Reporter Arrested on Orders of Giuliani Press Secretary

[IChing]

Mods I know where this came from but the documentation of the arrest
is accurate.


Reporter Arrested on Orders of Giuliani Press Secretary Charged with Criminal
Trespass Despite Protest of CNN Staff and Official Event Press Credentials
at GOP Debate in New Hampshire


Manchester, NH - Freelance reporter Matt Lepacek, reporting for Infowars.com, was arrested for asking a question to one of Giuliani's staff members in a press conference. The press secretary identified the New York based reporter as having previously asked Giuliani about his prior knowledge of WTC building collapses and ordered New Hampshire state police to arrest him.

Jason Bermas, reporting for Infowars and America: Freedom to Fascism, confirmed Lepacek had official CNN press credentials for the Republican debate. However, his camera was seized by staff members who shut off the camera, according to Luke Rudkowski, also a freelance Infowars reporter on the scene. He said police physically assaulted both reporters after Rudkowski objected that they were official members of the press and that nothing illegal had taken place.

Though CNN staff members tried to persuade police not to arrest the accredited reporter-- in violation of the First Amendment, Lepacek was taken to jail. The police station told JonesReport.com that Lepacek is being charged with felony criminal trespass.


http://www.jonesreport.com/articles/050607_reporter_arrested_giuliani_orders.html

[Pirate Smile]

1. Rudy is even more authoritarian then Bush.

[woodsprite]

2. Anybody think that Rudy doth protest too much? n/t

[Drum]

5. Jackboot City.

God am I glad we got that putz out of our city government!

I sincerely hope that 'Fuhrer of NYC' is the farthest he'll ever progress in terms of power over others....

[PDJane]

3. I thought the press was free?

What happened to your democracy????

[Supersedeas]

17. Free to be stenographers of preapproved press conf script

[Buzz Clik]

4. This discussion is already happening:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=385&topic_id=33199&mesg_id=33199

[BuyingThyme]

6. kcik

[WinkyDink]

7. Do I smell a lawsuit here? I think I do!

[HCE SuiGeneris]

8. Nice message to be putting out there Rudy!

:applause: :applause: :applause:

[Joanne98]

9. Rudy is a total thug!

[BuyingThyme]

10. BREAKING: Criminal Indictments Sought Against Police, Giuliani Staffers

...

In addition to the details that were already outlined in our previous article, fellow We Are Change member Luke Rudkowski also related how he was just silently filming the fracas when Giuliani staffers, and in particular one unidentified female, started hitting and attempting to steal his camera, before Lepacek and Rudkowski were pointed out by the staffers and five to seven police arrived to grab them and throw them out of the building.

The female staffer was witnessed to be instrumental in alerting the police to the "crime" of Lepacek asking a question that the Giuliani camp weren't comfortable with.

Rudkowski was assaulted and questioned on who he was working for despite the fact that he hadn't even asked a question and was stood separately from Lepacek.

Lepacek was told that other eyewitnesses saw police stamp on one of the cameras as it lay on the floor.

Another eyewitness said that the entire arrest was clearly being directed by Secret Service, who were ordering the police to threaten anyone who asked questions about the incident with arrest.

...

(see above for link)

[nashville_brook]

12. are we sure it was (the official) Secret Service or Private Security Goons?

"Secret Service" puts an "official" stamp on the incident. you'd expect Private Security Goons to just do what they're told no matter how illegal.

Also would be interesting to know if Security was acting on command or by their own decision.

this stuff is neither here-nor-there. this incident is an outrage made all the more interesting given the offending question.

[originalpckelly]

18. The people who arrested the "reporter" were NH police.

And if you watch the video of the incident, then you'll understand it wasn't just the question but the harassing manner in which it was asked.

[BuyingThyme]

19. At this point, I would call it hearsay or speculation.

[driver8]

11. How in the hell can you be arrested for asking a question??

This whole country is absolutely batshit crazy!

[JoePhilly]

13. If you have to ask that question, then we have to arrest you. nt

[originalpckelly]

16. He didn't just ask a question, he was acting very strange...

I encourage you to watch the video of the confrontation:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VOerYpJse30&eurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww%2Edemocraticunderground%2Ecom%2Fdiscuss%2Fduboard%2Ephp%3Faz%3Dshow%5Fmesg%26forum%3D385%26topic%5Fid%3D33199%26mesg%5Fid%3D33199

I tried to put myself in the place of the person being harassed, the "reporter" didn't just ask the question once or ask it in a normal tone of voice, he asked it in an angry and scary manner.

I asked myself how I would react if I were a Democratic President's spokesman and this happened to me on this or any other matter, and I think I'd do the same thing. Presidential candidates and their staff are understandably more cautious about security because of the horrible things that have happened to famous individuals while in the spotlight, namely RFK.

[originalpckelly]

14. I don't care if the person asking the questions was full of crap...

he shouldn't have been arrested. This sort of things makes me worry about Giuliani, I've heard things about him that made me worry earlier, but this really sets off warning bells.

[originalpckelly]

15. Actually, I just watched the video, and I think that it's more understandable...

when you watch the video and see how the "reporter" was acting. He was crazed, it was a scary event, and I quite frankly don't blame these folks for being worried and having this guy arrested after what he pulled.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VOerYpJse30&eurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww%2Edemocraticunderground%2Ecom%2Fdiscuss%2Fduboard%2Ephp%3Faz%3Dshow%5Fmesg%26forum%3D385%26topic%5Fid%3D33199%26mesg%5Fid%3D33199