WAKE COUNTY – “The Orange County Five” are expected to appear in a Wake County courthouse Wednesday morning regarding their arrests during a Moral Monday protest last summer in Raleigh, according to their lawyer Mark Dorosin.
The Orange County Five are made up former Mayor of Carrboro Mark Chilton, Carrboro Alderpersons Damon Seils, Michelle Johnson and Sammy Slade, and Chapel Hill Town Council member Donna Bell.
They were arrested on June 3, 2013, during the event called “Mega Moral Monday.”
Dorosin, who is also an Orange County Commissioner and civil rights attorney, said they are prepared to testify, but he will move for a dismissal of all charges against them.
More than 900 protesters were arrested at the state capital during the weekly summer demonstrations against the policies of the North Carolina General Assembly, charged with crimes of trespassing, failure to disperse, and holding signs inside the capital building, which is prohibited.
The verdicts issued against the Moral Monday protesters who have already been tried have ranged from guilty, to acquittals, to plea deals.
Following his release from jail in June, Chilton told WCHL News that the group of elected leaders were peaceful and complied with the rules, except refusing to leave the building when the General Assembly police asked them to exit. They said that Article I, Section XII, of the State Constitution of North Carolina, allows citizens to redress their grievances with their representatives.
The Orange County Five are slated to appear at 9:00 a.m., but Dorosin said the trails of other Moral Monday protesters from the previous day might push back their appearance.
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