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Smith arrested again by the same MIT cop
The same MIT police officer who falsely arrested Aimee Smith for handing out leaflets on graduation day, attacked and arrested her again in front of the MIT student center.
Smith, a 2002 graduate of MIT, was a 2003 Green-Rainbow Cambridge city council candidate.
Around 1:00 PM on Wednesday Aug 25, Smith was speaking with MIT police officers outside the student center. She says that she engaged the officers about First Amendment rights. Officer Joseph D'Amelio asked her whether she remembered him from their last encounter on Commencement day.
At last June's MIT commencement ceremony, D'Amelio arrested Smith on Memorial drive for handing out flyers against the planned Boston Bio-terror lab. MIT subsequently dropped the charges and President Vest acknowledged that MIT had no policy prohibiting distribution of leaflets.
Smith said, "this past Wednesday, officer D'Amelio attempted to intimidate me by taunting me about the fact that he had arrested me before."
While walking away from the three officers, she says, she heard D'Amelio say: "I should arrest you again".
"I responded by asking whether this was a threat and then expressed my view of police officers who make such threats. D'Amelio lost his temper, lunged at me and pulled my shirt collar around my throat, choking me in the process."
Aimee was charged with disorderly conduct and resisting arrest. According to a witness at the scene, the police "patted Aimee down more than once and checked her small bag. She was handcuffed behind her back and surrounded by at least 8 cops, 7 men and one woman."
The same witness said that "one female cop pulled Aimee's head scarf back and almost off. When Aimee said something about it, the cop then pulled the scarf back, but so that it covered half her face."
At the Cambridge police station, Aimee was forced to remove her head scarf "for security reasons" Aimee recalls Cambridge police officer Sullivan as saying. "If that is truely the case, then my shirt could be a security threat as well, but that wouldn't justify them in forcing me to take off my shirt, would it now" Aimee added.
Aimee has submitted a formal complaint to the MIT police department. She has also moved to press criminal charges.
"Officer Joseph D'Amelio, has now shown a pattern of rogue behavior and is clearly targeting Aimee Smith" an MIT student who was present at the first arrest of Aimee said. "People who cannot control their anger cannot be trusted to carry deadly weapons."
To learn more about the previous assault on the 1st amendment rights of the four leafleters on Commencement Day, go to http://web.mit.edu/justice