Where: Hennepin County Government Center, 300 S 6th St, Minneapolis (starting at the fountain in the plaza)

On Tuesday November 22, community members and supporters of McDonald will call, email, and fax Freeman and tell him to drop the charges against McDonald. The “call-in” comes on the same day as a 3:00pm hearing on the case in Room 1357 in the Government Center.

Supporters will remind the County Attorney’s Office that McDonald was the target of a hate crime and that she should not be singled out for aggressive prosecution after the attack. McDonald and her supporters have emphasized that Freeman has declined to press charges in cases like McDonald's at least three times already this year and has the power to drop the charges against McDonald. Therefore, they are pressuring Freeman not to side with McDonald’s white supremacist attackers, and instead to drop the charges against McDonald.

McDonald is facing two felony murder charges after being verbally and physically assaulted by a group of white adults while passing by Schooner Tavern. One of the attackers smashed her drink into McDonald's face, lacerating her salivary gland and slicing all the way through her cheek. In the ensuing scuffle, Dean Schmitz, who had a swastika tattoo on his chest, died of a stab wound. The prosecutors in the case added an additional murder charge after McDonald refused a plea offer in late September to a lesser charge and seven years in prison.

Three times this year, County Attorney Michael Freeman has declined to press charges against individuals who have been attacked and whose attackers have been subsequently killed. (See “Stabbing determined to be in self-defense,” “Woman released in Sunday stabbing” [Aug. 31, 2011], and “No charges in self-defense slaying in NE Minneapolis” [Sept. 2, 2011], on hennepinattorney.org.)

There has been tragic loss of life in each of these cases, and yet in each case, the County Attorney’s Office chose not to press charges because the survivors of the incidents were attacked and did not start the conflicts that subsequently unfolded. In contrast, the County Attorney has moved forward aggressively with two charges of second degree murder against McDonald. By choosing to press charges, the County Attorney’s Office is implicitly siding with her attackers. Supporters of McDonald not that there is still time for Freeman to reverse his decision and drop the charges against McDonald.

Supporters continue to uphold their commitment to packing the courtroom and spreading the word about the injustice McDonald is suffering in justice system. McDonald’s trial is tentatively scheduled to begin on January 9. Visit http://supportcece.wordpress.com or email [email protected] for
more information.