I hadn't seen a diary on this yet, and the diary on the rec list regarding the original arrest may have this in the comments, but I couldn't find anything in a quick skim. If someone else has already done this, I'll delete.
In my morning Digby perusal, I found the welcome news that Democracy Now! journalist Amy Goodman, along with several producers also arrested in St. Paul, had been released.
ST. PAUL--Democracy Now! host Amy Goodman and producers Sharif Abdel Kouddous and Nicole Salazar have all been released from police custody in St. Paul following their illegal arrest by Minneapolis Police on Monday afternoon.
But at least at this point, they're not out of the woods:
Ramsey County Sheriff Bob Fletcher told Democracy Now! that Kouddous and Salazar were arrested on suspicion of rioting, a felony. While the three have been released, they all still face charges stemming from their unlawful arrest. Kouddous and Salazar face pending charges of suspicion of felony riot, while Goodman has been officially charged with obstruction of a legal process and interference with a "peace officer."
For more information, head on over to www.democracynow.org.
Presumably, they are going to mount a vigorous defense. I'd be curious to know what the legal proceedings are from here. I assume the local prosecutor's office reviews the charges, and perhaps the video as well, and decides whether or not formal charges actually will be filed against any of these journalists. Are there any Minnesota lawyers out there who can give us a little bit of insight as to what these charges involve, what the charging process is in Minnesota, etc.?
In any event, it's welcome news that they're no longer in jail.