FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Jana Kooren, jkooren@aclu-mn.org, 651.645.4097 x123, 651.485.5925 (c)
St. Paul, Minn – The American Civil Liberties Union of Minnesota is representing Kandace Montgomery, one of the Black Lives Matters defendants. 36 individuals total are facing charges that stem from a December rally at the Mall of America. Montgomery is one of the 11 charged with organizing the rally and faces multiple charges.
All individuals facing charges have a pre-trial hearing on May 1, this will be the ACLU-MN’s first time appearing on behalf of Montgomery.
The following statement can be attributed to Charles Samuelson, Executive Director of the ACLU-MN.
The American Civil Liberties Union of Minnesota has long been a supporter of freedom of speech, freedom of association, and racial justice. The excessive charges brought against our client, Kandace Montgomery are unnecessary and have a chilling effect on the freedoms of speech and of association. The ACLU-MN believes that the Mall of America’s unusually close relationship with law enforcement in connection with this case should allow our client, and those like her, to maintain their First Amendment rights while at the Mall of America.
Attorneys in the case include Scott Flaherty, Michael Sawers, Jordan Weber, and Cyrus Malek, of Briggs and Morgan, and Teresa Nelson of the ACLU-MN.
