Angel Farmer wanted to be admitted into a La Salle County courthouse and security, grappling with COVID-19 restrictions, wouldn’t let her in with her phone. That’s not disputed.
What is disputed is whether Farmer, 31, of Peru, then made contact with security officers, incurring two counts of battery and one count of obstructing justice, all misdemeanors.
Assistant La Salle County State’s Attorney Kelley Porter said Tuesday at the start of Farmer’s jury trial that video footage showed Farmer “drove her shoulder” into Deputy Doug Pastirik. Deputy Jim Knoblauch was injured on March 8, 2021, as Farmer tried to force her way inside.
“She [Farmer] is a self-proclaimed crusader of justice,” Porter told a jury, adding later, “but if you work for the government, her form of justice comes in the form of harassment, bullying and badgering.”
Farmer and her lawyer argued the criminal charges are retaliatory and filed “to intimidate her into silence.”
Defense attorney Wayne Slaughter said Farmer riled up authorities by conducting videotaped public access checks, in keeping with her First Amendment rights, “and, as you imagine, she’s not very popular.”
“But you have a right to know, and she has a right to bring that information to you,” Slaughter said. “They don’t want people like you and me knowing what’s going on behind closed doors.”
The jury’s decision might come down to the numerous video recordings. Tuesday morning, jurors saw surveillance footage from the La Salle County Sheriff’s Office that showed confrontations between Farmer, her brother Jacob Farmer (he was previously convicted of misdemeanors) and court security.
State and defense intend to show recordings from cellular telephones. These, the defense alleges, will show intransigent public officials refusing to provide reasonable public access. The prosecution argues the Farmers flagrantly disregarded courthouse rules and bears responsibility for the ensuing struggles and contact.
• Shaw Local News Network will provide periodic updates as the trial progresses. A verdict is expected later this week.
