Man to file first lawsuit following RNC

An anti-war protester who claims to have been treated violently by police during the Republican National Convention announced Friday a $250,000 lawsuit against the City of St. Paul and possibly others.
Mick Kelly , 51, of Minneapolis, claims to have been shot with a “high-velocity marking projectile” during a demonstration organized by the Anti-War Committee on the fourth day of the RNC.
Kelly described the alleged attack as both “surprising and incredibly painful.”
Police tore down a banner he was carrying during the protests before shooting him with the projectile, Kelly said.
He was later arrested for unlawful assembly.
“What happened to me was wrong and what happened to other protesters at the RNC is something that should be condemned,” he said.
Kelly’s attorney, Ted Dooley, accused police at the RNC of failing to respect the rights of protesters.
“What you saw was a trampling and a shredding of the First Amendment,” he said.
St. Paul City Attorney John Choi said in a statement he didn’t know the specifics of the claims but would review them when he received them.
“We have full faith in the civil justice system and we are confident that all of the facts will support our belief that the police acted appropriately in this case,” he said.
St. Paul Mayor Chris Coleman had already announced an independent review of RNC actions to be conducted by former U.S. Attorney Thomas Heffelfinger and former Assistant U.S. Attorney Andy Luger.
Both Kelly and his lawyer expressed disdain toward internal review procedures in St. Paul.
“I have no faith in the internal affairs process of the St. Paul police department,” Kelly said.
Kelly’s arrest on Sept. 4 wasn’t his first encounter with the law.
On June 5 he was arrested for promoting anti-war rallies outside of a Barack Obama event in St. Paul. Kelly has another lawsuit pending regarding the incident .
Dooley said the lawsuit involving the RNC has yet to be filed, but will be within the next few weeks.
“We fired the shot across the bow,” he said. “They know we’re here.”