Jailed NATO 5 Defendant Beaten, Hospitalized; Attorneys Seek Evidence

**Heathen Hammer** · August 29, 2012, 09:35 AM

Spoiler Alert, click show to read:

CHICAGO — On Thursday morning, August 23, attorneys for Mark Neiweem filed an emergency motion to preserve evidence related to a beating Neiweem sustained at the hands of Cook County sheriffs earlier in the week that sent him to Stroger Hospital.

Neiweem is among a group of arrestees colloquially referred to as the NATO 5 – all of whom were arrested in the days preceding the NATO summit on ‘evidence’ that defense attorneys content is based on deeply problematic evidence provided by undercover police agents who aggressively made provocative statements to persons they were targeting for arrest. Neiweem appeared in court limping and with a large bandage on his head. He spent a day at Cook County Hospital after his beating.

Neiweem had reportedly been participating in a hunger strike when he was attacked by guards in Cook County Jail’s Division 10, one of the jail’s highest security units. Supporters have been denied visitation rights with Neiweem and told that he has been confined to the ‘hole’ – a form of solitary confinement typically used to punish inmates – for an unspecified amount of time in the wake of the incident.

Occupy Chicago and other supporters are organizing a phone-in campaign to Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart on Neiweem’s behalf. Callers are encouraged to ask what happened to Mark Neiweem, why he was beaten so severely that he was admitted to Cermak hospital overnight, and to demand Mark be removed from the hole immediately. Call-in Event: http://www.facebook.com/events/431551603550742

Supporters have raised the alarm about charges against the NATO 5 since Cook County State’s Attorney Anita Alvarez and the Chicago Police Department announced and heavily publicized the arrests in the days running up to the NATO meeting in Chicago this May. That concern includes criticism of Alvarez and the CPD for targeting political activists arrested for NATO-related protests – including what they contend are bogus prosecutions under state terrorism statutes – while she continues to refuse to bring charges against law enforcement officers in the killings of near west side resident Rekia Boyd [http://bit.ly/GN6SIX] and 15-year-old Calumet City resident Stephon Watts [http://bit.ly/wEcNDL] earlier this year.

Mark Neiweem’s next court date is set for September 25th – when defense attorneys expect to receive more details about the prosecution’s purported ‘evidence’ in the case, including the involvement of at least one additional police informant.

http://interoccupy.net/blog/jailed-n...seek-evidence/

NATO 5 are a group of political prisoners in US, who were accused of "terrorism" for protesting against NATO summit in Chicago. The base of these accusations was that they had a cannister of gas in their place, which just shows how ridiculous they are.
Now we have news of these political prisoners being brutally beaten by the authorities. This is pretty similar to Omar Khadr case, when a Canadian teenager was imprisoned in Guantanamo for years and brutally tortured until he pleaded guilty.
These charges are obviously fabricated, given how everyone who has a gas cannister in their garage can now be accused of terrorism. Seems like US authorities are really afraid of a possible "American Spring".

**~~removeduser_4536284751384~~** · August 29, 2012, 09:42 AM

Crappy source if I ever saw one.

**s.rwitt** · August 29, 2012, 09:44 AM

Crappy source if I ever saw one.

Not when you have an agenda.

Also, Stalin here forgot the part about the defendant threatening to blow up a train overpass. How strange.

**magpie** · August 29, 2012, 12:31 PM

One would think by now that protester,s would have got the message.
Its just not a safe thing to do in the U.S.
The prisons are crying out for business, The Homeland security crowd get bored along with god knows how many other security agencys.
So they welcome protesters with open arms.

**mrmouth** · August 29, 2012, 12:39 PM

Originally Posted by magpie

Its just not a safe thing to do in the U.S.

The many thousands that were given water on a hot day by Police, after swearing and spitting on said Police, would disagree. These days a major American city will actually set up something of an infrastructure to allow them to do so.

Ive seen many accounts that stated the Police did a great job - from protestors. Keeping in mind these were not anarchists, but people who wanted to protest freely, and did.

**s.rwitt** · August 29, 2012, 12:35 PM

Protesting isn't safe in the US? Do you have any clue how many thousands and thousands of protesters from every political spectrum protest all the time without consequence? You aren't allowed to threaten to blow up bridges. That is not a legitimate form of protest magpie.

Christ, why does this need to be explained?

**Father Jack** · August 29, 2012, 12:39 PM

OP, have you got a better source?

**s.rwitt** · August 29, 2012, 12:44 PM

You don't want to know what happened when this cop realized there was a protester behind him

**Gatsby** · August 29, 2012, 01:06 PM

America is bad, mmkay?

**Heinz Guderian** · August 29, 2012, 01:14 PM

The Patriot Act is a hell of a law

**motiv-8** · August 29, 2012, 01:58 PM

who were accused of "terrorism" for protesting against NATO summit in Chicago.

After reading some of the linked material, I see that this is not at all why the group was accused of terrorism. OP needs to be cleaned up to spur realistic discussion. There might even be real stuff to talk about if enough of the hyperbole and bull-

can be cut out.

**s.rwitt** · August 29, 2012, 02:00 PM

Have to love the strategy though. Post blatant lie. Post links to stories revealing the blatant lie. Assume no one else reads links either.

**Phier** · August 29, 2012, 08:11 PM

Having been in Chicago at the time of the protests and watching them live, I have to say the police did a fantastic job, had several chances to over react to violence against them but did not, and should be commended for keeping their cool.

**mrmouth** · August 29, 2012, 10:14 PM

Even professional protestors went out of their way to thank the CPD. This was a concerted effort to protect the protestors from the anarchists who often hijack the message and instigate violence. These peaceful protestors hate them as much as anyone.

What the CPD did, aided by the military, was to target these people before the convention began. Long before. That started in other cities but is seen to have been perfected this time. It was so effective that a lot of the anarchists who arrive upwards of a 2-3 weeks before the start of the convention, didn't bother to stay for the convention. They were given a no BS impression of what was in store for them, through multiple channels. Including raids on their squats.