[nfbwatlk] Living History: No Justice for Jackie ... Yet

[Albert Sanchez]

> OH! GOD! Yes! And those of us who were dog users at the time were laughing 
> so hard that none of us could correct the dogs! If my memory is correct 
> their were five or six dog users; myself plus Ron Frederickson, Carol 
> Wedrick, Jackie Galloway, and someone from Oregon. I used to have a 
> recording that Stan Cox made for "Golden Hours" about the "informational 
> rally" but I can not seem to find it.
  Albert Sanchez
>
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: "Mike Freeman" <k7uij at panix.com>
> To: "'NFB of Washington Talk Mailing List'" <nfbwatlk at nfbnet.org>
> Sent: Sunday, September 02, 2012 1:20 PM
> Subject: Re: [nfbwatlk] Living History: No Justice for Jackie ... Yet
>
>
>> Yeah ... remember when we all started chanting: "Guide dogs inside!" and
>> every last one of them turned in at the next building entrance? <g>
>>
>> Mike
>>
>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: nfbwatlk-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:nfbwatlk-bounces at nfbnet.org] On
>> Behalf Of Albert Sanchez
>> Sent: Sunday, September 02, 2012 8:55 AM
>> To: NFB of Washington Talk Mailing List
>> Subject: Re: [nfbwatlk] Living History: No Justice for Jackie ... Yet
>>
>> My feet still hurt from that event! What a time we all had, dogs 
>> included.
>> Albert Sanchez
>> ----- Original Message ----- 
>> From: "Mike Freeman" <k7uij at panix.com>
>> To: <nfbwatlk at nfbnet.org>
>> Sent: Sunday, September 02, 2012 11:44 AM
>> Subject: [nfbwatlk] Living History: No Justice for Jackie ... Yet
>>
>>
>>> Braille Monitor
>>> November 1985
>>>
>>>
>>> No Justice for Jackie ... Yet
>>> But the Battle has Just Begun!
>>>
>>>
>>> by Scott H. Lewis
>>>
>>> (The National Federation of the Blind is constantly vigilant to protect
>>> the
>>> rights of the blind. The Federation observes, analyzes, and acts. This 
>>> is
>>> true not only at the national level but also at the state and local
>>> levels.
>>> Scott Lewis is a past president of the National Federation of the Blind 
>>> of
>>> Washington.)
>>>
>>> Last March 9 Jackie Galloway, a blind grandmother living in Port 
>>> Townsend,
>>> had never even heard of the National Federation of the Blind. She had
>>> never
>>> thought much about civil rights and blind persons. But then, again, 
>>> Jackie
>>> had never had need to. Blindness was still fairly new to her, and she 
>>> had
>>> only been using a guide dog for a few months.
>>>
>>> But on the afternoon of March 9 Jackie took her two daughters and two
>>> grandchildren to a theater to see a matinee performance of "Pinocchio,"
>>> and
>>> events took place that quite literally changed her life.
>>>
>>> The theater's owner, Richard Wiley, met Jackie in the theater lobby and
>>> told
>>> her that dogs were not allowed in the theater--and that there was no
>>> exception for guide dogs. He told her that her guide dog would have to 
>>> go,
>>> but that she could stay. When Jackie tried to show him a copy of
>>> Washington's White Cane Law, Wiley grew impatient and angry. He lost his
>>> temper, yelled that there would be no dogs in his theater, and that he
>>> didn't much care what the law said. Jackie Galloway stood up for her
>>> rights.
>>> She would not agree to be separated from her guide dog to satisfy the
>>> arbitrary whim of a man who didn't care what the law said. She decided,
>>> tearfully, to leave. But she decided also to fight for her rights. 
>>> Jackie
>>> contacted the Port Townsend police, who cited Wiley for violation of the
>>> White Cane Law. Then, she contacted the state Human Rights Commission, 
>>> and
>>> made a complaint pursuant to the state's law against discrimination.
>>>
>>> These two actions generated some attention in the press, and alerted
>>> members
>>> of the National Federation of the Blind to Jackie Galloway's plight.
>>> Federation representatives contacted Jackie and offered assistance, 
>>> which
>>> she accepted.
>>>
>>> In addition to the police citation and the Human Rights complaint, the
>>> Federation helped Jackie file a citizen's complaint charging Wiley with
>>> assault and reckless endangerment. NFB found her an attorney, and a 
>>> civil
>>> lawsuit was filed against Wiley asking money damages for the
>>> discrimination
>>> suffered at the hands of Richard Wiley.
>>>
>>> The time came for prosecution. Early in May Jackie and her supporters
>>> gathered at the Jefferson County courthouse as city attorney Keith 
>>> Harper
>>> was prepared to argue the case against Wiley, and Wiley's attorney, 
>>> Harry
>>> Holloway, III, was ready to argue for his client. But just before the
>>> trial
>>> was to begin the judge refused to hear the case, claiming that the 
>>> charges
>>> brought against Wiley were violations of state law and that a city
>>> attorney
>>> cannot prosecute such violations in a municipal court. The case would 
>>> have
>>> to be brought again, the judge said. The case would have to be 
>>> prosecuted
>>> by
>>> the county prosecuting attorney, and they would have to be brought in
>>> district court.
>>>
>>> Now we faced a new challenge: The city attorney said that the judge was
>>> wrong, but that he wouldn't appeal. The county prosecutor said he didn't
>>> think he could prosecute the case, but that he'd think about it.
>>>
>>> On July 20 prosecuting attorney John Raymond was still "thinking," but 
>>> he
>>> was telling newspaper reporters that he probably wouldn't do anything to
>>> bring Wiley to trial. So members of NFB from Washington and Oregon, 
>>> along
>>> with a number of Jackie's friends and neighbors, gathered again at the
>>> courthouse to stage what was termed an "old fashioned civil rights 
>>> march"
>>> through downtown Port Townsend, to the prosecutors office, and then to 
>>> the
>>> "scene of the crime--the Uptown Theater. About sixty persons marched
>>> through
>>> Port Townsend's tourist-packed streets that Saturday afternoon waving
>>> placards and chanting slogans: "Justice for Jackie!" "Hey Prosecutor,
>>> Don't
>>> Be a Disgrace. We Want Justice in the Galloway Case!" "Ban the Bigot!"
>>> "Guide Dogs Can Be Trained. Wiley Can't!"
>>>
>>> It was a serious demonstration, conducted in support of a cause, even 
>>> more
>>> than simply in support of an individual. Yet, it was also festive and
>>> joyful. It was a day for solidarity, of the blind of the region joining
>>> together to tell the people of Jefferson County (and through Seattle
>>> television news, the people of Western Washington) that the blind have
>>> fought hard to secure their rights by way of laws, and that we would not
>>> passively sit and watch those rights be diluted.
>>>
>>> Wiley and the prosecutor were invited, publicly, to come and speak to 
>>> the
>>> group. Prosecutor Raymond chose to go sailing. Wiley spoke to the press
>>> briefly from his theater, then fled as the marchers drew near.
>>>
>>> Two weeks after the march the prosecuting attorney wrote Bill Knebes, a
>>> Port
>>> Angeles attorney NFB helped Jackie retain to fight her legal battle, and
>>> said that he would not prosecute the case against Wiley. His reasons 
>>> were
>>> appalling. Too much time had passed between the incident and early 
>>> August,
>>> Raymond said. Secondly, he said that if the law was broken, it was a 
>>> minor
>>> violation only and there would likely only be a suspended sentence and 
>>> no
>>> fine imposed. Thirdly, Raymond said that Jackie could have her day in
>>> court
>>> when her civil suit was heard.
>>>
>>> Look carefully at what the prosecutor said. He had sat on the case too
>>> long,
>>> but the case was not to be prosecuted because too much time had passed.
>>> His
>>> concern was for the people in the theater, and if Jackie Galloway's 
>>> civil
>>> rights had been violated, this was too small a matter to concern him.
>>> Finally, he takes the absurd position that criminal prosecution is
>>> unnecessary because Jackie can file a civil suit.
>>>
>>> In short, the county prosecuting attorney placed a civil rights 
>>> violation
>>> on
>>> a level lower than a traffic ticket. Even the smallest traffic ticket is
>>> prosecuted. If a person shoplifts a $2 item from a drugstore, the state
>>> prosecutes the offense, and then the merchant can file a civil suit. But
>>> discriminate against the blind in Jefferson County, and you can expect 
>>> no
>>> help from the prosecutor.
>>>
>>> A message has been sent out, and we cannot ignore that message. You can
>>> bet
>>> that our opponents won't ignore it either. Discrimination may be 
>>> illegal,
>>> but it is okay, they 'll say. Laws that aren't enforced are useless.
>>>
>>> The battle isn't over. But instead of fighting one theater owner, we 
>>> have
>>> been forced now to also fight the one man whose job it is to enforce the
>>> law. Discrimination takes many forms and often is found in the most
>>> unlikely
>>> places.
>>>
>>> The civil trial will not likely be heard until December, 1985, or early
>>> 1986. NFB has assured Jackie Galloway that she will have everything her
>>> attorney needs to insure that her case is successful. We will stand with
>>> her, united, because her cause is truly ours. Nor do we intend to let 
>>> the
>>> prosecutor have the final word. NFB of Oregon has contributed funds to
>>> help
>>> support Supreme Court litigation that would force the prosecutor to 
>>> bring
>>> criminal charges against Richard Wiley. We are consulting with attorneys
>>> who
>>> specialize in civil rights appeals, and will take such action as is
>>> appropriate to protect the rights of the blind.
>>>
>>> It is important to emphasize that the actions we take in support of 
>>> Jackie
>>> Galloway are most valuable in a broader sense. What we do to protect
>>> Jackie,
>>> we do to protect ourselves. Our legal system is based upon precedent. As 
>>> a
>>> result, how the courts treat discrimination cases in the future is
>>> predicated upon how similar cases were treated in the past.
>>>
>>> The justice demanded by the marchers has not yet been dealt. But the
>>> battle
>>> is far from over. We have the law on our side, and Jackie Galloway has a
>>> stout heart. She is becoming a true Federationist, and she recognizes 
>>> the
>>> importance of the struggle she is helping to lead.
>>>
>>> And in the end there will not only be "Justice for Jackie," but also for
>>> all
>>> of the blind of the state.
>>>
>>>
>>>
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