-65. WRAL had reported 151, so ten are missing. I did not find a record of Reverend Barber being arrested. Perhaps he is missing from the list or more likely WRAL got the number wrong. Also, Mark Chilton is missing and we know he was arrested.
Let’s thank them for adding to the taxpayer tab:
- Deborah Jo Cassidy
- Sally Moir Walker
- Rhoda Ann Silver
- Robert Dedrick Hood
- James Claude Leach
- Asa Abraham Gregory
- Bruce Moore Alexander
- Lindsay Austin Patterson
- Deborah Mills Blackwood
- Carlton Frederick Everly
- Mary Josephine Deck
- Judith Ann Ochetti-Klohr
- Heidi Elizabeth Hirsc Aycock
- Linda Carol Robinson
- Mary Alice Jost
- William Charles Eppinette
- Tema Jon Okun
- Lois Eve Ballen
- Sheila Rose Goldstein
- Deborah Denise Maxwell
- Craig Calvin Schaub
- Arleigh Birchkler
- John Floyd Arnold
- Joanne Summey Harold
- Marilynne Mccord Vogel
- Tonyia Marie Rawls
- John Patrick Clark
- Debra Mitchell Hill
- Thomas Earl McFarland
- Michael Alan Savitt
- James Edward Mills
- Richard Thomas Smith
- Ralph Norman Hill
- Carmen Elaine Kanne
- David Owen Anderson
- Marc Warren Marcoplos
- Ronald Eugene Sutton
- Harold Cleveland May
- Catherine Chapin Hopkins
- Alan Leroy Britt
- Dennis Leach
- Patrick Donnelly
- Rosemarie Vardell
- Elizabeth Lynn Davison
- Stephen Blake Boyd
- Barrington Bernard Ross
- Shannon Celine Benedetto
- William Javan Davis
- Darla Odum Davis
- Sanford Louis Younce
- George John Sawyer
- Pamela Elizabeth Whistler
- John Philip Espenshade
- Timothy Hayden Epperson
- Betty Rogers Gunz
- James Michael Jost
- Page Harris McCullough
- James Alexander Protzman
- Shirley Burry Geissinger
- Harry Legare Watson
- Joseph Ferdinand Jordan
- James Marvin Wahlberg
- Cary Allen Moskovitz
- George Kermit Gresham
- Steven Morris Roberts
- Robert Marshall Gorman
- Christopher Erik Kromm
- Franklin McLeod Dew
- John Reeve Huston
- David Horton Bland
- Jeffrey Benton Jennings
- Nelda Francis Holder
- William Winn Rote
- Jesse Samuel Goslen
- Philip Warren Gurkin
- Williard Wyatt Bass
- Jane Victoria Francs Holmes
- Elizabeth Michele Bove-Kemper
- Natalie Campe Boorman
- Jonathan Bruce Kotch
- Ryan William Thomson
- Christopher Lee Ringwalt
- Allen Hewitt Wellons
- Allene Lee Allen
- Sarah Ruth Skinner
- Gary Rudolph Grant
- Estela Vasquez
- Laura Witmer Brooks
- Abdul Raheem Ali
- Gordon Kenneth Corbitt
- Beth Cummings Bowman-Rodriguez
- Justin Alexander Flores
- Gregory Edmund Kennington
- Elizabeth Anne Bakke
- Julie Ann Blotnik
- Jane Henry Hunt
- Melanie Suzanne Bussard
- Christian Detlow Marthinson
- Mary Kathleen Carpenter
- James Franklin Moore
- Patty Holcombe West
- Sonya Elizabeth Jackson
- Judith Vose Davis
- Jennifer Lee Hales
- Elizabeth Lee Coulter
- Judith Ann Winston
- Evelyn Marie Paul
- Charlene Gayle Shaver
- Jennifer Elizabeth Weaver
- Elizabeth Dunn Kennington
- Ann Marie Alderman
- Ashley Mcilwain Nissler
- Joshua Sassoon Orol
- Jennifer Marie Ferrell
- Nicolas Frederick Wood
- Jonathan Alan Williams
- Ann Mabe Newman
- J.C. Brown
- Douglas Shelton Long
- Doreen Diane Steine-Seroussi
- Linda Greer Burton
- Ann Newman Humphreys
- Michael Mayer Schachter
- Donna Christine Bell
- Michelle Cassandra Johnson
- Molly Michelle Demarco
- Amanda Joan Smith
- Vivian Iris Brenner
- Mary Crummy Nixon
- Ellen Durham Davis
- Dana Elizabeth Carvalho
- Carol Jean Teal
- Nancy Tyson Park
- Tara Rebecca Blomquist
- Tana Marlaine Hartman
- Pamela Ann Davis
- Robert Arthur Haith
- William Samuel Slade
- Damon Michael Seils
- Donna Leigh Shelton
- Allison Cheyney Demarco
UPDATE: I found 141 via Mugshots.com, and now the search is available at the Wake Sherriff’s office. As of the original posting of this article, it had limited results for June 3rd. I decided to go back and look this morning after claims on Twitter thanking Melissa Harris Perry for being arrested with them surfaced. She was not arrested. Neither was Reverend Barber.
I’m culling through the new reports that were posted now. This post will update throughout today.
New names found: 6, new total 147.
- Sean Michael Kosofsky – He runs BluePrint NC
- Mark Hayes Chilton – Mayor of Carborro
- Kathleen Dalton
- Alexis Feldman Poss
- Pamela Ann Davis
- Max Benton Socol
LL1885 
Pingback: http://stopcommoncorenc.org/
God would be proud of them. Where are your hearts? WWJD. He wouldn’t be a Republican in NC and I can assure you of that.
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How very Christian of you to say that Mary — where is YOUR heart?
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Are these “pastors writing the least of these checks ro is he pointing the finger at others to give it? That’s not how it works, nice try though. I recall Paul saying, You don’t work, you don ‘t eat.
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I’m not sure what you mean there?
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Too bad these “ministers” don’t practice what the bible teaches and futhermore delight in doing the abomination that God hates the most that is listed as the 7th in vs 19. Yes you’re stirring up conflict in the community and it’s an abomination to God, good luck with that one “ministers.”
Proverbs 6:16-19
New International Version (NIV)
16 There are six things the Lord hates,
seven that are detestable to him:
17 haughty eyes,
a lying tongue,
hands that shed innocent blood,
18 a heart that devises wicked schemes,
feet that are quick to rush into evil,
19 a false witness who pours out lies
and a person who stirs up conflict in the community.
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Hi, My name is Lindsay Patterson, # 8 on the list above, and very proud to be listed as such! I don’t come here bash the Republican Party; I am here soley as a supporter of the NAACP’s movement efforts and a voice for the people as a whole. I am a recent Masters of Social Work graduate and Licensed Clinical Social Work Associate. As a social worker, I am bound by a code of ethics set forth by the National Association of Social Workers (NASW). Our code of ethics has standards that we, as social workers, are to live by and promote. I had prepared to quote only a few pertinent excerpts from the Codes; however I was unable to find only the few that apply as I find that they are all of importance and are highly relevant. I apologize for being long-winded but I feel strongly about displaying the information in a manner that is perceived with understanding and compassion. Social work is defined as any variety professional activities or methods concretely concerned with providing social services and especially with the investigation, treatment, and material aid of the economically, physically, mentally, or socially disadvantaged (Merriam-Webster). It is difficult for me to overlook my role as a social worker, disregard the Codes of Ethics set forth by the NASW and watch indifferently.
National Association of Social Workers Code of Ethics
6. SOCIAL WORKERS’ ETHICAL RESPONSIBILITIES TO THE BROADER SOCIETY
6.01 Social Welfare
Social workers should promote the general welfare of society, from local to global levels, and the development of people, their communities, and their environments. Social workers should advocate for living conditions conducive to the fulfillment of basic human needs and should promote social, economic, political, and cultural values and institutions that are compatible with the realization of social justice.
6.02 Public Participation
Social workers should facilitate informed participation by the public in shaping social policies and institutions.
6.03 Public Emergencies
Social workers should provide appropriate professional services in public emergencies to the greatest extent possible.
6.04 Social and Political Action
(a) Social workers should engage in social and political action that seeks to ensure that all people have equal access to the resources, employment, services, and opportunities they require to meet their basic human needs and to develop fully. Social workers should be aware of the impact of the political arena on practice and should advocate for changes in policy and legislation to improve social conditions in order to meet basic human needs and promote social justice.
(b) Social workers should act to expand choice and opportunity for all people, with special regard for vulnerable, disadvantaged, oppressed, and exploited people and groups.
(c) Social workers should promote conditions that encourage respect for cultural and social diversity within the United States and globally. Social workers should promote policies and practices that demonstrate respect for difference, support the expansion of cultural knowledge and resources, advocate for programs and institutions that demonstrate cultural competence, and promote policies that safeguard the rights of and confirm equity and social justice for all people.
(d) Social workers should act to prevent and eliminate domination of, exploitation of, and discrimination against any person, group, or class on the basis of race, ethnicity, national origin, color, sex, sexual orientation, age, marital status, political belief, religion, or mental or physical disability.
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Yes, choosing to be arrested is a badge of honor or something.
It is fine if you believe in the cause. I’ve never said people shouldn’t protest what they believe in. I disagree with the intent of these protests; the theme itself ‘Moral Mondays’ is repugnant to me as it denotes that somehow the voters of this state who flipped the legislature by changing around 28 seats are somehow backing something irmmoral. It’s a false dichotomy at best. You are not a voice for the whole, you are a voice for a shrinking minority. The voters spoke when they changed the NCGA control. We do not wish to follow in the footsteps of NY or CA, which are imploding as we speak. YOU DO NOT SPEAK FOR ME.
It’s also well worth noting these protests are not about protesting the facts behind any one piece of legislation, they are about protesting the change of power. Period.
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I am wondering if you have anything to say about the social aspect of thing as that is actually what I was writing about and not so much one party vs. another party. I’m not as interested in who has office as I am the people getting what they need to live full, healthy, and fulfilling lives. If the Conservative Party provides that then I’m fine with them being in office. No problems here; there’s no hate. There’s no us vs. them. It’s about doing the next right thing!
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I don’t see what the NCGA is doing is harming social aspects. I do not believe in legislating fairness. That leads to welfare states and the like. Empowering our citizens to stand on their own should be the driving factor for all. The purse strings were let loose under the Democrats and now the Republicans are trying to close them a bit. That benefits all of NC’s tax payers and allows for redirect of funds to where they are most needed through local, not federal, directives.
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” the theme itself ‘Moral Mondays’ is repugnant to me as it denotes that somehow the voters of this state who flipped the legislature by changing around 28 seats are somehow backing something irmmoral.”
Well, I take it you are fully on board with denying Medicaid to some 500,000 North Carolina residents, as well as cutting back unemployment benefits, and tax reform that is likely to benefit corporations and the wealthiest North Carolina residents on the backs of struggling low-income and middle class families. So perhaps a look to the scriptures might be instructive here:
Proverbs 31:9
Open your mouth, judge righteously, defend the rights of the poor and needy.
Proverbs 22:16
Whoever oppresses the poor to increase his own wealth, or gives to the rich, will only come to poverty.
Proverbs 29:7
A righteous man knows the rights of the poor; a wicked man does not understand such knowledge.
I’m really not trying to be snarky here, but a little serious reflection on how these changes are going to impact people would seem to be in order.
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I am fully on board with cutting the runaway spending the democrats let happen. Yes. Cuts have to happen somewhere. Quoting scripture (out of context) in an attempt to shame me.. wow real original.
I’ve reflected and this is snarky — I’d rather teach people to stand on their own and if they cannot to rely on each other than be reliant on government to take care of them. THAT madam, is what Jesus would do.
So — Take your selection of out of context passages and peddle them to someone who doesn’t know any better. Oh and thanks for proving my point about Liberals using religion as a prop when it suits them.
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Thanks so much for standing up for those who are struggling, Lindsay. YOU DO SPEAK FOR ME.
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Then go get arrested with her, after all it’s what Jesus would do!
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