To hear the story the state’s attorney tells, this is a case of mighty versus meek.
The defendants say the charges against them are fabricated and that they are the real victims–manhandled and detained by a squad of goony McCormick Place security guards. “Look at us, then look at them, and you’ll see how ludicrous this is,” says Segal, a Chicago public school teacher. “Those guards are huge; they could crush us like we were ants.”
Best of Chicago voting is live now. Vote for your favorites »
Segal, as well as John Donahue, executive director of the Chicago Coalition for the Homeless, and several allies (including two nuns) were there to “engage Gingrich in a dialogue.” In other words, they planned to stand and denounce Gingrich when he started talking.
By the time Segal rose, Donahue and another activist were on their feet, voices raised. “I barely remember what I said,” says Segal. “Mostly I stood there, showing my support for the others. At one point Gingrich looked at me and shrugged, as if to say “Why take your anger out on me? I’m not to blame.”‘
So?
“It was very threatening. I was screaming ‘Let me go!’ I didn’t know what to do; nothing like this had ever happened to me. Frost was really going nuts. He kept saying, ‘How dare you talk about my genitalia’ and ‘I’m gonna charge you with trespassing. I’m gonna charge you with solicitation.’ Then he said, ‘Look at this scratch on my arm, you scratched me. I’m gonna charge you with battery.’ I didn’t know what he was talking about. I didn’t scratch him.”
In late August the state’s attorney released a pretrial document that says Miller “asked [Segal] three times to leave the premises to which the defendant responded each time, “I am not leaving.’ . . . On the escalator on the way to the security control room [Segal] told Mr. Miller ‘I am sorry I should have left.’ . . . In the security-control room [Segal] told Mr. Miller and the Chicago Police that he did not have the appropriate authorization (show badge) to enter the area in which Mr. Gingrich was speaking.”
