Seventeenth Judicial District Attorney Brian Mason announced yesterday that all remaining felony and misdemeanor charges have been dropped against five citizens who tied and blocked the entrance to an Aurora Police Department station on July 3.
“I have an ethical obligation to only proceed on charges my office can prove and to dismiss charges that we cannot prove” Mason said in a statement. “My job is to do the right thing. After considerable thought and reflection, I believe dismissing these charges is the right thing to do.”
According to the Associated Press, protestors used rope and tables to barricade the doors shut at the suburban police station, and as a result trapped officers inside for several hours during racial injustice demonstrations in the summer of 2020. Organized by the Party for Socialism and Liberation, the protest began on the evening of July 3 and continued until the next morning with the intent of bringing attention to the 2019 killing of Elijah McClain by Aurora police.
Mason further stated that he believed in the First Amendment and the right to peacefully assemble and protest, however, he also believes in the rule of law. “These should not be in conflict with one another.” Mason assumed that position in January of this year.
The five individuals Lillian House, Joel Northam, Whitney Lucero, Terrance Roberts and Trey Quinn were part of a large crowd gathered as part of a protest on the night of July 3. That night, a crowd surrounded APD’s District 1 Station. Throughout the event, the doors of the station were tied shut, and officers were “obstructed” from leaving.
On that night, “significant lines were crossed,” Mason said, adding that it is not peaceful protesting to tie the doors of a police station and prevent officers from responding to calls. “Doing so is against the law, puts our community at risk, and undermines the principles of the First Amendment,” Mason said. “I am gratified that the five individuals, whose cases I dismiss today, say they agree with these sentiments.”
The five individuals faced charges ranging from first degree kidnapping to misdemeanor engaging in a riot and felony inciting a riot to misdemeanor obstructing government operations. An Adams County Judge dismissed the kidnapping charge against House, Northam and Lucero in March — but could have resulted in decades-long prison terms.
Several other individuals, such as Daxx Dalton and Cameron Frazier are still facing criminal charges for their specific actions at the July 3 protest.
A statement from the attorneys of House, Northam and Lucero applauded Mason’s dropping of the charges against them. The statement noted that peaceful protesting is a “crucial avenue” for addressing injustices and a right everyone in the country should be able to exercise. “All parties agree lines were crossed on July 3 and 4.”
In a separate statement from Roberts’ attorney, the event organizer wanted to be clear that he doesn’t endorse tying doors to police stations, and that it’s counterproductive to the causes for which he organizes.
In a written statement from Quinn, he said, “I had come out to pressure the state into a conversation with myself and the community. I did not come out to dissolve any opportunity for legitimate dialogue between the state, police, and ourselves. I seek real solutions. I do not seek a drawn out standoff as the entry to a beneficial understanding.”
“If we seek accountability from officials and police it has to be by engaging in adult, truthful, and agreeable conversations,” Quinn said. “We must also look in on our own communities and have honest conversations. Then all of us must come to the table and be honest and speak truly to one another.”