Monica Bicking

The charges that will be brought against the RNC Eight highlight the legal questions surrounding the nature of conspiracy, including a logic that legal experts say draws “perilously close” to prosecuting people for thought crimes.

The RNC Eight, accused of a criminal conspiracy to wreak chaos during the Republican National Convention, are unlikely to go on trial for at least another six months. But the battle to shape public opinion on the high-profile case has been taking place since the moment of their arrests on the eve of the St. Paul convention in early September. At a hearing Tuesday, the judge said she ‘won’t tolerate any games’ by the prosecution or defense.

With several members of the RNC8 — the people charged with felonies in conjunction with planned protests at the Republican National Convention in St. Paul last month — heading to court today for hearings in their cases, the Friends of the RNC8 are asking supporters to phone three local officials today to urge that charges [...]

Police would like to to paint 23-year-old Monica Bicking, whose home was raided on Saturday, August 30, as part of a preemptive strike against RNC protesters, as a “terrorist.” But her brother, Ian Bicking, has come out to speak in support of his sister, whom he says was arrested in an attempt to preemptively suppress the protests at the Republican National Convention.

After the raids Friday and Saturday by the Ramsey County Sheriff’s Department and the Minneapolis Police Department led to six arrests, the Minnesota Chapter of the National Lawyers Guild is seeking a judicial review of the “probable cause holds” being used to detain the six activists in the Ramsey County Jail.

Ramsey County can hold the arrestees for 36 hours on probable cause, a time line in place often used to gather evidence before formal charges are filed. However, weekends and holidays are not included in the 36-hour hold, which means all six of the activists arrested for “probable cause” could be held until Wednesday afternoon.

A look over the inventory receipt for the raid at 3240 17th Avenue (hat tip TC Indy Media) reveals that most of the items the police seized out of the the home this morning as “evidence to riot” are things that could be found in nearly any home: They confiscated a pack of staples, laptop computers, bike locks, cell phones, a storage device, a computer hard drive, curtain rods, a checkbook. The police also took what they call “propaganda literature,” such as leaflets and other information material tenants and guests planned on distributing at the RNC. The only questionable items found at the home was a rifle barrel, throwing knives, and caltrops. Yet Alex, who lives at the home, says police claims that these were evidence of conspiracy to riot is ridiculous.