Some citations against Bellmawr protesters have been dropped after the ACLU intervened, ACLU-NJ says
Last month, the Bellmawr Police Department issued citations against several people attending or driving past weekly “Roadside Rallies against Fascism," according to ACLU-NJ.
Citations against several protesters were dismissed Thursday after the ACLU of New Jersey intervened in a recent conflict between roadside demonstrators and Bellmawr police, an ACLU official said in a statement.
Last month, the Bellmawr Police Department issued citations against several people attending or driving past weekly “Roadside Rallies against Fascism” hosted by Cooper River Indivisible, a Camden County grassroots organization, according to ACLU-NJ.
It’s unclear exactly how many people received citations from Bellmawr police while demonstrating against President Donald Trump and his administration. But Maia Raposo, communications director for ACLU-NJ, said the nonprofit is representing six people involved.
Five of those six people went to Bellmawr Municipal Court Thursday, Raposo said, and four of the five had their citations dismissed, which included jaywalking and failing to stop at a stop sign.
“Today, the municipal court in Bellmawr dismissed charges against four individuals who received tickets while they were lawfully exercising their First Amendment rights. We look forward to resolving the remaining charges pending against our other clients,” said Rebecca Uwakwe, ACLU-NJ’s criminal law reform advocacy director, in an emailed statement.
Raposo did not share the names of those involved or the status of the citations that weren’t dropped Thursday.
The Bellmawr Police Department did not return requests for comment.
On Aug. 25, ACLU-NJ emailed a letter to Bellmawr Police Chief Keith Williams alleging that officers had issued “traffic and criminal citations for honking, jaywalking, and other offenses” to rally-goers and supporters gathering at Black Horse Pike and Gloucester Road in Bellmawr.
“If Bellmawr officers are targeting participants and supporters of lawful protests with citations, Bellmawr is interfering with their constitutionally protected activities and violating their civil rights,” the letter reads.
ACLU-NJ asked Bellmawr police to investigate the conduct of their officers and to reply to the letter by Sept. 11. Raposo did not say whether the police department has responded to the letter but wrote in an email that ACLU-NJ can provide more information when all relevant cases are resolved.
Cooper River Indivisible’s next roadside rally is this Saturday, and the event posting promoting the demonstration warns attendees that they have “been unfairly targeted by local police.” The group did not respond to requests for comment.
“Do your best to keep the messaging on target — Bellmawr PD is a problem, but our real enemy is tyranny as a whole. Eyes on the prize,” the post reads.
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