Update on Ottawa June 18th Defendants

The following is an update from Ottawa Movement Defense about the conditions and how to support the three individuals who were arrested on June 17th, on charges related to the bombing of a Royal Bank in Ottawa in April of this year. Please forward widely.

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Ottawa Movement Defense
UPDATE & HOW TO SUPPORT THE JUNE 18TH DEFENDANTS
Thursday, July 15th, 2010
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UPDATE

Earlier this month, Claude was released on bail with very restrictive conditions, including a curfew, and a requirement that he reside at a relative’s home.

Roger was denied bail previously, and he and his lawyers are now working to prepare for a bail review hearing. This hearing will take place later this month, though no date has been confirmed yet as there is still considerable work to be done by his lawyers to ensure that his bail review has a good chance of resulting in his release.

Matt Morgan-Brown remains in detention, as well, and has not had a bail hearing yet. While we aren’t able to divulge the details, this was a strategic decision by Matt and his lawyer. Once details are made public in the near future, we’ll update everyone.

Both Matt and Roger will appear briefly via video on Friday, July 16th, in Courtroom #5, sometime between 1:30 and 4:00. We will update folks and call for court support if that happens. While anyone is welcome to attend, we are not calling for active court support for this date, as it will be very brief and the defendants will not be present in the courtroom.

HOW YOU CAN SUPPORT THE JUNE 18TH DEFENDANTS

This weekend marks ONE MONTH since the arrests of Roger Matt and Claude, who are still not free.

There are a number of ways to support them at this time:

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1. LETTERS OF SUPPORT
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 Matt and Roger are still being detained at Ottawa-Carleton Detention Centre, where they are  only allowed two short visits per week. This cuts them off from their wide support networks  during this difficult time as they are facing serious charges.

We encourage you to write letters of support to them. Please tell them that you are with them and support their immediate release.

Their mailing addresses are:

Joseph Roger Clement
Ottawa Carleton Detention Centre
2244 Innes Road
Gloucester, ON
K1B 4C4

Matthew Morgan-Brown
Ottawa Carleton Detention Centre
2244 Innes Road
Gloucester, ON
K1B 4C4

Your letters of support will be very much appreciated.

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2. NO PUBLIC / MEDIA STATEMENTS
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PLEASE NOTE: The June 18th Defendants have asked supporters NOT to make public or media statements at this time.

Please be careful when discussing this situation publicly, including online and to the media, as  incautious statements may compromise the ability of the accused to defend themselves in court. Now that this matter is before the courts, we need to ensure the Crown is able to base its case  only on substantive evidence, rather than relying on sensational or incautious public comments.

In particular, IT IS THE POSITION OF OTTAWA MOVEMENT DEFENSE THAT SPEAKING VOLUNTARILY TO THE POLICE WILL PREJUDICE THE DEFENSE OF THE ACCUSED  AND MAKE THEIR COURT PROCEEDINGS MORE DIFFICULT. ANY STATEMENT MADE TO THE POLICE OR MEDIA CAN BE USED AGAINST THE  ACCUSED, REGARDLESS OF WHETHER IT IS HYPOTHETICAL OR BASED ON  DISTORTED INFORMATION.

No matter how friendly or intimidating police may appear, or how clever you think you might be in  getting information out of them, nothing good can come of voluntarily talking to the police. If police contact you, please let us know as soon as possible at  ottawamovementdefense@gmail.com

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3. DONATE TO THE LEGAL DEFENSE FUND
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Financial support is crucial right now. We must begin fundraising ongoing legal and support  costs, which are already quite significant. In addition to legal fees, there are related support  costs accrued by Ottawa Movement Defense. These include such things as collect calls from prison, jail canteen, etc.

To donate to the legal defense fund via PayPal, please follow the below instructions:

1.Go to http://www.paypal.com/sendmoney
2. Type in ottawamovementdefense@gmail.com in the “To” box.
3. Type in your email address in the “From” box
4. Type in Amount and find CAD (Can Dollars) in the menu to the right.
5. Click on the “Personal” Tab and check the button “Gift”.
6. Click “Continue”.
7. The next page will ask you to either Log In to your paypal account or sign up for an account. If you sign up for an account, you can link up your account to your credit card or bank account.
8. For all transactions, there is a charge of 2.2% of the amount + $0.30. You can decide whether you will pay this amount or the Ottawa Movement Defense (in which case this amount is deducted from the amount you are giving).

For other methods, please contact us at ottawamovementdefense@gmail.com

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5. ORGANISE A FUNDRAISER
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Please consider organising a fundraiser in your city or within your social networks. We really appreciate the fundraisers people have already organised. There are currently more underway!

If you would like to volunteer and help organise with the fundraising subcommittee, please email us at ottawamovementdefense@gmail.com

Please let us know if you are organising a fundraiser so we can help get the word out.

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6. STAY UP-TO-DATE
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If you would like to be added (or removed) from the Ottawa Movement Defense announcements list, please write to us:ottawamovementdefense@gmail.com

The purpose of the announcements list to provide information to the friends and supporters of the June 18th Defendants.

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Ottawa Movement Defense is a legal and political support committee for the June 18th Defendants. We take direction from the June 18th defendants. Our support activities include: coordinating visits, fundraising towards legal and support costs, informing friends and supporters of the court proceedings, etc. We do not provide legal advice to the defendants. Currently, we are not making any statements to the media.

Email: ottawamovementdefense@gmail.com

Phone: 613 304 8770

Mailing Address:
Ottawa Movement Defense
207 Bank Street
Suite 453
Ottawa, ON
K2P 2N2

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