Benito “Coyotl Tezcatlipoca” Acosta’s criminal trial began today at Harbor Justice Center in Costa Mesa.
According to the O.C. Register, “Acosta is being charged with violating propriety of conduct while addressing the City Council and disorderliness at a council meeting for an incident that took place at a Costa Mesa City Council meeting on Jan. 3, 2006 when people came to express their opinions regarding the city’s recently passed policy to train city police officers to enforce federal immigration laws.”
Here are a few more excerpts from the Register article:
The prosecution alleges that Acosta became disruptive after asking members of the public who agreed with his anti-policy statements to stand up in the audience. Acosta ensued in a verbal spat with the City Council before police used force to take Acosta from the building.
A jury of 11 women and one man listened to Costa Mesa Mayor Allan Mansoor recount the events on the first day of a trial which is expected to last a week.
“He was a couple of minutes into his time when he started changing his comment from (being) directed to the council to directed to the public
I slammed Acosta when this first went down…but I was still a partisan Republican back then. So let’s have a second look at this.
IS that your excuse? You were “brainwashed”?
BWA-HA-HA-HA-HA!!!!
http://la.indymedia.org/news/2006/02/147116.php
Sunday, February 12, 2006
DUDE, WHERE’S MY CRIMINAL CHARGE?
Costa Mesa Mayor Allan Mansoor “thanks” me for asking
people in the audience to stand up
By DUANE J. ROBERTS
duaneroberts92804@yahoo.com
COSTA MESA, CA — At first, I wasn’t planning on
speaking at last Tuesday’s meeting of the Costa Mesa
City Council. But the temptation to do so was too
great for me to resist. So I plucked a pencil out from
my shirt pocket and quickly filled in all the blank
spaces on the little yellow card you must submit to
the City Clerk if you want to speak. After I finished,
I handed it over to her and patiently waited for my
name to be called. The moment arrived much sooner than
I expected.
“Is Duane here?” asked Mayor Allan Mansoor.
“Yes,” I responded.
I walked up to the podium, adjusted the microphone,
and began to introduce myself.
“Good evening,” I said. “My name is Duane Roberts. I’m
Chair of the Social Concerns Committee of the
Unitarian Universalist Church in Anaheim, which is
located at 511 S. Harbor Blvd. I’m also a member of
the Tonantzin Collective. I want to read the following
statement.”
I looked down at my clipboard and slowly began to read
what I had hurriedly jotted down in pencil only a few
minutes earlier:
Congress shall make
no law respecting the
establishment of
religion, nor prohibit
the free exercise thereof.
Nor prohibit the freedom
of speech, or of the
press. Or the right of
the people to peaceably
assemble and to petition
the government for
a redress of grievances.
“That’s the First Amendment of the Bill of Rights of
the U.S. Constitution,” I said. “And if anybody here
supports the First Amendment, please quietly stand
up!” I motioned with my right hand for people in the
audience to rise up out of their seats. And that they
did. In fact, almost everybody present in Council
Chambers stood up.
Mayor Mansoor, looking surprised at what had just
occurred, quickly responded: “Uh, sir, please direct
your comments to the council and …”
But before he could finish his sentence, I abruptly
cut him off.
“Mayor Mansoor, your time is up!” I said. “Thank you!”
I then walked away from the podium.
“Thank you,” he responded.
As I returned to my seat, people began to clap in
unison. But I was confused. I mean, isn’t this the
reason why Mayor Mansoor had Coyotl Tezcatlipoca
beaten, arrested, and criminally charged for last
month: asking people in the audience to quietly stand
up in support of something? And now he’s “thanking” me
for doing the exact same thing?
Dude, where’s my criminal charge?
========================
To hear Mayor Allan Mansoor “thank” me for asking
people in the audience to stand up, click on “view
video” feature for the Tuesday, February 7, 2006
meeting of the Costa Mesa City Council at the
following link:
http://costamesa.granicus.com/ViewPublisher.php?view_id=4
Jump to “Speaker No. 29”.
hey art do you feel jim gilchrist rights of free spech where violated when he tried to speak at columbia and was attacked by the loons who support ILLEGAL immagrants. it works both ways buddy but of coarse being a republican HATER like you are im sure you didnt count that one .
Art, your last paragraph goes right to the heart of this issue. Earlier in that particular meeting Gilchrist – sponsor of Mayor Mansoor as an honorary Minuteman – was permitted by the mayor to have his “5 or 6 dozen” supporters stand as a show of support of Gilchrist’s comments. There is a history between Mansoor and Acosta, though. At the previous council meeting Acosta stood at the podium and called the mayor a “f***ing racist pig”. I don’t doubt for a minute that Mansoor was concerned about a similar breakdown of order, so he called a recess and cut Acosta off short of his allotted three minutes. Since the Mansoor majority on the council has demonstrated many times their willingness to play fast and loose with the rules, you are correct when you say, “This precedent will cast a chill on citizen interaction at City Council meetings. No matter how you feel about immigration, you ought to be worried about THAT.”
Poster 1,
That is the problem with partisanship. When you set it aside you can see things a lot more clearly.
Laugh if you will, but I am a much better blogger for having become an independent.
Poster 4,
Gilchrist was not taken to court for that, was he? If you are going to be controversial, then you need to expect attacks. But filing charges against someone for expressing themselves is not good.
I will defend anyone’s right to free speech. Is that clear enough for you?
Art, no, Gilchrist was welcomed with open arms during that meeting. In fact, he was given more than three minutes to speak that night. You are correct – Acosta’s right of free speech was denied. At the time Mansoor shut him off he had followed the rules. We’ll just have to see how the jury views this situation. Did you think I was confused about your position? I was not.
When Costa Mesa decided to unleash their cops on immigrants
I’m an immigrant, live in Costa Mesa and no cops have ever been unleashed on me. I wonder why?
There appears to be controversy regarding if the Mayor allowed Jim Gilchrist
Acosta and his ilk are idiots who have no respect for the law or this country. In fact,they hate the USA. I have witnessed this La Raza (which means “THE Race” – kinda like Hitler…)poster child in action many times at city council meetings. He is disrespectful in what he says, who he says it towards and of the time limits we all have to comply with.
He would fit right in here as a blogger with Arturo Pedroza and his hate speach against anyone who is not Mexican. By the way, when are you going to start using your real name?, Pocho!
Acosta should be deported to the mythical land of Atzlan, where he belongs.
Art,
If Costa Mesa is successful in the prosecution this might play right into the hands of the Pulido Cabal. As you know they are looking for any avenue they can to limit the free speech of the opposition in this city.
The Pulido Cabal already has two sets of rules in place when dealing with people speaking out. When it is you, Thomas or myself they threaten us. When it is Santa Ana’s version of Jim Gilchrist, i.e. the Riverview racists, the felon or the horse woman, he and Carlos are just giddy with excitement.
Coyotl is a coyote that is considered the trickster. The god Tezcalipoca specializes in night, death and temptation. He carries a smoking mirror which bewilders enemies and confuses the issues but is happiest when leading people down the garden path to evil. The Aztecs consider him the devil, who believes in human sacrifice.