Officially starting a rumor that there will be a sobriety roadblock somewhere in Manchester on Friday March 28th. I got the news second-hand from a Manchester journalist and haven't seen confirmation yet.
I have a 8-foot sign that says "roadblock ahead", anyone want to help me alert drivers of adverse road conditions?
That's a great idea. I might try to be in town for this.
I should be able to help out.
I can probably help out.
The Manchester Daily Express comes out on the 27th and is putting an anti-checkpoint story on the front page. A few nhfreers got interviewed for the story, because we protested a past roadblock (http://newhampshireunderground.com/forum/index.php?topic=8669.0).
We are getting publicity, what should we do with it?
go to Disney World? ;D
Quote from: TackleTheWorld on March 22, 2008, 05:24 PM NHFT
We are getting publicity, what should we do with it?
Pffft. Too easy.
Make sure the URL "nhfree.com" gets in front of as many NH residents as possible.
Is it on that sign?
good idea!
I was surprised that the New Hampshire Underground stickers that were handed out at the last MVP meeting don't have the URL on them.
Quote from: dalebert on March 23, 2008, 10:18 AM NHFT
I was surprised that the New Hampshire Underground stickers that were handed out at the last MVP meeting don't have the URL on them.
Damn hippies!
I can probably help out. Would like to meet some other NHFree'rs now that I moved here.
Quote from: dalebert on March 23, 2008, 10:18 AM NHFT
I was surprised that the New Hampshire Underground stickers that were handed out at the last MVP meeting don't have the URL on them.
When "New Hampshire Underground" is searched on google the first 3 links lead to nhfree. Of course having the website would simplify the process.
http://www.google.com/search?q=new+hampshire+underground&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a (http://www.google.com/search?q=new+hampshire+underground&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a)
I have signs in my vehicle against checkpoints and one reading NHfree.com
if you run into me in concord or murphy's on 3/25 let me know and i can lend them to you for the friday checkpoint protests since i probably wont be there
I originally had the bumper stickers made for the newspaper, which was just going to use the newhampshireunderground.com URL.
Yesterday's manchester daily express (http://www.manchexpress.com/) has the sobriety checkpoint story on the front page, an interview with Dave R. too.
Dang it, me and my sign can't make it into town tonight. But if anyone is in the vicinity of Elm St. between Bridge and Queen City later this evening. You can call into porc 413-0411 with the location of the roadblock and I will alert bartenders in the area.
Do we have an approximate time for this? I assume it'll be around when the bars empty out; I think the last one was 00:00–02:00. I'm not going to go stand out there protesting this alone, but I'll go reconnoiter Elm St. and call in whatever I find.
Porc411 call from Johnny(?) says the sobriety checkpoint is on the bridge st. bridge in Manchester. Called 10 bars with the alert. Hope no one gets kidnapped by the highwaymen tonight.
That was me.
There were four checkpoints set up, one in each direction on both the Bridge St. bridge and Queen City Ave. bridge. In both cases they seemed to be trying to take advantage of the lay of the road to make it impossible to avoid—the curvature of the bridge hides the checkpoint on your side of the road until you're traveling down the one-way side of the bridge with an island in between you and the other lane. So much for the nonsense in the Manchester Express about them giving people opportunity to turn around in order to avoid the checkpoints.
They were also patrolling Elm St. quite a bit, although I'm not sure if that's related or the usual; there are always a lot of cops in Manchester doing nothing other than driving up and down Elm St.. I guess this is why the city government thinks we need more police—the ones we have seem to all be busy driving in circles. Up and down Elm St., I saw a handful of marked cruisers, one of their marked SUVs, and also a white late-model Chevy, unmarked, with a standard civilian license plate, 789 ****. (The only reason I know this one was a police car is because it was in the process of stopping someone, lights flashing, as I walked past it.)
All of the other streets off of Elm St. appeared to be clear, so people should know in the future to use those to route around the Polizeiprüfpunkte.
Some dude coming out of a bar shouted, "Yeah! Fuck the system!" as I walked past him—I'm not sure what that was all about, since other than having my FSP pin on my jacket, I was doing nothing overtly noticeable.
We can also thank Manchester's finest for causing at least one car accident: When crossing back over the Bridge St. bridge, eastbound, there was a car that had skidded through the checkpoint and slammed into the guard rail, pretty thoroughly crushing the front of the car and blowing the airbags. It didn't look like anyone had been hurt fortunately. Presumably the driver skidded on the snow and ice all over the road out there tonight when trying to stop suddenly for the checkpoint. Or perhaps he actually was drunk, but only got into an accident as a result of suddenly coming upon four police cars, lights flashing, and half a dozen men standing in the street waving at people.
Wow, excellent work, Jeremy.
Thanks for the first-hand reports.
Good job, Jeremy and Lauren! I love the idea of contacting bar owners. I wonder if we can get one of the FM rock stations to also announce the 5th Amendment violations over the air when we discover them.
A casual reader of the news would think that drunk drivers are the most dangerous, evil wrongdoers in the city by the amount of resources thrown at them. Oh, and parking meter violators too, of course.
Note to burglars, arsonists, assaulters: the best time to commit your crimes is when the cops are hosting a traffic-stopping party on the other side of town.
so let me get this straight they sell you the liquor on the highway and then set up their nazis on the corner to arrest you and wreck your life cause you drank the booze they sold you.
leave it to the state. Next thing you know they'll be selling scratch tickets and arrest you when you try to collect .
what a fucking joke the system is. Everyone trying to get rich off the little guy who's barely surviving.
good job jeremy, thanx for the info. this is why i stay home.
Quote from: jose on March 31, 2008, 11:11 AM NHFT
so let me get this straight they sell you the liquor on the highway and then set up their nazis on the corner to arrest you and wreck your life cause you drank the booze they sold you.
:laughing4:
Quote from: Taxinator on March 29, 2008, 07:16 AM NHFT
I wonder if we can get one of the FM rock stations to also announce the 5th Amendment violations over the air when we discover them.
... brilliant!!
Tomorrow is the public participation meeting (http://www.manchesternh.gov/calendar/default.asp?month=3&day=31&year=2008&view=3147&categoryname=Official%20Meetings) at City Hall, at 19:00. Anyone in Manchester want to come speak against this stupid checkpoint?
The special budget proposal meeting was held tonight, and Guinta wants to raise the police budget by 4%. (The rest of his budget was decent—he's cutting public school funding, considering enrollment has dropped 10%, and he's actually working around a $13M revenue shortfall without raising taxes... but raising the police budget when it's clear they already have too much free time on their hands is insane.)
I'm going to be there to speak in favor of the good points on this budget, and might mention the checkpoint, but it would be ideal to split up concerns so each speaker concentrates on one issue.
Might be worth posting the City Hall meeting on the politically-oriented forum...
Done (http://www.nhliberty.org/forum/index.php?topic=621.0). Although since this is more protesting some stupidassery done by the city, than trying to rally people to vote against it, I thought it was worth mentioning here, too.
Here's the police press release about the checkpoint, including their explanation of the accident that happened. The blanks are the names and addresses of the three people they arrested, which I removed because I see no need for such information to be publicized:—
QuoteCity of Manchester
Police Department
Ralph Miller Public Safety Center
351 Chestnut Street Manchester, New Hampshire 03101-2294
(603) 668-8711 Business Phone
(603) 668-8941 Main Fax
(603) 628-6137 Administrative Offices Fax
John A. Jaskolka
Chief
A NATIONALLY ACCREDITED LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY
Internet: manchesterpd.com
E-mail: MPD@ci.manchester.nh.us
DATE OF RELEASE
Monday, March 31, 2008
SOBRIETY CHECKPOINT NETS 106 STOPS, THREE DWI ARRESTS
On Friday evening, 03-28-08, the Manchester Police Department conducted a sobriety checkpoint on the westbound span of the Bridge St Bridge. Officers at the checkpoint conducted 106 motor vehicle stops, resulting in the issuance of four summonses and three warnings for motor vehicle violations. There were also three drivers arrested on DWI charges.
On 03-28-08 at 11:25 PM, a vehicle stopped at the checkpoint was operated by:
********
********
********
Goffstown, NH
Based on further investigation during this stop, ***** was placed under arrest for OUIL.
On 03-29-08 at about 12:45 AM, officers at the checkpoint spotted a vehicle going eastbound over the bridge St Bridge. The officers noted the vehicle accelerating rapidly as it proceeded easterly across the bridge and estimated its speed at approximately 70 mph.
An officer at the checkpoint got into a cruiser and followed after the vehicle, finding it crashed into a guard rail at the east end of the bridge at the off-ramp to Spring St. The driver was identified as:
********
********
********
City of Manchester
Based on further investigation by officers, ***** was placed under arrest and charged with Aggravated OUIL.
On 03-29-08 at 1:15 AM, another vehicle was stopped at the checkpoint and the driver identified as:
********
********
********
City of Manchester
Based on further investigation by officers, ***** was placed under arrest and charged with OUIL.
Quote from: J'raxis 270145 on March 31, 2008, 07:28 PM NHFT
Guinta wants to raise the police budget by 4%.
Typical conservative.
Quote from: dalebert on April 01, 2008, 10:52 AM NHFT
Quote from: J'raxis 270145 on March 31, 2008, 07:28 PM NHFT
Guinta wants to raise the police budget by 4%.
Typical conservative.
Apparently the Manchester PD endorsed Guinta, so now he's returning the favor.
From the 2008-04-03
Manchester Express (http://www.manchexpress.com/):—
QuoteCheckpoint follow-up
Manchester police on Friday, March 28, conducted a sobriety checkpoint on the west side of the Bridge Street bridge, making 106 stops and arresting three people they charged with driving under the influence, a police report said.
According to an eyewitness account by Manchester resident Jeremy Olson, police conducted checkpoints on both the Queen City Avenue Bridge and the Bridge Street bridge. Police say they only a conducted a checkpoint on Bridge Street.
Olson also said — counter to what police had said they would do last week — the checkpoints were set up to make it impossible for drivers to turn around, "In both cases, they seemed to be trying to take advantage of the lay of the road," Olson said. "The curvature of the bridge hides the checkpoint on your side of the road until you're traveling down the one-way side of the bridge with an island in between you and the other lane."
At about 11:25 p.m., on Friday, March 28, police at the Bridge Street checkpoint stopped Larry Brunelle, 56, of 18 Oakwood Lane in Goffstown, and charged him with operating under the influence after conducting an investigation, the police report says.
At about 12:45 a.m., on Saturday, March 29, police spotted a vehicle heading east over the bridge that sped up to about 70 miles per hour, the report says. An officer at the checkpoint chased the vehicle, which he found crashed into a guard rail at the off-ramp to Spring Street, the report says.
Police conducted an investigation at the scene of the crash, and subsequently arrested the driver, Kevin Coventry, 21, of 21 W. River Road, and charged him with an aggravated count of operating under the influence, the report says.
At about 1:15 a.m. on Saturday, March 29, police at the checkpoint stopped Michael Palumbo, 25, of 478 Notre Dame Ave., and charged him with operating under the influence after conducting an investigation, the police report says.