Enabling the Crime?

A "chilling" police infiltration of Occupy Houston port protest puts undercovercops under legal fire

Police detective Shannon Dowell took on a character named Butch to infiltrateOccupy Austin.
Photo by John Jack Anderson/OccupyAustin.org
Dowell reportedly promoted and built a series of so-called "lockboxes" — devicesmade of PVC pipe that protestors could use to lock arms.
Photo by Whitney Radley
Those who used the lockboxes were charged with "manufacturing a criminalweapon." One protestor remains in jail, unable to pay a $25,000 bond.

Three officers from the Austin Police Department (APD) are under the gun this month in the trial of protestors involved in a 2011 Occupy event that blocked the entrance to the Port of Houston as part of a larger national action called "Occupy the Port."

Ronnie Garza of Austin was one of 15 Texans arrested by Houston police during the Dec. 12 human barricade.

While eight people were charged with misdemeanors for obstructing the port entrance, Garza was among a group of seven activists given a more severe felony charge for locking themselves together with a sleeve made of PVC pipes and chains — a device known as a "lockbox," "sleeping dragon" or "dragon sleeve."

"The police knew these kids would get a charge of felony for using the devices, instead of just a misdemeanor. They set them up."

The Gulf Port 7, as they're now called, are charged with "manufacturing a criminal weapon." One of the protestors, 24-year-old Iraq War vet Eric Marquez, has been unable to shell out the $25,000 bond and remains in a Harris County jail.

Last week, Garza and his pro bono attorney Greg Gladden delivered materials and documents to Harris County district judge Joan Campbell pointing to the involvement of Shannon Dowell, an Austin police officer who reportedly infiltrated the Occupy Austin movement by posing as a mild-mannered, bearded protestor named "Butch."

With the aid of two other undercover agents known as "Rick" and "Dirk," Dowell allegedly encouraged the use of the lockboxes during Occupy Austin meetings, eventually going so far as to make the devices himself and deliver them to the protest group. According to The Austin Chronicle, APD assistant chief Sean Mannix claims that Dowell wanted to make sure the lockboxes were built correctly so the protest would be safe.

"They promoted the use of these plastic sleeves, manufactured them, and sent them out to Houston," Gladden tells CultureMap. "The police knew these kids would get a charge of felony for using the devices, instead of just a misdemeanor. They set them up."

So far, the identities of Rick and Dirk have been kept under wraps by the APD, which also worked with the Texas Fusion Center — a branch of the Texas Department of Public Safety that coordinates state law enforcement with federal agencies like the FBI, the DEA and the Department of Homeland Security.

"If the police continue to refuse to give their names, we're hopeful that the case will get dismissed by the judge," Gladden explains, noting that knowledge of the Occupy infiltration, which he calls "serious" and "chilling," goes as high as the chief of police.

During a Wednesday morning press conference, assistant Austin police chief David Carter said that neither he nor his fellow high-ranking officials knew that the undercover agents provided the lockboxes. Gladden, meanwhile, says he filed a motion on July 3 clearly describing Butch's participation.

unspecified

Thanks, Queen Bey

Pop icon Beyoncé donates $100,000 to University of Houston Law School

Photo by Erza Shaw Getty Images

undefined

Pop megastar Beyoncé Knowles-Carter has donated $100,000 to the University of Houston Law Center Criminal Justice Clinic through her BeyGOOD Foundation. The gift will allow the clinic to hire fill-time faculty to head it, benefiting the students who study there.

“I am delighted that the BeyGOOD Foundation has made this very generous gift to the UH Law Center,” said Leonard Baynes, dean of the UH Law Center. “Not only will this funding help establish a full-time criminal justice clinic that provides pro bono legal services in our community, but it will also supercharge our already excellent criminal law and justice programming.”

The clinic is one of nine at UHLC. It helps students learn to navigate the criminal justice system, especially on behalf of clients that are underserved by skilled attorneys. People of color are affected disproportionately by a lack of good, ethical representation.

Beyoncé, the most decorated artist in Grammy history and easily the biggest musical star native to Houston, has a long history of advocating for criminal justice reform. She was a staunch supporter of the police reform following the deaths of Alton Sterling and Philando Castile, asking law enforcement to “stop killing us” in a web post. In 2020, she penned an open letter to the Kentucky attorney general asking for justice in the death of Breonna Taylor.

Through her BeyGOOD Foundation, established in 2013, Beyoncé has focused mostly on expanding the prospects of Black-owned business and offering education opportunities to students. Forwarding the cause of legal representation in Texas while also helping out marginalized communities compliments her other philanthropic work.

“At UH Law, we envision a legal profession where ‘everyone has the opportunity to prosper,’ as BeyGOOD envisions, and we will achieve this vision by providing access to strong and effective legal representation in criminal proceedings,” Baynes said. “And together, through this gift, the BeyGOOD Foundation and UHLC will shepherd the next generation of criminal justice attorneys in the city of Houston, the state of Texas and the nation.”