Police Return Property Unlawfully Seized During Birmingham Arrests, Video Shows Survivors Clearly on Public Propertyby Staff
February 24, 2009
BIRMINGHAM, Alabama, (christiansunite.com) -- After waiting nearly five days in Birmingham, Alabama, the Survivors are now back on their nationwide abortion awareness campaign with their video equipment in hand. The property was illegally seized by police during the arrests of nine of the team members last Thursday. The team spent more than 14 hours in jail for simply standing on a public sidewalk holding a sign and handing out literature in front of Parker High School. Adding insult to injury, when the team was finally released Friday morning, the police stalled the release of the team's camera equipment and video recordings of the event at Parker High School.
Moments before the Survivors' scheduled press conference Monday afternoon, Kortney Blythe, Director of the Campus Life Tour for Survivors, received a telephone call from the police informing her that the property would be released sometime later that same afternoon.
Ms. Blythe was on hand to receive and inspect the equipment upon its release from police custody. Ms. Blythe stated, "We are grateful for the opportunity to prove our innocence. The video shows what we have been stating all along - my team was simply standing on a public sidewalk, peacefully exercising their constitutional right to free speech." Video of the Survivors event at Parker High School will be available on their website,
www.survivors.la, later today.
Dana Cody, Executive Director of the Life Legal Defense Foundation, commented on the release of the video equipment, "While we are pleased that the police have returned the Survivors property, this small step in no way cures their prior misconduct and abuse of authority." Ms. Cody went on to state that, "We expect the prosecutor to follow in the steps of the Birmingham Police Department and dismiss all charges brought against these nine innocent young people."
Allison K. Aranda, Staff Counsel with the Life Legal Defense Foundation, stated "It goes without saying that this radical abuse of police power will not be overlooked. We look forward to our day in court."
Life Legal Defense Foundation, one of the organizations partnering to defend the Survivors in this litigation, is a non-profit organization composed of attorneys and other concerned citizens, committed to giving helpless and innocent human beings of any age, and their advocates, a trained and committed voice in the courtrooms of our nation. For more information call Allison K. Aranda at 951-541-9327.
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