Mayor Simison and Chief Basterrechea of the City of Meridian have issued statements in response to Attorney General Raul Labrador’s dismissal of all charges against Sara Brady.
The Idaho Office of the Attorney General announced Thursday they plan to dismiss all charges against Sara Brady. Brady was arrested in 2020 and charged with misdemeanor trespassing for taking her children to a closed playground.
“The Attorney General’s apparent philosophy to selectively dismiss cases of his choosing and endorse illegal behavior is abhorrent. I support the people’s right to assemble for peaceful protest, but that right does not include ignoring lawful orders or being free from the legal ramifications of those actions. Unfortunately, this incident also led to harassment of our police officers at their private homes and doxxing public servants. These actions are distressing and Attorney General Labrador’s decision today is a breach of his oath of office to uphold the rule of law. If this is the tone he sets as Idaho’s top legal officer, I am concerned about what the future holds. Overall, the decision to dismiss this case is appalling, and a slap in the face of the Meridian police department, our public servants, and law-abiding citizens of our state.
I call upon the Idaho Legislature to enact legislation to protect all Idahoans from harassment in their homes. Hopefully, then something good can come from this unfortunate decision,” stated Mayor Simison.
“Fortunately for the people of Idaho, Our police officers are apolitical in carrying out their duties, unfortunately, this can’t be said for the new Idaho Attorney General. The courts and attorneys involved in this case prior were very clear on the merits of this case. Conversations with the AG’s Office as late as Friday, December 30, 2022, indicated the case would still move forward. The question we have is, what changed since Friday? We certainly hope this is not the type of political grandstanding we should expect coming out of the Attorney General’s Office moving forward. We are supposed to be a nation ruled by law, not a nation ruled by politics.” stated Chief Basterrechea
