Rainbow Gathering Charges Dropped
Advocates say Charges Stemmed From Police Harassment
© Jon Pike
Aug 29, 2009
Federal charges have been dropped against two people affiliated with the "Rainbow Gathering."The gathering brings thousands of people together on national park lands to form, "intentional communities" of like-minded people for a short period of time.
In an e-mail, an advocate for the gathering community, Scott Addison says that while charges with interfering with federal park officials have been dropped against Sky Laurel Riggs and Rose Stanley, charges remain in place and are being negotiated with Dale Kellogg. According to Addison's e-mail, while the charges against Kellogg remain in place, "The driver's license and 'Resisting' citations have been dismissed, and the Government has proposed a 'pre-trial diversion' on the remaining 'Interfering' charge: a year probation, then expungement.
Kellogg has not yet seen the deal or instructed his attorney on what to do, but it looks like the Feds want to duck his trial too." A lawyer for Kellogg says his client was dragged from a car and tasered. While the case may be inching towards a conclusion, the gatherings have a history of contention with law enforcement officials. Their advocates say larger issues are at stake. Those issues include fourth amendment guarantees of free association and free assembly.
Rainbow Gatherings And The Law
The gatherings have been held on federal park land since the early 1970s and bring thousands to national park lands for a period of about a week. Federal authorities say that the gatherings flout rules that are in place for use of the park and invited drug and alcohol use. While the gatherings frown on alcohol, they do not prohibit its use. One person was arrested at the Wyoming gathering for trading in LSD.
Constitutional Issues And The Gatherings
Advocates for the gatherings say that the permitting process has often violated constitutional guarantees of free assembly and free association. In a 2004 interview, Addison says he has nor problem with "Time, Use and Manner" permits that regulate the use of the parks. But he argues that the permits are used to bring law enforcement into the community and are used to violate the groups' beliefs, as the gathering is not a group, but what he calls, an affinity,"There are other affinities, like Cardinals (baseball) fans. This group permit is like the government forcing one Cardinals fan at a game to sign a legal document on behalf of other Cardinals' fans."
The trial against these three was to have been held in late September.
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