Russian Hooliganism

In February, three members of Pussy Riot, Moscow's most famous (only?) feminist punk band, were arrested after they snuck into the Cathedral of Christ the Savior in order to perform in front the church's holy doors. The band later released an anti-Putin music video that featured snatches of the incident confusingly spliced with footage from another church (there are four women in the latter recording). Last Friday, those three women were convicted of hooliganism and sentenced to two years in a penal colony. There's been a great deal of commentary already, including an excellent article by Simon Jenkins in The Guardian that highlights how hypocritical Western critiques of Russian criminal justice practice are. Jenkins focuses mostly on the UK, and I thought that subjecting the USA to similar scrutiny might prove edifying.

Moscow's Cathedral of Christ the Savior. Taken from Eye Flare.

The women were charged with hooliganism: "a gross violation of the public order which expresses patent contempt for society, attended by violence against private persons or by the threat of its use, and likewise by the destruction or damage of other people's property [1]." As many observers have noted, the prosecution's account of the incident appears facially insufficient; the facts simply don't support the charge [2].

The case and its outcome were disturbing for three main reasons: (1) the weakness and corruption of Russia's judiciary, (2) the criminalization of free speech, and (3) the harshness of the sentence. These issues are not unique to Russia; they exist in the United States, too.

As noted above, the prosecution's case was facially insufficient, and yet, the judge (presumably bowing to political pressure from the Kremlin or Russian Orthodox Church) found the defendants guilty. Judges in the United States are less likely to bend the law in such an obvious way, but they are not insulated from political pressures, and often knowingly contravene statutes. Outside of the federal system, many judges are elected (in fact, 32 states elect the judges that sit on their highest court), and these elections open the door to improper influences [3].

Power is not life's only temptation; American Judges have also been seduced by money. In a recent scandal, two Luzerne County (PA) judges were found guilty of conspiring with for-profit juvenile detention centers. The judges would deny defendants counsel, find them guilty, and sentence them harshly in order to keep facility beds full [4].

Even when judges have no clear motivation, they will violate the law or interpret it incorrectly. A recent report on the Orleans Public Defenders office found that Criminal District Court judges often block a defendant's access to OPD's services if the defendant manages to make bail (i.e. the judges assume that if someone can pay bail they can afford legal services). CDC judges are also notorious for their liberal use of contempt citations; defense attorneys have been held in contempt for innocuous deeds: talking to a child witness or "asking a particular question on cross-examination [5]."

New Orleans Criminal District Court. Taken from The Lens.

America's criminal justice system also often violates the right to free speech. The Occupy Wall Street protests that began last September testify to the restrictions local governments in America place on political action. In July, the Protest and Assembly Rights Project released Suppressing Protest, an examination of ways in which political speech was silenced and punished in New York during the Occupy protests [6]. The report details (among other things) instances of unnecessary force, obstruction of the press, "baseless arrests," "closure of public spaces," and "dispersal of peaceful assemblies." Police and prosecutors in New York used broad criminal laws like disorderly conduct to chill speech. Admittedly, sentences for these violations were far more lenient than the one handed to the women of Pussy Riot (many cases were adjourned in contemplation of dismissal), but that doesn't change the fact that protesters were arrested while exercising their First Amendment rights.

Taken from ABC News.

The enactment of laws that explicitly prevent speech is an equally disturbing American trend. On August 6th, President Obama signed a new law that prohibits demonstrations within 300 feet of military funerals (the demonstrations also must be held either two hours before or after the burial). The law is designed to prevent the Westboro Baptist Church from holding their repulsive rallies - a goal with much (bipartisan!) support. It's important to understand, though, that there are - in all likelihood - a substantial number of Russians who are as disgusted by Pussy Riot's stunt as many Americans are by Westboro's hurtful tactics.

It's not only the federal government; a number of states have criminalized political speech, too. Over the last 20 years, Iowa, Kansas, Montana, North Dakota, and Utah have all enacted "Ag-gag" laws. In Kansas, Montana, and North Dakota these statutes criminalize the production and distribution of unauthorized pictures, videos, and audio recordings taken in an "animal facility [7]." In Iowa, it is a crime to fraudulently gain access to an animal facility (i.e. by lying on a job application or in a job interview) [8]. Ag-gag laws are designed to criminalize the exercise of speech. The laws explicitly prevent the production of material that will be used for political purposes, or criminalize ways in which activists gain access to animal facilities, stymieing the process by which the materials are produced.

An animal facility might allow the production and distribution of this picture. Taken from Fatback DC.

The harsh sentences handed down to the members of Pussy Riot also provoked condemnation. Two years in jail for something that (arguably) ought not to be criminalized is bad, but compare that to the sentences which result from three-strikes laws in America: 25 years to life for stealing $399 worth of golf clubs (Ewing v. California) or life imprisonment for forging a check worth $88.30 (Bordenkircher v. Hayes)[9].

The truth is that all nations have imperfect criminal justice systems. It's inspiring that injustice in Russia has spurred such close attention and strident criticism, but we must recognize that Moscow's ugliest judicial tendencies exist in America and - if we are incensed enough - work to change that.

Thanks for reading.

J







[9] In this context, it is mind-boggling to think that Anders Breivik will spend 21 years in jail for killing 77 people.