A judge has ordered charges dismissed against a protester who was arrested Sunday outside a St. Paul church.
Emily Phillips, 33, of Stevens Point, Wis., was one of about a dozen people protesting during Easter services outside Cities Church. That church was the subject of a protest in January, after anti-Immigrations and Customs Enforcement activists learned that pastor David Easterwood led ICE’s St. Paul field office.
St. Paul police say they arrested Phillips when she left the median and stepped onto the sidewalk outside the church during the protest. She was charged with four misdemeanor counts for violating noise rules and interrupting a religious observation.
Her attorney Trisha Pohland motioned to dismiss the charges for lack of probable cause. In a hearing Monday, Ramsey County Judge Maria Mitchell agreed.
Outside the courtroom, Pohland said Phillips had not broken any laws.
“They wanted to make an example out of her, I believe,” Pohland said. “We're very pleased with the results.”
Phillips spent the night in jail and was released shortly after her brief hearing Monday morning, met by a crowd of friends and fellow protesters who came to support her.
Phillips said she came to speak out against Easterwood’s work at the church and against the federal charges brought against nearly 40 people involved in the January protest there.
“They don't just get to scare people away by putting charges on people. That's not how free speech and a free society is supposed to work,” Phillips said.
She said protesters followed police orders to stop using bullhorns, and she was surprised to be arrested.
St. Paul police said Sunday that officers worried noise from protesters’ speakers would disrupt the service inside the church.
Judge Mitchell noted that prosecutors could re-file the charges with a complaint to establish probable cause. But Pohland said she doesn’t expect to see further charges in the case.
Cities Church did not immediately return a call requesting comment.
