The University Judiciary Committee will hold what could be its first-ever open trial this Thursday, Committee Chair Angela Carrico announced last night.
The trial is slated to begin this Thursday at 7 p.m. in the trial room on the fourth floor of Newcomb Hall.
The accused is Rich Felker, a fourth-year Graduate Arts and Sciences student who was arrested for attempting to chain himself to a banister inside the Rotunda during a speech by Chinese Ambassador Yang Jiech last June.
Felker was arrested by University Police and charged with disorderly conduct and an attempt to participate in and/or incite a riot.
Felker also was charged with violating three UJC standards of conduct: intentional disruption or obstruction of University activities, disorderly conduct and failure to comply with directions of University officials.
Felker is a member of Students for a Free Tibet, a group that campaigns for the release of Tenzin Delek Rinpoche, a Buddhist monk scheduled to be executed by the Chinese government. The group also opposes the Chinese occupation of Tibet.
Felker said he feels the charges against him are unreasonable because he was exercising his right to freedom of speech in a non-violent manner.
"The most important thing is that I feel that this is a freedom of speech case," Felker said. "This was a very unique opportunity for me to make a visible statement in a peaceful yet powerful way right in front of the Chinese ambassador himself."
Felker said he opted to have an open trial because he sees it as an opportunity for people to learn about the gravity of the situation in Tibet.
"In a case like this I feel the most important thing is that the public learn about the continued repression in Tibet and that the public hear there are people willing to take great risks to themselves to stand up for the Tibetan people and their non-violent struggle," he said.
While UJC members would not discuss specifics of the case, Carrico said the trial will not deviate from the usual proceedings. She outlined, however, specific regulations the UJC set for the open trial.
Cameras and cell phones will be prohibited, and spectators will not be permitted to re-enter the trial room should they leave. In addition, any student who interferes with the proceedings of the trial will be removed immediately from the trial room.
UJC will distribute passes for the trial beginning at 9:30 a.m. tomorrow morning in Newcomb Hall room 468. Approximately 40 to 50 passes are available, and only one pass will be distributed per person.
Felker said he anticipates a large audience at the trial and that he will be encouraging friends, members of Students for a Free Tibet and the roughly 25 to 30 members of the Charlottesville Tibetan community to attend his trial.
In addition to the historical significance of his trial, Felker said he thinks the trial is important because if it goes smoothly it will highlight the UJC's ability to carry out its mission as a fair judicial body for the University.
"I believe in this tradition of a fair and public trial," he said. "Whatever the outcome of this case, I have no regrets about what happened last spring and I will continue to stand up for the rights of the Tibetan people until Tibet is free."
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