-By Jordan Freshour

A Cop Blocker in Kettering warns drivers of an OVI checkpoint

“Southwestern Ohio is the center for civil disobedience activism in the world right now.” – Mark Edge, Free Talk Live, April 1st, 2015.

Wait, what? Not New Hampshire with the Free State Project? Not in the Middle East, where protests and civil war are still erupting years after the Arab Spring? Not in DC, a Mecca for civil demonstrations and home to hundreds of national and global non-profit headquarters? Not in places like Los Angeles or Texas, where a new era of technological innovation is bursting forth?

While it’s difficult to accurately compare the efficacy of various methods used by groups to promote social change, Mark Edge did not speak out of context in lauding this specific region of the United States. In the radio segment mentioned above, he was interviewing Virgil Văduva about his own acts of civil disobedience. In particular, Văduva’s intentional violation of an anti-panhandling ordinance in the nearby city of Xenia. When asked if he agreed with Mark’s assessment, he said:

“I do agree. I have friends who live in California who complain that they are the lone activist in their large town and are unable to grow the liberty community. In essence they are alone in the middle of a crowd. I’m not sure what is causing this phenomenon here in SW Ohio, but I remember just a few years ago being the only Cop Blocker within 100 mile radius. Since then the number of activists and libertarians has exploded. While I would love to take credit for some of the growth, the reality is that there have been quite a few events in the area that served as catalysts for the message of freedom. Ohio Open Carry, the shooting of John Crawford and Tamir Rice have been huge factors in bringing new activists on board, and the recent shooting at the University of Cincinnati was another reminder of a growing police brutality problem. The police alone are responsible for the growth in the numbers of local activists. In essence they are the largest creators responsible for building our community.”

Văduva isn’t the only Ohio activist who believes the police have directly contributed to the local growth in activism. Micah David of Yellow Springs, Ohio – writer, editor, and designer for Counter Current News – shares similar thoughts:

“Yes, I think Ohio is ground zero in terms of police abuse, brutality and racism. A lot of times people will assume coastal cities, or a large midwestern city like Chicago would be the focal point of such police abuses. But Ohio has a unique history with regards to racism and injustice, as law enforcement and government reacted in very deliberate ways to the influx of freed-men and women who came across the Kentucky border. As such, many so-called minority communities know Ohio to be little more than an extension of the south, with some of the most segregated communities in the nation. On top of that, the middle-American nature of Ohio suburbs has lent to a particular flavor of Ohio activism, and reaction by law enforcement and the government, even going back to the Kent State Massacre during the Vietnam War.

So in a sense, activists come after the situation that is created sociologically in Ohio – they are borne from it. And at the same time, the law enforcement response to activism in Ohio is borne out of the sociological “Northern South” vibe that is Ohio. It is that vibe, or climate that leads to incidences such as the shooting of John Crawford, Tamir Rice and Sam Dubose, or even earlier, Timothy Thomas.”

To get closer to the target of racial police abuse, I spoke with Talis Gage (also from Yellow Springs), an activist and organizer with Black Lives Matter Miami Valley and the Ohio Organizing Collaborative. He said everything “jumped off” after the murder of John Crawford III in Beavercreek, Ohio. Talis echoed Micah’s assessment when answering if police targeting has been a catalyst for uniting the black community:

“In Yellow Springs it definitely has, because there really isn’t a black community here. So we are now all working together collectively in different ways – on the radio, on HRC [Human Relations Commission], and I was running for village council. I would say [the shooting] made different organizations more active and much more aggressive in the black communities. The Ohio Student Association was very active in getting the Beavercreek police to release the tapes from the Wal-Mart shooting. They were also outside of the Beavercreek police station for days protesting. We tag teamed with them to shut down Wal-Mart, and then the Beavercreek Mall.”

Outcry over the murder of Crawford isn’t the only response from leaders in the nearby black community. Talis went on to explain how BLM Miami Valley has quickly become a group which works with others to feed the poor and homeless, provide clothes to those in need, clean up the neighborhood, educate their neighbors, and host potlucks for the public.  “Everyone is doing all they can within their organization to wake up the black community to stand strong as the Kings and Queens they originally were,” said Talis.

“Waking up” individuals to the reality of the classist warfare waged by the government is a major challenge for activists of all stripes. Constant mobile connectivity to one another has been the single greatest tool for the nonconformist in infiltrating the minds of others with new ideas. Heather Lucas – an Awakened Cincinnatian, and council member for Unite Ohio – has worked with more than a dozen Ohio groups, linking them to each other. The Militia, Ohio Patriot Bikers, libertarian chapters, Pin Ups for Patriots, NORML, 3% Militia, and Columbus Anonymous are but a few allies. She credited social media for the success of networking and growth among like-minded people, saying:

“Activism in my opinion has become much easier for everyone due to social media. I think for one the instant access to stories, info, and causes have caused “normal” people to have to look at things they wouldn’t have normally. So they join a group, or start their own.”

Having instant access to information is vital to spreading the word about events and ideas, but social giants such as Facebook are only one element in the Buckeye dissenter’s tool kit. The effectiveness of Heather’s endeavors to unite various Ohio efforts increases with the availability of new technology designed to facilitate counter culture. Apps such as Bambuser, Wickr, and Cell 411 can be found on the smartphones of revolutionaries statewide, the latter having been developed by Văduva specifically for the use of activism. Virgil (a cryptology professional) believes advances of this kind are precisely the silver bullet for government tyranny:

“As a crypto-anarchist, it’s evident to me that technology is making the ideas of liberty virtually impregnable to government tyrants, and that’s an empowering realization. This is why I am focusing on building even more tools to empower people to subvert the state, whether it’s through adopting currencies like Bitcoin, embracing free markets, or subverting State surveillance. We are barely toddlers in this world and we are just now learning how to use technology to be truly free.”

It should be noted these kinds of technology are available across the world, but southwest Ohio has a unique environment. It is a place where innovators are focusing their implements on freedom, and the principles of the people living there are predisposed to take advantage of inventions which empower the individual. Where similar movements in other areas fragment due to infighting between egos, those in Ohio have learned how to use ego to their advantage. Justin King, journalist, and editor for The Fifth Column opines:

“Ohio’s activists seem to have adopted an informal cellular structure. There are hundreds of small groups that are self contained. Each of these groups does a great job of making the other groups aware of their actions. This means everybody supports each other. The small group sizes allow more people to have egos. If there is one large group there are only so many top positions. People of influence end up arguing. Small groups allow people of influence to abstain from an event they don’t agree with without destroying the overall movement. It cuts down on infighting because the “cells” are free to do as they choose. Nobody is jockeying for position.”

Justin has a fitting resume for a gonzo journalist, having been a military contractor, bodyguard, a “smuggler,” a federal inmate, and so on. He offers a unique set of skills for other activists. “I’ve been waterboarded, I’ve conducted counter-surveillance for activists, I’ve investigated dirty politicians for groups, and basically anything that requires a bit of playing dirty. I [..] bring tactical experience to the movement.” Justin knows to maximize his own impact, strategically aligning with specific people and events is important. “…it boils down to choosing your battles carefully,” he said. “Let’s say somebody is done wrong by a police department, but they have a massive criminal record. Ideologically it’s still an offense, tactically don’t waste the resources on a person that isn’t relatable to the rest of America.”

That last statement might be controversial in other circles of activism. But it’s not in Ohio. When activists there see a cause they like, they support it. When activists disagree about a cause, they don’t support it. And when activists think there is a better way of doing something, instead of criticizing others, they form the solutions themselves. Such is the story of Awakened Cincinnatians. Richard Brewster, an AC member, touched on this when I inquired to how the group had formed:

“Actually I started it. I loved the idea of Anonymous: How everyone can be one. I went to a few Occupy Cincinnati events and saw how they couldn’t get along – the left stayed to the left, the right stayed to the right. There was really nothing for us Awakened People, who don’t fall for the left/right nonsense. After arguing and being kicked out of the local Occupy [Cincinnati], and all the Patriot groups, I decided we needed our own. I made the group on Facebook. […] Once numbers were decent we [began holding meetings]. Ever since we have kept the ball rolling picking up new people with every event we do.”

Events arranged and promoted by the Awakened Cincinnatians have taken the Queen City by storm, attracting mainstream media attention, and the support of the most widely-known organization to focus on police accountability: Cop Block. At a recent September 19th protest – organized by AC to call attention to the murder of Sam DuBose – several Cop Block journalists were in attendance, including Ademo Freeman, CB’s co-founder. As one of the most influential anarcho-activists in the country, I was curious to his take on the Ohio brand of activism. When asked what surprised him the most from his time spent there, Ademo articulated the volume of hard-working individuals:

“Whether it be CopBlocking a checkpoint, running websites, creating videos or smartphone apps, someone in Ohio is doing it. I would say that they’ve all energized, inspired and provided hope to me in some form. From their energy, tactics and the diversity of such, it has been most beneficial to myself – and hopefully to those who view our/their work/efforts.”

Freeman is no stranger to the work being done in Ohio. Upon leaving New Hampshire a year ago to spread the message of police accountability nationwide, he made a temporary base in Cleveland in preparation for the rest of his journey. “I’ve been lucky enough to work with and meet many, some I knew before arriving – like Valerie and DEO; while others like Virgil, Micah and some of the CB offshoots (Dayton CB, Greater Cleveland folks and so on) I’ve gotten to know while CopBlocking,” he said. During his time visiting the state, new chapters were formed in Dayton and Beavercreek. Other chapters, such as Ohio Valley, Columbus, and Zanesville were strengthened by his collaboration with Columbus activist, Valerie Petrichor, whom with I also spoke.

Valerie has been involved with Cop Block since it’s inception, forming multiple chapters in and near her suburban Columbus home. Working for police accountability before Cop Block had evened formed, her efforts are reflected (in part) by a hometown which suffers far less police misconduct than cities of comparable size. I asked her a similar question as I did the others, “Is there anything you believe makes Ohioans more receptive to the message of freedom?”

“Individual thought. People who think on any level other than unique individual thought will typically not understand the need for freedom or accountability. The exception being those who believe they are part of some “movement”. Finding like-minded individuals who want to work toward shared goals is great – necessary, even. However, believing in a “movement” is just a way to continue groupthink passively and avoid truly unique thought. In Ohio we have what is probably one of the strongest, if not the strongest, [group of] activists in the US.”

Being one of the few women planted in the trenches of the fight against police brutality, I wondered if Valerie thought her femininity was a trait she considered a strength. Oddly enough, she didn’t. “It’s just a circumstance,” She said, playing down the question. “If anything, it makes what I do easier than it would be for a man. People tend to respect me and my gender is probably part of the reason. I think being female causes me to be perceived as less of a threat.” 

Though it may be true the police underestimate the strength of a principled woman, fellow Ohio activists do not. Individuals such as Heather and Valerie are not only freedom fighters in the public arena, but also in the home raising the next generation of world-changers. In wrapping up my case for Ohio being ground zero for activists, I wished to unearth that lesser-seen side of activism. Knowing where to look, I asked Jamie Văduva (married to Virgil), if she would round out my story. She obliged.

Jamie is a member of Libertarians of Southwest Ohio, artist, caretaker of her family’s farm, mother of four, and a homeschooler. Though not as visible as other activists, her efforts to promote freedom are the most selfless of type. As principled and hard-working as any liberty-minded person, she labors to raise her children as lovers of freedom and humanity, while spreading a message of love and kindness to those around. She offered the story of Christopher McCandless as one inspiring tale which shaped her values as teacher, Mom, and wife:

“I just started reading books about survival and people living simpler lives: Christopher McCandless, Henry David Thoreau, Everett Ruess and many others. Extreme stories that challenged my thinking. We gave away most of our furniture, and sold our new cars and 5-year-old house to get an old house in the country. All because God and family were what mattered. Not things, not money and mortgages, but our time together. And to be able to experience having animals and grow food, have bees, et cetera – that lifestyle goes with living a liberty or Voluntaryist life very much.”

Referencing Thoreau’s message of simplicity, only what’s truly important matters in her home. She proudly sees herself as an activist for “the little things in every day life.”  She added, “[Our kids] get to see first hand voluntary interactions between friends and acquaintances. Helping others and they help us…we have each other’s backs or do things to help because we care. Each person has something different to offer.”

Activists are stereotyped in many ways, often in a cold manner. However, those in southwest Ohio come off as the most devoted  – and caring – humans I have encountered. This may be the secret to the robust and diverse community of liberty-lovers in the Buckeye State. In closing, Jamie speaks directly to what I believe is the essence of these people:

 “I can only be myself which is someone who is drawn toward the positive. I don’t pretend everything is perfect. But my place here is to keep reminding everyone to have good hearts, and to try to bring out the softer side in people. To make them smile, and see it’s all about being free and happy with the people you love and care about. Live…just be yourself and do the things you love. Don’t be afraid to stand up for what you believe in. And remember to be a nice person. Sometimes something as simple as a smile can change someone’s world and you don’t even realize it.”

I couldn’t have said it better myself.

Johnna Shia, Montgomery County assistant prosecutor, pictured at a bar

– By Jordan Freshour

The Montgomery County government in Ohio may love trying to catch drunk drivers via unconstitutional OVI checkpoints, but when it comes to policing the behavior of its own employees, driving while impaired is suddenly not a cause for concern.

On July 20, Johnna Shia, one of five “Team 1” prosecutors for the county court was arrested for OVI in nearby Belmont County, Ohio according to local news. Shameful enough by itself, Shia was detained after striking a vehicle which carried children, then fleeing the scene of the crime. To make matters worse, she first lied to the trooper when questioned about her alcohol consumption. Upon further interrogation, Shia admitted to a four-day bender prior to her display of hypocritical behavior, which can be seen by clicking here.

Shia failed a sobriety test, and rendered a .134 BAC when tested – the equivalent of 6 or more drinks for the average person.

When Greg Flannagan, spokesman for the Montgomery County Prosecutor’s Office, was asked if Shia had been placed on leave, he declined to discuss the matter further. Given the history of substandard disciplinary action within the ranks of his office, this likely means no meaningful action will be taken at all.

UPDATE: “Shia has not worked since the incident and is currently on medical leave, a Montgomery County Prosecutor’s Office spokesman said Friday. Asked about any administrative action after Shia’s previous two drunk-driving arrests in 2006 and 2012, office spokesman Greg Flannagan said: “I can inform you that corrective measures were taken, but I cannot elaborate specifically.”” -Dayton Daily News

According to WHIO-TV and documents obtained by TruthVoice, this is Shia’s third time caught operating a vehicle while impaired. In 2005, she was arrested for drunk driving after speeding past a Springboro police cruiser near her home. In that instance, Shia attempted to use her prosecutor’s badge (to no avail) as special privilege to avoid being detained. Her only discipline was a $350 fine and 6 month suspension of her driver’s license, with both drunken driving and speeding charges dismissed. She also attended a rehabilitation program while serving a one-year probation.

This clearly did little good to amend her behavior. In 2012, she was again arrested for OVI in Miami Township, a neighboring suburb. It is not known what internal discipline – if any – she received. However, drunk driving charges were again dismissed, and not only was Shia allowed to keep her job, she was awarded a pay raise in 2006 and 2013, the years following her first two charges. Shia is on track to be paid more than $72k of taxpayer money in 2015.

This is hypocrisy of the highest degree, and a fine example of how government views itself as being above their own rules. The Montgomery County Prosecutor’s Office has confirmed that Shia has prosecuted other citizens for OVI during her continuing tenure with the county. TruthVoice reports the names of four individuals whom she has personally been involved in trying for the same crime she is now 3 times guilty of committing herself.

If this makes you angry, it should. Crony politics in Montgomery County are well-documented, and corruption of various forms have been ongoing for decades.

If you want to help clean up government waste at the Prosecutor’s Office, call (937) 225-5757 8:30a – 4:30p, M-F, ask for Mat Heck Jr or Greg Flannagan, and request Johnna Shia be fired. You can also visit her personal Facebook page and send a private message condemning her behavior, asking her to resign.

Article has been edited 8/15/2015 to reflect updates and more accurate information.

by Virgil Vaduva

Update (August 6, 2015):

Representatives from Ohio Students Association have contacted me and have denied any association with the individuals behind the e-mails sent to Jim Anderson. As of right now, nobody has taken any responsibility for the statements made in the e-mails sent to Jim.

Original story: 

A clear pattern of discrimination and exclusion has been emerging within the last few days regarding the organization Black Lives Matter. It started with the organization attempting to schedule an event at the same time and location as other organizations and immediately attempting to put in place rules limiting attendance, excluding members of Anonymous, members of Cop Block and members of Ohio Open Carry, all organizations which oppose police brutality and work hard to further liberty.

These actions and attempts to control the narrative and attendance to the one year anniversary demonstration of John Crawford’s shooting by Ohio police have stirred up quite a debate in various circles, prompting individuals that would otherwise work together to further the cause of liberty to take sides based on political views and other opinions.

Black Lives Matter, the George Soros funded organization, is now on full attack against Anonymous, a de-centralized organization which has been attempting to participate in exposing police brutality throughout the world for years.  The attempt on the part of BLM to limit speech and control the message at public events is not new and I have documented a number of instances where bigotry is on display by members and leader in Black Lives Matter.

Just today an activist and journalist named Jim Anderson based out of Columbus, Ohio contacted me to inform me that he was told by members of BLM that he was “too white to attend a police brutality protest.”

As early as November 2014 the leaders of Black Lives Matter Columbus have contacted Jim and demanded that he cancels his event against police brutality due to conflict (as they scheduled it after he did) and informed him that no members of Anonymous are welcome to any of their public events.  Furthermore Guy Fawkes masks were banned and white people were told not to attend and were not welcome at any planning meetings. These tactics are identical to the tactics BLM is attempting to use to intimidate white attendees in Beavercreek, Ohio planning to attend the one year anniversary protest of the John Crawford shooting on August 5, 2015.

Screenshots of e-mail exchanges between Jim and representatives from BLM and Ohio Student Association show what appear to be outright and unapologetically bigoted attitudes towards police brutality supporters simply because of their association with Anonymous or simple due to their skin color.

When Jim inquired about the confusion generated by the exclusion of Anonymous members, he was told that Anonymous members lack “revolutionary-ness” (sic) and can be threatening to people of color. The insensitivity of the language used to describe Anonymous is astounding. The BLM leaders are attempting to describe Anonymous members as violent, unaccountable individuals who show up at protests in order to intimidate people of color.

This is not the first time members of Black Lives Matter have excluded whites from their events. In an event scheduled in Dayton, Ohio early in 2015 several messages went out indicating in essence that “no whites are allowed” at their events and that white people are not welcome to participate or take part in police brutality protests. When an outraged community pointed out the bigotry of these demands the request made on Facebook were deleted and BLM leadership pretended they never happened.

In a recent video allegedly recorded in Cleveland, Ohio, another white journalist who attended a BLM meeting to support their cause was assaulted, pushed, cursed at and grabbed before he had a chance to leave the public property he was on.

When asked about the bigoted remarks, the organizers defended the behavior by claiming this was a “private” meeting, however the meeting is clearly out in public on what appears to be public property.  Not only that, but the journalist was clearly in the process of leaving, as he was asked to do, when he was assaulted and threatened. You can watch the video here.

Talis Gage, a leader in Black Lives Matter compares Anonymous members with the KKK in a Facebook post

In a more recent event, a Black Lives Matter leader did not mince words when he outright stated that “the mask is the new sheet” when criticizing Anonymous for attending some BLM events.  He stated:

“Sometimes I wonder if the mask is the new sheet and are they in cahoots with each other I know I know there is some black mask anon members but like the old days you had house negros and field negros and we are not that far from those times. I have associated in all these diff groups but I can’t say I trust them.”

Additional BLM members followed with more inflammatory comments against Anonymous:

“Both anonymous masks and guns endanger people of color…”

All these comments were removed when I warned them that I was taking screenshots, as the story would be hard to believe otherwise.

I am aghast at the idea that Anonymous is being compared with one of the most despicable and racists groups in the world, the KKK, which has lynched, burned and executed people simply because of the color of their skin. Furthermore, Anonymous has shown incredible support for the black community on the issue of police brutality. Several prominent investigations by Anonymous have led to exposing internal e-mails and comments from NYPD and Baltimore PD showing extensive racism among police officers.

When members of Anonymous contacted the BLM leaderships to inquire about the public event scheduled in Dayton Ohio in April, they were told in very clear terms, “It’s an event that’s not for anonymous members.”

The ingratitude shown by Black Lives Matter and the outright disregard for any desire to cooperate with people and groups which have supported them for the past year is very disturbing, to say the least. Exclusion, discrimination and bigotry appears to be alive and well throughout the BLM organization, and is dishonorable to police brutality causes where black Americans have been targeted by police throughout the country.

I am unsure how to encourage BLM leadership to resolve this problem, or even if they are willing to solve the problem or eliminate bigotry from their midsts, but if you want to contact BLM, you can do so by going to their website and writing them a message about the serious problem they are creating by attacking groups of people which have been supportive of the cause of police brutality well before BLM even came into existence.

Words don’t break bones, but they should certainly prompt someone to step back and reconsider their support for such organizations.

Virgil Vaduva is a Libertarian security professional, journalist, photographer and overall liberty freak. He spent most of his life in Communist Romania and participated in the 1989 street protests which led to the collapse of the Ceausescu regime. He can be reached at vvaduva at truthvoice.com.

Earlier this spring, three cop blockers from Dayton, Ohio decided to take the trip up I-75 to warn drivers of an OVI checkpoint in Allen County, which was conducted by the Ohio State Highway Patrol. I was one of them and got to partake in some novel treatment by the police.

After finding an area to hold signs, only a half hour had passed before an OSHP vehicle raced towards us cop blockers, who had our cell phones recording. The cruiser stopped, and it’s windows rolled down to reveal two law enforcement officers holding in their hands a shocking sight, almost unbelievable…

…A large cheese and pepperoni pizza.  Watch below:

Yes, two cops decided to buy three anarchists a piping hot pizza (and even three sodas). Us cop blockers were shocked, yet happily accepted considering that no man has ever turned down a free pie. The police were thanked, and before they left reminded us by saying “See? Not all cops are bad.”

Was it BS? Possibly. Could they be saving face? Likely. Is it appreciated? Certainly.

Contrast this with the despicable actions of the Lima Police Department (in Allen County), which not only beats unarmed 19 year-olds unconscious, but also censors those who condemn it.

In honor of the Allen County Patrol, I’ve composed a list of 5 ways any police department can better treat activists and/or cop blockers:

5. Give Us Free Food

Free pizza is awesome, but if you REALLY care about getting along, I will be the first to request a monthly food stipend, not unlike an EBT card. Considering that I don’t have a job and live in my parent’s basement, it’ll be a big help. $200 should do it. Reasonable, I think.

4. Stop Pretending You’re Not a Cop

Whether you are off duty, or trolling the internet, you are not a master of disguise. Try removing your Oakleys or changing your Facebook privacy settings once in a while. Spotting a police officer acting like a citizen is as easy as finding a transvestite in a biker bar. Only the transvestite isn’t going to beat me senseless if I give him a weird look.

3. Read a Book

The most tedious part of cop blocking is constantly having to educate every rank of LEO, and even judges on matters ranging from freedom to grammar. It really gets old explaining complicated subjects like when not to shoot someone, the fact that I own my body, or basic sentence structure. We understand that in some cases you may not be allowed to be intelligent, but that’s hardly an excuse. Wikipedia, guys. Srsly.

2. Enunciate Clearly

The odds are the shit YOU say will be used against you in court, and we make sure of it because our cameras are always rolling. However, often cops appear to have speech impediments. Sometimes you only imagine the orders you are giving, while expecting us to comply like mind-readers. If each of you could slow down and fully-form your thoughts before speaking plainly, transcribing your coercion will be much easier when we are making our videos late at night in between fapping sessions.

1. Quit

This one is serious. There isn’t a better life choice you could make than to stop being a police officer. Give up the extra rights, and give back to your community by not locking them in cages for nonviolent crimes. This way you will never be put in the position to ruin another man or woman’s life again. A good second choice is standing up for solid principles instead of the bureaucracy within your own department. If this the first time you’ve considered this, please see some helpful resources here. Either way, we will welcome you with open arms, and the world will be a better place for it.

-Written by Jordan Freshour

by Virgil Vaduva

15:30 EST Update:

Sandy Brielmaier, a representative of Esther Price Candies spoke with us on the phone and read a prepared statement, which we are paraphrasing as:

Dayton PD asked to cooperate with efforts to keep our community safe and we agreed.  We apologize for any misunderstanding.

Our only objective is to only sell chocolate candies.  We thought we were helping keep the community stay safer.

Original story:

The growth of the police state in the United States is clearly a reality to many of us, but what is also troubling is the willing participation of private companies in the process of continuously violating the constitutional rights of Americans.  One example is Esther Price Candies, a company located in Dayton, Ohio.

Local sources informed us that Esther Price Candies has a special arrangement with the Dayton Police Department which allows for the setup of a checkpoint in front of their company’s headquarters at 1709 Wayne Avenue in Dayton.  The company also allows the Dayton Police Department to use their parking lot and facilities for a staging area and a secondary area of inspection for what Dayton cops consider to be potential criminals.

A Facebook post made by the City of Dayton, Ohio that states their intention to have police conduct a sobriety checkpoint tonight at 10 PM

The use of private property to infringe on the rights of thousands of Americans that happen to travel through the area is something that Esther Price has repeatedly refused to talk about in the past. This reporter has attempted to shed light on why Esther Price Candies continues to partake in the violation of our rights, but was met with a wall of silence.

Today again I attempted to get some answers from Esther Price.  I called the company’s headquarters at their public number (937) 253-2121 and I was put through to Peggy Weaver, who I was informed was the secretary to the company’s owner. Peggy Weaver has also acted as spokesperson for Esther Price in the past, according to reports from the Dayton Daily News.

When I asked why the company plans to allow government employees to use their property for the purpose of checkpoint staging, Weaver answered shortly, “It’s none of your business,” and disconnected the call.

Another reporter tried later in the day to reach a representative from Esther Price for comment, but was again transferred to Weaver, who this time demanded that we not write anything about the company’s involvement in DUI checkpoints.

Peggy Weaver, a representative of Esther Price, refused to answer questions related to DUI checkpoints being staged on company property and hung up on callers inquiring

While Peggy is essentially correct in that it is not the public’s business how a private company uses its own property, it does not bar them from scrutiny, especially when their property is being used to harass, assault and illegally detain American citizens without probable cause or due process.

DUI checkpoints, especially no-refusal check points, have become common in the United States.  Local sources claim that “no-refusal” check points have been setup on Esther Price property in the past, where a judge is on standby ready to issue a warrant for the blood of a person being suspected of being under the influence.  The individual is then strapped on and a nurse who is also present at the checkpoint will forcefully remove blood from the individual to determine if the individual is intoxicated or not.

In addition to the violation of rights guaranteed by the US Constitution against unreasonable search and seizure, DUI / OVI checkpoints are rarely effective at catching intoxicated drivers. Sobriety checkpoints do, however, often generate thousands of dollars in revenue each time they are held, as reported by the Chicago Tribune. This cost to the public does not include overtime pay for the several dozen officers who are frequently stationed at the checkpoints.

Dayton in particular also has a history of going out of its way to break laws in order to generate revenue for the city. Recent Ohio legislation is intended to put a stop to tickets issued by speeding and traffic light cameras without an officer present, but Dayton has challenged this law.

Esther Price Candies Refuses to Answer Questions About Police Abuse on Their Property from Greene County Herald on Vimeo.

Below is footage recorded in 2014 from a checkpoint setup in front of the corporate headquarters of Esther Price.

It is very disturbing that a company that purportedly prides itself in being “all-American” is engaged in these type of activities and even refuses to engage the public in the conversation or answer even basic questions related to unconstitutional activities taking place on their property.

Update @ 3:05 PM:

Due to their continued refusal to address these pressing and important questions, some members of the public have decided to hold the company responsible, calling their publicly-available phone number at  (937) 253-2121 and trying to find answers themselves. Others have taken to the Esther Price on their Facebook page to ask why they continue to allow cops to use their property for questionable purposes.

Members of the public who are upset about Esther Price’s involvement in unconstitutional sobriety checkpoints

A marketing representative from Esther Price has responded to the outrage generated by their collusion with the Dayton Police Department, following a the #BoycottEstherPrice hashtag that is beginning to trend on Facebook.

We will continue to provide updates as the story continues.

This article written by Virgil Vaduva, with additional contributions from David Neely, both journalists for TruthVoice

The Police Department in Dayton Ohio has made national news before, when they stopped hiring police officers with high IQ and high entrance test scores. Now the same department is making news after they raided a business for having a legal gambling machine.

A Dayton neighborhood market says it was the target of a raid that never should have happened. The Belmont Market on Watervliet Avenue in Dayton was raided Monday May 4 when Dayton cops confiscated a gambling machine and $20,000 from the store while investigating possible illegal gambling.

We have now confirmed that the slot machine is perfectly legal. It is registered with the state as a charitable machine raising money legally

The market’s attorney, Jon Paul Rion says in the three hours the store was shut down, the business lost money.

“If its determined the data was not accurate and the police were reckless, then this investigation will take a different tone” said Jon Paul Rion, Belmont Market attorney.

We asked police why they pulled the machine. Officers claimed that the owners did not have the proper paperwork readily available identifying the machine. They claimed that the state license for the machine must be posted in a public place, but they did not cite the law behind this requirement. The cops conducting the raid say they did not find it that day and the owners could not produce it, so they took the machine and the cash found.

The Belmont Market owners have proved the machines are properly documented with the state and resident Dan McQuiston hopes police are held accountable for their mistake.

“It just seems like things happen and they (the police) don’t necessarily get the consequences pushed upon them” said Dan McQuiston, Belmont Market patron.

On May 4, the Dayto Police Department made public news announcing that they “successfully shut down an illegal gambling operation,” but today the machine and the cash were returned to the business.

No official apology was made to the public and no other explanation was provided from the Dayton Police Department.

Recently I’ve been wondering why the mainstream media is so terrible at reporting accurate or concerning details of supposed criminal activity. There never seems to be any real ‘story.’ No background information, no character description, no follow-up – just vague details in politically-correct language. With so much controversy between law enforcement officers and civilians recently, why wouldn’t a reporter, editor, or publisher want to get to know the whole story? When people die, are arrested, or stolen from, it’s a tragedy. Fellow citizens deserve to know the humanity of it all – right?

On Saturday, March 14^th, I was able to see some of the bigger picture.

That evening, the local mainstream news in Dayton, Ohio reported on a police stand-off in West Carrollton, a neighboring suburb. I paid particular attention to it because earlier the same day, another standoff had occurred in Dayton. The ‘breaking’ story I saw on my News Feed read,

“Officers from multiple departments are assisting West Carrollton police at the scene, including the [SWAT team].

A man inside the home reportedly has access to weapons and body armor, according to dispatch reports.”

A friend who is a local journalist for several alternative news outlets encouraged me to go and inquire further, as the initial report was too ambiguous. Having multiple encounters with police officers before, I knew that a press release so vague could mean anything. I’ve seen friends arrested for bogus charges, only to see him/her made into a ‘bad guy’ later on. The first thing I thought was, “Is the man in that home going to be ok?”

Since I lived nearby, I grabbed my phone and went to the scene of the standoff. After briefly talking to a group of neighbors who were standing by the blocked-off street, I proceeded to walk up the half block to talk to one of the officers. Immediately I was approached by a sergeant who strutted menacingly toward me, telling me to leave. I asked him who I could talk to instead, and was given a made-up answer. I walked back and a (much friendlier) volunteer firefighter repeated the same information I already had.

About 30 minutes later, the standoff ended with the man being arrested, and no shots fired. As the mainstream media was preparing an interview with the lieutenant, the same sergeant who asked me to leave the scene earlier came down the hill and starting chatting up the locals and media personnel like he was Barney Fife, while ignoring me, the one with a camera pointed at him. I then watched the reporter interview the lieutenant and was appalled. There was no meaningful questions being asked about the man in custody, no concern whether or not the arrest was legitimate, and no skepticism at the necessity of sending multiple police departments and a SWAT team to surround a suburban home. It was frankly pathetic.

The lieutenant said the man had called a suicide hotline, and threatened to harm himself. After a tip by the hotline, West Carrollton police sent a patrol to the home to conduct a welfare check. When the man refused to allow the police entry, the other units were dispatched. The initial report of weapons and body armor appeared to be a farce, as the “peace” officers had now acquired a search warrant and were looking inside the residence for weapons, unsure if there were any to begin with. When asked what charges were to be filed, the lieutenant only specified “inducing panic.”

I could prattle on about the stupidity of arresting a man for “inducing panic” when it was law enforcement who sent out an armored truck full of men with assault rifles. I could take this opportunity to chastise the West Carrollton Police Department for imprisoning a man who had not committed a crime. I could mention the psychological harm jail could cause to a person in need of counseling or medicine for mental sickness. But that’s not why I’m writing this.

I’m writing this because the world needs to know their reporters, news anchors, editors, and publishers are cheating them. When information is presented to us so casually, so methodically, so absent of detail, it enables us to become calloused and indifferent to our fellow man. It is the excuse people need to scapegoat innocent victims for their own problems and shortcomings. It fuels the inexplicable hatred for the John Crawfords, Tamir Rices, and Eric Garners of the world when they deserve justice so badly. When humanity is omitted from these tragedies, when aggressive journalism is replaced with press releases, when our “news” is nothing more than a police department write-up designed to omit law enforcement accountability, your local and national news persons rob the rest us of dignity.

The state’s law enforcement agencies exist by fiat, not for justice. Likewise, mainstream media exists for revenue and power, not news. Fortunately, we are all the solution to this. Any one of us with some amount of confidence and a smartphone can change the face of news and law enforcement as we know it. Alternative media is the solution, and all of us are the journalists. It’s no longer enough to share the right Facebook posts anymore, but instead we must get our hands dirty and risk something to show the rest of the world the humanity – and truth – of every encounter a police officer has with a citizen. This is the only way to stop the injustice and collusion of the police and media together.

I regret not performing my own interview with the lieutenant, but I have to start somewhere. It has been a long process in my life to go from a LEO apologist to where I am now. However, I would not have made it to this point without the right people pushing me to be a voice for truth, and it is not going to stop here. I encourage you to do the same. We all must recognize that if any of us can accurately see the problem, then we have no choice but to apply the solution ourselves.

Go out there and record the cops. Buy a police scanner and dispatch yourself to protect the lives of others. Get connected with like-minded people and work together whenever possible. Mainstream media is as much Leviathan as your local PD, and together we can cut the head off the beast.