Shawn Miller stopped by here last night and left a comment with a link to this story about his trial. Miller, you may remember, is a street preacher who is being defended by the ACLU in New Mexico after being arrested and spending more than 3 months in jail on charges of disorderly conduct and resisting arrest when a police officer tried to stop him from standing and preaching on an empty street corner. This is one of hundreds of examples of the ACLU defending the religious freedom and free speech rights of Christians. Contrary to the lies told by the religious right, when it doesn't involve government sponsorship or endorsement of religion the ACLU has been very consistent in defending the expression of religious viewpoints in the public square.
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Dear Shawn,
Good news:
The D.A. issue a "nolle prosequi" in your case, which means she "will no further prosecute" it (you may hear it called a "NO LE PROS"). More informally, it is generally taken to mean that a district attorney either did not feel pursuing the case was in the interest of justice or that there wasn't enough there substantively to pursue it. Technically, they retain the right to re-charge you at some point, but that is highly unlikely in your situation.
I can fax you a copy of the document if you need - and will mail you one today.
At some point, I will take a look at the NM law to see when exactly, we can also request that your arrest record be expunged so that you are not dealing with even that in terms of background checks. But for now, you are currently free of all charges, pending trials, bail, etc.
I have various meetings this evening, but please give me a call tomorrow at work or let me know when a good time to call you is.
Best regards,
George Bach
Staff Attorney - ACLU of New Mexico
P.O. Box 566 Albuquerque, NM 87103-0566
(505) 243-0046 FAX: (505) 266-5916