IMPORTANT Message for WTO arrestees (at 1st & Broad)

Please help get information out to folks arrested in the afternoon of Dec 1 1999 at 1st & Broad during the WTO protests in Seattle.

As the attorneys explain below, the judge agreed to the settlement so now people must TURN IN THEIR PAPERWORK BY JUNE 22nd to be included in the class and receive the $$ they are due. It's no longer just a possibility, this is happening and the time frame is short so please help now.

Yes, NOW is the time to work those networks to get this information out to folks who might be out of the loop. This is no small task and the attorneys can only do so much.
We know folks.
We have websites on which we can post announcements that arrestees might see (hint hint)
We have the networks and, without them, many will never know that the city settled their case ...

LET'S USE THESE NETWORKS TO GET THE WORD OUT.
TELL FOLKS TO CONTACT the attorneys (info below) so they can send them forms to complete. NOW is the time to do it since they will only have until JUNE 22nd to return the forms.

Wouldn't it be great is we could get everyone arrested at 1st & Broad to participate!!!!

It would also be great if folks would cc me their information so I can reach them better next time, but that's up to them.
... AND anyone arrested during WTO but not at this location should also get their current info to me so we can reach them better if the other case ever gets resolved.

In solidarity,
Erica
Jane WTO #890
can [at] drizzle.com
206-568-7110

P.S. If you yourself were arrested at 1st & Broad and you want to participate but haven't received your letter yet, definitely get your current mailing address to the lawyers... ASAP ...so they can send it to you.

PPS. No apologies this time for duplicate posts. :-} If you are getting this multiple times, it just means you are still accessible this way. BUT many many other folks aren't; I'd like every arrestee to get this at least the one time they need so they'll know what's up.
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Message from Tyler Weaver, attorney who has worked on this and made it happen!

If you could distribute this message to your email list, I would appreciate it.

This is a message from the primary attorney on the litigation against the City of Seattle over the WTO. For those arrested at First Avenue and Broad Streets on December 1, 1999, there have been two important, recent developments in the case.

1. Judge Pechman finally gave her preliminary approval to the settlement reached in January. As a result, today we are mailing, to all of the class members for whom we have addresses, a notice explaining the details of the settlement and a claim form approved by the court. If you have given us your address, you should be receiving this sometime next week. To receive a settlement award, you MUST a) be a member of the class arrested at First and Broad, and b) return your claim no later than June 22, 2004. If you were arrested at First and Broad but do not receive a notice in the mail within 10 days, please either email us (at Allison [at] hagens-berman.com ) or call us at 1-877-694-0660 (press 9, then 7).

If you are returning a claim form but were arrested and booked as a John or Jane Doe, I strongly encourage you to provide us with whatever other information you have that indicates you are a class member, such as your processing number or a copy of your processing papers.

2. On our motion, Judge Pechman also recently ordered the City to seal the arrest records for all of those arrested at First and Broad, and furthermore to remove all records of the arrests from the databases it uses to give information to outside agencies. This should help considerably in clearing the records of those who were arrested at First and Broad, although even after the City cleans its databases, there may be some residual effect in national databases that have the old information. We had requested that the court order the City to inform any such databases, but the order did not go that far. A copy of the court's order is attached to this email.

For those arrested inside the city's no-protest zone, not at First and Broad, we continue to await the decision of the Ninth Circuit. We hope to eventually be able to send a similar email telling you that we have also recovered on your behalf and that your records have also been sealed. For now, all we can do is wait and hope the court rules in our favor.

Tyler Weaver
Hagens Berman LLP