A pro-Palestinian protester was found guilty by a Lane County jury last week and sentenced on Thursday to 60 hours of community service and 18 months of probation for second-degree disorderly conduct.
The sentencing marks the conclusion to the first of several trials for individuals arrested in April on charges of walking into the southbound lanes of Interstate 5 in Eugene to block traffic in support of Palestinians.
Now dubbed "A15," thousands of people across the nation participated in demonstrations meant to disrupt the U.S. economy on April 15, Tax Day, and call for officials to stop supplying arms to Israel and end the siege in Gaza. The local branch in Eugene has remained active in response to the arrests and charges brought to more than 52 people over allegations that they walked onto the roadway. Last week, "a15eugene" on Instagram asked protesters to "pack the court" for the first trial.
Samuel Yergler was found guilty on Oct. 4 for "unlawfully and recklessly" creating a risk of public inconvenience, annoyance and alarm by obstructing vehicular or pedestrian traffic on I-5. Yergler has participated in anti-war demonstrations for years. They said during a testimony Thursday morning that they have been arrested for protests throughout the U.S., including states such as California, Nevada, Chicago, Arizona and Maine.
Yergler is also the co-plaintiff in a federal lawsuit filed against the city of Eugene that challenges the constitutionality of its park rules on behalf of the city's homeless population.
A memo from the Lane County District Attorney's Office on Monday recommended to the court that Yergler be sentenced to 18 months of bench probation with all standard conditions, plus special conditions including a $2,500 fine and 30 days in custody at the Lane County Jail with credit for time served and participation in alternative incarceration programs. The maximum incarceration period for a Class B misdemeanor is 180 days.
"The section of highway that the defendant assisted in blocking serves as a crucial piece of infrastructure that Lane County residents heavily rely on daily to respond to their individual emergency needs, as well as to carry out their daily personal and professional business," the DA's office wrote in the memo.
According to court documents, Yergler cited estimates of "potentially $20,000 of goods delayed" when referring to the economic damage caused on April 15. The DA's office says this estimate does not account for workers delayed getting to their jobs, the parents unable to drop their children off at their functions or vital appointments missed by people who were stranded behind the blockade.
"Maximum penalties are very rare for crimes of this nature, and the A15 defendants feel that the DA is recommending the law be applied in an unprecedently harsh way," said Penny Royale, a spokesperson for the A15 group of defendants.
Pro-Palestinian protesters support Yergler at trial over Eugene I-5 blockade
Per a statement of facts as part of the state's motion, Yergler was driving a Dodge Caravan on I-5 when they, along with their "associates," positioned their respective cars so that they were the lead cars in all three lanes of southbound travel along the stretch of highway just north of Harlow Road in Eugene.
"In a coordinated effort, the Defendant (Yergler), along with (their) associates, activated their hazard lights and began to slow down in unison," eventually bringing traffic to a complete stop on the Interstate. Court documents further detailed that with traffic having come to a stop, people started to gather on the western shoulder of I-5 to wait for Yergler and other "associates" to block oncoming cars. Some of the protesters then entered the lanes holding signs that read "No Justice No Peace," "Free Palestine," "Zionism Is Antisemitic," "Stop Arming Israel" and several other similar messages, along with Palestinian flags.
Yergler was then approached by OSP troopers, who contacted them behind the wheel of their Dodge Caravan, according to the statement of facts. After "several admonishments," Yergler exited the vehicle and was taken into custody.
Yergler and their counsel intended to use a "Choices of Evils" defense in court, which the state filed a motion to reject.
According to Oregon law , a Choice of Evils defense is typically used in court to protect a defendant from criminal responsibility when the conduct is "necessary as an emergency measure to avoid an imminent public or private injury" and the "threatened injury is of such gravity that, according to ordinary standards of intelligence and morality, the desirability and urgency of avoiding the injury clearly outweigh the desirability of avoiding injury sought to be prevented by the statute defining the offense in issue."
Lane County Circuit Court Judge Bradley Cascagnette granted the state's motion to prevent the defendant from using the Choice of Evils defense in the trial because they could not prove their actions were necessary or that it was reasonable for them to believe the threatened injury was greater than the potential injury of their illegal actions.
Yergler said they were unsurprised by the outcome.
"Obviously, I'm not happy about it, but I kind of was expecting it," Yergler said. "It's going to make it a little bit harder for me in the trial."
More than 20 individuals attended the trial in support of Yergler. Apart from two warnings from the judge — one to not speak during witness testimony and one to not nod yes or no to the witnesses while they were on the stand — the audience-filled trial went uninterrupted. Yergler said they were encouraged by the attendees.
"It was really helpful seeing so many familiar faces," Yergler said. "A lot of people here, I know. So that was just a bolster for my spirits."
More trials to come over I-5 blockade, response from fellow protesters
While Yergler's trial regarding A15 has concluded, there are still 18 others who will be going to court in the next year.
At least 52 people were arrested on April 15. Many were ordered to complete a diversion program to have their cases dismissed in court. Those who agreed were ordered to complete 40 hours of community service within a given time frame and provide written, verifiable proof that they've completed said service. They are also required to pay a $100 program fee. The other 19 defendants have scheduled trial dates with a six-person jury, though it's unclear what their roles were in the A15 protest.
Lauren Regan, a staff attorney and executive director of the Civil Liberties Defense Center, is Yergler's counsel. She said CLDC will also represent 11 other defendants who were arrested on April 15. Regan said Yergler's ruling and sentencing have no bearing on future trials. She said Rebecca MacFife's next trial is set for Friday.
"She gets her own jury trial, start from square one again," Regan said.
Alex Safron, who said he has been a longtime Jewish anti-Zionist activist, was one of the three witnesses who testified for the defense during Yergler's trial. Safron has spent over 15 years documenting "activities of the Jewish National Fund" and their role in the "ongoing ethnic cleansing project in Palestine."
"It's important to me because I'm Jewish, and until Judaism as a religion can be extracted from the idea that Zionism, the goal to create a Jewish-only ethno-state can succeed, then I know it to be true that lives will continue to be lost for that effort, Palestinian lives," Safron said. "I find it paramount to heed the calls of Palestinians to people in the United States to take this matter into our hands since it's our tax dollars that are directly killing their family members. As a Jewish American, those are the calls that I hear first. Those are the words that matter the most."
Haleigh Kochanski is a breaking news and public safety reporter for The Register-Guard. You may reach her at HKochanski@gannett.com .
Miranda Cyr reports on education for The Register-Guard. You can contact her at mcyr@registerguard.com or find her on Twitter @mirandabcyr .
This article originally appeared on Register-Guard: Eugene protester found guilty in case over pro-Palestinian blockade of Interstate 5
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