Fence-breaching DNC protester had 'throwing knives,' feds say
A Rhode Island man arrested during protests outside the Democratic National Convention was carrying three "throwing knives" as he breached the eight-foot fence surrounding the Wells Fargo Center, federal prosecutors said Thursday.
A Rhode Island man arrested during protests outside the Democratic National Convention was carrying three "throwing knives" as he breached the eight-foot fence surrounding the Wells Fargo Center, federal prosecutors said Thursday.
Jeremy Graber, 31, of Woonsocket, was among the seven demonstrators arrested Wednesday night by the Secret Service for using bolt cutters to bypass the security perimeter during the tense protests that have erupted nightly outside the convention site. Authorities signaled in court that they would seek to detain him until his trial on charges of entering a restricted zone.
"He went into a restricted area, where the president of the United States and the vice president were speaking, with weapons," said Assistant U.S. Attorney Jennifer Chun Berry. "The demarcation of this restricted area is very clear. This is a situation that was completely avoidable."
Paul Hetznecker, a lawyer who represented Graber at an initial appearance in federal court Thursday, said his client was a trained medic who breached the fence just before 11 p.m. Wednesday to tend to protesters he feared may have been fended off with pepper spray.
Philadelphia police say they have not deployed pepper spray during the convention. Hetznecker said the 3-inch blades were tools of Graber's trade, used to cut gauze strips he wore in a holster on his belt.
"I think it's outrageous," Hetznecker said. "He was out there concerned about people who might have been harmed."
U.S. Magistrate Judge Marilyn Heffley set a hearing to review prosecutors' detention request for Monday. She released five of the other arrested demonstrators - Lincoln Bohn, 24, of Montecito, Calif.; Jacob Van Buskirk, 23, of Tacoma, Wash.; Dan Nguyen, 18, of Gaithersburg, Md.; and Natalie Frazer, 26, and Megan Munk, 27, of Forks, Wash. - after initial court appearances Thursday.
Like four other supporters of Bernie Sanders who were arrested Tuesday for scaling the security fence, each of those in court Thursday faces federal charges of entering restricted grounds, a misdemeanor punishable by a fine and up to a year in prison.
If Graber's blades are deemed to be weapons, he could face an additional nine years behind bars.
Heffley postponed until Friday an initial appearance for the seventh protester, Travis Martin, 28, of Houston.
U.S. marshals briefly detained an eighth man, a supporter of the arrested demonstrators who was sitting in the court gallery, during Thursday's proceedings. They alleged that he had been filming proceedings on his phone in violation of federal court rules. He was issued a citation and released, federal authorities said.
Secret Service agents have arrested 11 demonstrators for breaching the security fence, as Philadelphia police have sought to keep arrests of protesters to a minimum.
Instead, city officers have issued 103 civil citations to disruptive demonstrators as of Thursday afternoon. The tickets carry a $50 fine.
Editors Note: This story was revised to correct the number of people who were arrested on federal charges on Tuesday. It was four, not five.
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Staff writer Chris Palmer contributed to this article.