FBI And DHS Intimidating Protesters (Again)

I've got a copy of an indictment that we all need to talk about! "Cop City" is a $118 million 85-acre police training facility built in Atlanta. They bulldozed a forest to create it in the middle of a Black community. Cop City wasn't wanted and it wasn't needed, so there were large groups of protesters who did everything they could to stop it because the government didn't care about their petitions or concerns. Police shot dead a peaceful protester while in his tent, and in 2023 Georgia filed RICO charges against 61 activists and even said the bail funds were part of a racketeering operation. Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr called the protestors "domestic terrorists and violent criminals." All of those ridiculous RICO charges eventually got dismissed.

Samuel Tunick is an Atlanta musician and a Cop City activist. He recently visited a foreign country, and before he came back to the USA he wiped clean his Pixel cell phone. When he got to the airport in January to re-enter the US, CBP agents detained him and tried to force him to give them full access to his phone. They couldn't find what they were looking for, so he was released.

On December 2nd, Tunick was pulled over in Atlanta where he was asked to step out of his car because of an issue with his taillight. He was at that point arrested by DHS and FBI. After his first night in jail, he learned during his court appearance that they had obtained an indictment from a federal grand jury. He was charged with one count of destruction of evidence because he had wiped his phone.

This is a baseless case that must not stand! The government is still clearly trying to intimidate protesters through these ridiculous bogus prosecutions. Many people carry "burner" phones when they cross international borders because of the repressive laws in other countries. It seems now that the USA has become one of those repressive countries.

The Indictment reads: "On or about January 24, 2025, in the Northern District of Georgia, the defendant, SAMUEL TUNICK, before and during the search for and seizure of property by Customs and Border Patrol Tactical Terrorism Response Team Supervisory Officer L.C., a person authorized to make such search and seizure, did knowingly destroy, damage, waste, dispose of, and otherwise take any action to delete the digital contents of a Google Pixel cellular phone, for the purpose of preventing and impairing the Government's lawful authority to take said property into its custody and control, in violation of Title 18, Untied States Code, Section 2232(a)."

I'll be following this case closely as it progresses through the court system and I'll post updates as I get them. There isn't much on the court docket yet, but here's a link to it: https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/71998357/united-states-v-tunick/

Sam is out of jail on bond, but now he is subject to random visits from parole officers and drug tests. I'm hoping a rights group will take this case on pro bono publico, but for now he is still trying to raise $20K for his legal fees to fight this case, so if you're able to contribute here is a link to his GiveSendGo account.