michaeledward
Grandmaster
On Tuesday, a Bush supported dressed up as a terrorist and was waving a 'Kerry for President' sign in downtown Nashua. Opinions?
http://www.nashuatelegraph.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20041105/NEWS01/111050006
http://www.nashuatelegraph.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20041105/NEWS01/111050006
City police handed suit by protestor
By ANDREW WOLFE, Telegraph Staff
[email protected]
[font=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Published: Friday, Nov. 5, 2004[/font]
[font=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]NASHUA - The Bedford man who dressed as a terrorist in the hope of scaring up votes for President Bush has filed a “petition for redress” against city police.
Joseph Galibois, of 45 Federation Road, filed his petition Thursday afternoon in Hillsborough County Superior Court.
Galibois seeks a written apology and $208 in punitive damages from Sgt. John Fisher, whom he charges violated his constitutional rights by threatening him with arrest.
“Sgt. Fisher infringed upon my Constitutionally protected right to freedom of expression by unlawfully intimidating me with a threat of prosecution for crimes that I had not committed, was not committing and gave no indication that I would commit,” Galibois wrote.
GaliboisÂ’ petition asks the court to order Fisher to write him an apology acknowledging that Fisher violated his civil rights, and to pay him $1 a week every Tuesday until the next presidential election, for a total of $208.
Galibois paid the standard $145 fee to file his petition, and he said the $208 would be more symbolic than anything.“It gives him something to think about. Hopefully, as he writes the check, he’ll remember why he’s doing it. I don’t want any money, I just don’t want this to happen again,” Galibois said Thursday.
Galibois sent a copy of his petition to the New Hampshire Civil Liberties Union, in the hope that the organization will take up his case, he said.
“I’m probably going to need help. I just wanted to get the ball started,” he said.
Galibois dressed up as a “terrorist” to illustrate his view that John Kerry is soft on terrorism, and that terrorists would prefer Kerry to Bush, he said.
He donned black shoes, pants, shirt and ski mask, olive-green ammunition bandoleers and a plastic squirt gun that resembled an assault rifle, except for the bright orange cap at the end of the barrel. He carried a homemade Kerry sign, and waved at people passing by.
Police said they ordered Galibois to take off his mask and put away his gun and bandoleers because of complaints that he was alarming people, and the officersÂ’ observations that he was distracting motorists, creating a traffic hazard.
Galibois was out on Library Hill from about 10 a.m. until 1:45 p.m., when Fisher confronted him, Galibois said.
Police said Fisher first spotted Galibois arguing with other campaigners near Amherst Street School, but Galibois said he never left the triangular area around the Soldiers and Sailors Monument.
Galibois said Fisher told him that he would be charged with disorderly conduct and making a false public alarm if he didn’t comply, and gave him four minutes to do so. When Galibois asked Fisher why he couldn’t at least keep his ski mask on, he said Fisher replied, “I’m not playing that game with you today.”
Deputy Police Chief Wayne MacDonald defended the officerÂ’s handling of the matter Wednesday, saying GaliboisÂ’ theatrics were causing a traffic hazard.[/font]