GOP protester's conviction to be dropped

Last update: May 18, 2009 - 10:48 PM

RNC PROTESTER'S CONVICTION TO BE DROPPED; FLAWED JURY INSTRUCTIONS CITED

The first man to be convicted for his actions during the Republican National Convention is no longer convicted.

Ramsey County District Judge Edward S. Wilson on Friday granted a motion for a new trial for Sean P. McCoy.

On Monday, St. Paul City Attorney John Choi said that wouldn't happen. His office will "file a notice of dismissal in this case because it is the best decision after considering all of the issues associated with a new trial."

McCoy, 33, was convicted in March of public assembly without a permit, a petty misdemeanor, and he was ordered to pay a fine of $50. The jury acquitted him of fleeing police, and Wilson threw out charges of unlawful assembly and obstructing traffic.

Attorney Bruce Nestor said Wilson's order for a new trial found that the jury instructions were flawed because they omitted the element of the offense that a person had to know they were engaged in a public assembly without a permit.

PAT PHEIFER

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