***
(*Alexie)Wood is an independent photojournalist from San Antonio, Texas, whose work focuses on resistance movements. He arrived in D.C. last January planning to document protests around the inauguration — both on January 20 and the Women’s March the following day. But Wood’s coverage of the weekend ended abruptly when he, along with over 200 others, were penned into an area at the intersection of L and 12th streets and arrested en masse.
Individuals arrested at the Inauguration Day protests, known as J20, are being charged under blanket statutes for crimes committed during the action, including bashing windows and other property damage. To make its case against nearly 200 defendants, the prosecution is using the Pinkerton liability rule, which attributes every crime committed during a conspiracy to all those involved. In practice, this means that all defendants on trial for the protests can be convicted for all crimes committed during the action by mere virtue of their proximity to the crimes committed.
Wood’s prosecution is alarming as a reflection of the government’s attempt to define — and criminalize — journalism, but the case as a whole also speaks to the government’s attempt to undermine the First Amendment right to political speech.>>>