The word is in — Phil Sano was found not guilty of resisting arrest on the night of June 10, 2008.
I got a voicemail from Phil at 2:18 saying “I’m free!” and that Phil plans to celebrate Mini Bike Winter with extra style this weekend.
We’ll keep you posted on Phil’s further exploits, and his planned civil suit.
For background on the incident and the trial:
It’s the third and final day of Phil Sano’s trial for resisting arrest. I’ve been in court all morning, taking notes — which are below — and now the jury is deliberating. There’s no telling when the decision will come.
Some background:
– Our coverage of the initial event
– Our “Phil Sano tasering incident” tag
– Reports from day one of the trial
– Reports from day two of the trial
I’ll post the updates as I edit them, and let you all know as soon as we find out the verdict.
9:01
Waiting to begin. Sergeant Smith comes and sits in the gallery. Gutbezahl [Sano’s lawyer] asks him “Have you seen any police officers around? Oh wait!” ha ha, they both laugh.
It’s day two of the Phil Sano Taser Trial and I’ve been in the courtroom since about 8:30am. Yesterday, I took notes using the email program on my phone and Jonathan was able to edit and post them as they came through.
Today, Jonathan is in the air somewhere between here and Guadalajara (read why he’s there all week). We have a long lunch break, which I’ll be using to post and edit my notes from the free wi-fi in the lobby of the City Hall atrium — not quite live blogging, but close. I’ll post the afternoon’s notes as soon as court gets out for the evening.
BikePortland managing editor Elly Blue is in the courtroom today for day one of the Phil Sano Trial.
Sano and his lawyer John Gutbezahl are at the Multnomah County Courthouse to fight charges of criminal resisting arrest brought against Sano by the Multnomah County District Attorney’s office. The judge assigned to the case is Youlee Yim You.
(For more on this story, see our original report from June 11th, 2008 and see all our coverage by browsing our “Phil Sano Tasering Incident” tag.)
We’ll update this story as things progress in court. Here are Elly’s reports (sent to us via email as they happened and then edited for clarity):
Back in June, Portlander Phil Sano was tackled and then Tasered repeatedly by two Portland Police Bureau officers while riding his bicycle on SE 7th Avenue. The police maintain he failed to obey their orders and then resisted arrest. Sano says they failed to identify themselves and then used excessive force to subdue him.
Next week, the Portland District Attorney’s office will present a criminal case against Sano.
Phil Sano was in court today to fight two traffic violations related to an incident that occurred back on June 10th. Also in the courtroom to testify were both Portland Police officers involved in the incident; Ron Hoesly and Erin Smith.
The officers allege that Sano did not heed their commands to stop for a bike light violation. When Sano didn’t stop, Hoesly and Smith say he then resisted arrest which led to him being tackled and tasered repeatedly. The incident occurred near the corner of 7th and Alder in Southeast Portland. Sano was cited for Failure to Obey a Police Officer and for a bike equipment violation.
“He was definitely making a racket and making it loud intentionally… he was trying to get people’s attention.”
— John Henry Dale, a witness to the Phil Sano Tasing incident
On Tuesday night, 31 year-old John Henry Dale was waiting for a bus at SE 7th and Morrison when he heard screaming and the buzzing of Tasers.
Looking north, he noticed a bike in the road and two police officers surrounding Phil Sano. Once Dale realized what was going on, he pulled out his cell phone and started recording.
A Portland man says he was tackled, pushed off his bike, and then tasered repeatedly by a Portland Police officer in Southeast Portland last night.
The Portland Police Bureau, in a written statement about the incident, say that Phil Sano (a.k.a. “Rev Phil”) did not have a front light on his bicycle and that he refused to stop when officers requested.
The incident occurred around 9:30pm on SE 7th Street, just north of SE Morrison Ave. Phil Sano says he was riding along and felt cold, so he went to zip up his jacket. Then, in an email he sent me just hours after the incident, he wrote,
Comment of the Week: ‘Right on red validates impatience’