Sunday, April 11, 2010

Police needed at Township meeting?

Rumor has it that Dorr Township officials are arranging for the presence of a Woodstock police officer at its Annual Town Meeting on Tuesday night, April 13, at 7:00PM at the Woodstock High School.

Will this be to protect the electors/residents from the Trustees? In that case, okay to having a cop there.

This is a community meeting. I'm not aware of any history of threats, disruption of meetings, profane remarks, or anticipated disorder that would occasion having a police officer there to keep the peace.

This is not Iran or Iraq or Russia or Bangkok. This is Woodstock.

Personally, I object to having a police officer at a public meeting that has no history of disorder. Should one be needed, the on-duty officer for the beat that includes the High School will be only minutes away.

If two people talk at once, will that invoke a threat of disorderly conduct? It had better not. A good moderator should be able to maintain control of a meeting. A good court reporter will be able to record as much as she can; if she gets behind, well ... too bad.

Will the cop be there to shut people up, so that the court reporter can keep up? Will he be skilled in First Amendment rights vs. a criminal charge of disorder conduct?

Please! No cop at the Annual Town Meeting of Dorr Township!

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