Portland, OR: Occupy ICE Protester Found Not Guilty in Camera Man Assault Case

Report back on conclusion of court case, involving someone that was involved in Occupy ICE PDF.

In a dramatic trial this week, Danialle James was found not guilty of charges stemming from the Occupy ICE encampment in Portland, OR, last summer. Miss James stood accused by a white KATU cameraman, Carter Maynard, of slamming his head with a wooden gate at Occupy ICE PDX on June 28, 2018.

This was the day of the first big raid, which started in the early morning hours. Occupiers were awakened by an alarm and very low helicopters to find large crews of pigs in riot gear. Also present were many other pigs representing all breeds, arresting comrades and tossing belongings, tents, and personal property into a rental truck. Intrusive media crews were all over, adding confusion and stress to the chaos.

Mr. Maynard maintained that he had sustained a concussion and whiplash from the incident and claimed time off and physical therapy were needed. Mr. Maynard offered the investigating officer a heavily edited video of the event as evidence with his initial report. The officer did not go to the scene. The charges were Assault 4, a class A misdemeanor, and harassment, also a misdemeanor.

An all white jury was selected. Presented by ADA Molina as an angry black woman, video evidence was shown of Miss James saying “fuck” score of times. There was copious footage of Miss James, angry in the chaos and repeating, “Fuck the media.” It was obvious from the footage that Mr. Maynard and his reporter were being incredibly intrusive, filming people experiencing trauma without their permission and trying to enter areas they weren’t allowed.

Mr. Maynard came across as sullen and irritated during his testimony. He kept mentioning his “pride.” He did not seem forthcoming about various facts and was an unlikable witness overall. His own video confirmed that the Mr Maynard did not sink to his knees to get his bearings after the incident, which he testified about under oath. It didn’t show a door shutting on him. There was no sudden force that did anything more than make the camera wiggle, which was consistent with the theory that he had merely tripped.

His witness, a 6’4” cameraman from KOIN 6 who now works for KATU, testified under oath that Miss James pulled them out of the walled section of camp by their backpacks like Hulk Hogan. Miss James is 5’2”. Mr. Maynard never mentioned in his testimony that Miss James touched them in any way. His own video did not show this. Miss James however, was direct, truthful, and confident in her testimony. ADA Molina tried to trip Miss James up, but she was unruffled.

Despite the high comedy of inconsistencies from the accuser and his witness, the medical testimony was more compelling. The PA, whom ADA Molina repeatedly referred to as Dr., testified that her diagnosis of concussion was based on the self reported complaints of dizziness and headache. There were absolutely no objective signs of concussion. She also testified that the accused had a full range of motion in his neck. All tests of systems were negative. A few hours later he returned to the ER complaining that he stumbled.

Based on the earlier concussion diagnosis, the ER doctor noted this diagnosis, despite a negative CT scan and more physical examination. The only physical evidence that something had happened was a small bruise on the left optical region. The next morning he returned to urgent care and the bruise was gone. The medical records stated he reported doing much better and was in no pain and was released to work after 1 day off. Later that same day, Mr. Maynard saw a chiropractor without a referral. He told the chiropractor he had pain in his neck, shoulder, upper back and lower back, his pain level was 6. Then he filed for workman’s comp and called the police.

Luckily the all white jury did not buy into the ‘angry black woman’ trope, saw through all the lies and quickly returned a verdict of Not Guilty on both counts. The audience, full of Miss. James’ court support, erupted in loud cheers. Many cried and hugged.