October 13, 1969
MR. FORAN: Will you state your name, please?
THE WITNESS: Frank Riggio.
MR. FORAN: What is your occupation, Mr. Riggio?
THE WITNESS: I am a detective with the Police Department, City of Chicago.
MR. FORAN: Calling your attention to August of 1968 during the Convention, were you given any specific assignment?
THE WITNESS: I was to keep Rennie Davis under surveillance.
MR. WEINGLASS: At this point, this witness having identified himself now as a surveillance agent, -on behalf of the defendant Rennie Davis I make the objection that a twentyfour-hour surveillance constitutes a constitutional invasion of a citizen's privacy contrary to the Fourth Amendment and I object to this witness being permitted to give any testimony in a Court of law on the ground that his conduct constituted a violation of the United States Constitution.
THE COURT: I will overrule the objection.
MR. FORAN: Calling your attention to August 25, 1968, did you see either Davis or Hayden?
THE WITNESS: Yes, we were in Lincoln Park. My partner and I began to follow Mr. Davis and Mr. Hayden, who were walking together by themselves. They would come to a group of people and stop and talk and then proceed through the group, and then as my partner and I would try to follow, the group would close up and block our way and make it difficult for us to keep Mr. Davis and Mr. Hayden in sight.
MR. FORAN: How long did you follow them around the park that day?
THE WITNESS: Oh, approximately two hours.
MR. FORAN: As you were following them from group to group, at about that time, at ten o'clock, what occurred?
THE WITNESS: Mr. Davis and Mr. Hayden came to a group of people where they stopped and talked to Wolfe Lowenthal. As they stopped and talked to him, Mr. Davis began to proceed toward Stockton Drive. Mr. Hayden and Mr. Lowenthal began to walk off in a different direction. My partner and I began to return to our own vehicle.
MR. FORAN: As you approached the front of your vehicle, what happened?
THE WITNESS: As we approached the front of the vehicle, we could hear a hissing noise coming from the vehicle. We then proceeded around the side of the vehicle and we observed two figures crouched at the right rear tire. At this time, my partner and I shouted to the two figures, and identified ourselves as police officers. As we approached the two figures stood up, one ran off---as I approached I noted it was Tom Hayden stood at the rear tire of the vehicle, I could see that the tire of the vehicle was, for all intents and purposes, flat.
I pursued the figure who had run off toward the group of people who were in the park at the time. He ran a short distance, stopped and turned around and faced me, at which time I grabbed him and began to bring him back to the vehicle. All this time my partner had stayed with Mr. Hayden at the rear of our vehicle.
MR. FORAN: Who was it, by the way, that you had?
THE WITNESS: It was Mr. Wolfe Lowenthal.
MR. FORAN: What happened when you got back to the vehicle?
THE WITNESS: When we got back to the vehicle we informed Mr. Hayden and Mr. Lowenthal that they were under arrest for the damage they had done to the squad car and told them to get into the vehicle.
MR. FORAN: What happened at this time?
THE WITNESS: Mr. Hayden and Mr. Lowenthal at this time refused to get back into the vehicle, and they began to struggle with both my partner and myself. They began to pull away from us, shove us. They braced themselves against the opening of the rear door and would not get into the vehicle.
During this time they began to shout, "Help! Get these policemen! Don't let these policemen arrest us! Help us! Don't let them get us!"
MR. FORAN: What happened then?
THE WITNESS: At this time the crowd began to run over to the vehicle and began to force my partner and myself along with Mr. Hayden and Mr. Lowenthal into the corner formed by our open door and the vehicle itself. The crowd began to scream, "We're not going to let you arrest them!" Somebody yelled, "Get their guns!" Another one yelled, "Get the police! Get these policemen and turn them over to us! We're not going to let you take them!"
MR. FORAN: What occurred then?
THE WITNESS: At this time we informed Mr. Hayden and Mr. Lowenthal that we couldn't possibly effect their arrest at this time but that on the next occasion that we saw them, we would place them under arrest, and at this time they ran off with the crowd of people.
MR. FORAN: What was the crowd doing as they ran off?
THE WITNESS: Screaming and clapping, jumping up and down.
MR. FORAN: Now, did you have occasion to see Hayden and Lowenthal again?
THE WITNESS: The next day I saw them, I believe it was the twenty-sixth of August, in Lincoln Park.
MR. FORAN: Did you see Hayden?
THE WITNESS: Yes. When we first saw them we stopped and informed a uniformed sergeant and a squad of uniformed policemen that our intention was to arrest these two men and to have them pull up a wagon as we approached the group.
MR. FORAN: What happened as you approached the group?
THE WITNESS: As we approached the group, Mr. Hayden and Mr. Lowenthal stood up and informed the group, "Here come the two coppers from last night. They are going to arrest us."
At this time, my partner and I walked into the group and informed Mr. Hayden and
Mr. Lowenthal that they were under arrest, and at this time the squadrol had pulled up into the crowd.
MR. FORAN: Now, what did you do then?
THE WITNESS: As we began to walk Mr. Hayden and Mr. Lowenthal into the squadrol, the crowd began to scream, "You can't arrest them!" and "Why are you taking them?" and "We won't let you arrest them!"
MR. FORAN: Do you remember any particular persons in the crowd?
THE WITNESS: I remember one young lady and one young man in particular.
MR. FORAN: Do you know that man's name, Mr. Riggio?
THE WITNESS: Not offhand, no.
MR. FORAN: Will you look over there and see if you can find him at that table?
THE WITNESS: It is the fellow in the blue shirt sitting right over there [indicating].
MR. FORAN: May the record show, your Honor, that the witness has identified Mr. John Froines?
MR. FORAN: Mr. Riggio, at that time did you have a conversation with Mr. Froines?
THE WITNESS: I did. The defendant said, "I demand to know why you are arresting these two." I informed him they were being arrested for a violation that had occurred the previous night. He then stated that, "We are not going to let you take them. If you try to take them all hell is going to break loose in this city."
MR. FORAN: What happened then?
THE WITNESS: At this time, with the help of the uniformed patrolmen, I got into the squadrol along with the defendants Hayden and Lowenthal, and proceeded to 21 South State Street.
MR. FORAN: What did you do when you got there?
THE WITNESS: We began our normal booking procedures of the two defendants.
MR. FORAN: Calling your attention to later on that same evening, close to midnight, where were you?
THE WITNESS: We were at the intersection of Michigan and Balbo Avenue.
MR. FORAN: Who did you see there at the corner of Balbo and Michigan?
THE WITNESS: I saw the two defendants, Rennie Davis, Tom Hayden, and also Wolfe Lowenthal, crossing the intersection of Balbo.
MR. FORAN: What did you and your partner do at that time?
THE WITNESS: I fell into step behind Mr. Davis. My partner fell into step behind Mr. Hayden.
MR. FORAN: What, if anything, happened as you crossed the street?
THE WITNESS: I heard Mr. Hayden, who was a step or two in back of me, say, "Here he comes again," or "Here he is again." And then he said, "You," and he
used a profanity.
MR. FORAN: What words did he call you?
THE WITNESS: He said, "Here he is again, you motherfucker." At that time I turned around and observed the defendant Hayden spit at my partner, at which time my partner grabbed Mr. Hayden and Mr. Hayden then fell to the street. The crowd was beginning to rush to the incident which was now occurring.
Mr. Davis turned and began to shout, "They've got Tom again. Let's go help Tom," and they began to rush back toward my partner and Tom Hayden. At this time, with the help of uniformed officers, we pushed the crowd back across Balbo Drive.
MR. FORAN: What did you do then?
THE WITNESS: At this time after the crowd had gotten back, I went back to my partner and Mr. Hayden, and we took Mr. Hayden to a squadrol and placed him in a squadrol.
THE COURT: I think we have reached the time when we normally recess. . .
Mr. Riggio, my name is William Kunstler. I am one of the attorneys for the defendants. On Sunday, August 25, in Lincoln Park, you were arresting Hayden and Lowenthal ---for what?
THE WITNESS: For obstructing us.
MR. KUNSTLER: As far as you know, how were they obstructing you?
THE WITNESS: If we had received an emergency call or any sort of communication from the squad operator we wouldn't be able to fulfill it with a flat tire.
MR. KUNSTLER: And then you indicated Mr. Hayden screamed for help.
THE WITNESS: Correct. Mr. Lowenthal also screamed.
MR. KUNSTLER: And then what happened?
THE WITNESS: A large group of people began to form around our vehicle.
MR. KUNSTLER: And you reached a decision that it would be the better part of discretion not to effectuate an arrest at that moment, is that correct?
THE WITNESS: Correct.
MR. KUNSTLER: Did anybody in that group strike you?
THE WITNESS: No, they did not.
MR. KUNSTLER: Did anybody in that group throw anything at you?
THE WITNESS: I don't recall them throwing. They may have.
MR. KUNSTLER: And when you last had contact with Lowenthal and Hayden, did you tell them you would arrest them the next day?
THE WITNESS: Before we released Lowenthal and Hayden to the crowd, we informed them that they would be arrested by us at the next convenient time.
MR. KUNSTLER: Now that brings us to Monday, August 26. There came a time when you saw Tom Hayden and Wolf Lowenthal?
THE WITNESS: Correct. They were in a group of people who were southeast of the field house.
MR. KUNSTLER: Did you find yourself in the center of this group again as you had the night before?
THE WITNESS: Yes.
MR. KUNSTLER: Now when you went to arrest Mr. Hayden or Mr. Lowenthal, the two of you, did Mr. Hayden or Mr. Lowenthal tell the crowd, "Help, get these coppers, keep them from arresting us," or anything similar to what you had heard the night before?
THE WITNESS: No, nothing like the night before. They just informed the crowd that they were being arrested.
MR. KUNSTLER: Did you explain when you were in the middle of this group with Mr. Hayden and Mr. Lowenthal why you were arresting them?
THE WITNESS: I believe we told them obstructing a police officer, resisting arrest, and I don't know if it was disorderly conduct in there too.
MR. KUNSTLER: But it is true, is it not, Officer, that these arrests that you were making there were for activities that occurred on another day, is that correct?
THE WITNESS. Correct.
MR. KUNSTLER: Did they offer any resistance at any time from the time you walked up to them and said, you are under arrest, and the time you took them and put them in the squadrol?
THE WITNESS: No, they did not.
MR. KUNSTLER: Detective Riggio, you had testified, as I recall, that Mr. Froines had demanded to know why you were arresting Lowenthal and Hayden. Then at that moment, as I remember, you indicated that Mr. Froines said something, demanding that you release the two men, or. as you put it, I think, "all hell would break loose in the city," is that correct?
THE WITNESS: Correct.
MR. KUNSTLER: You continued with the arrest, did you not?
THE WITNESS: Correct.
MR. KUNSI'LER: Did all hell break loose in the city, to your knowledge?
THE WITNESS: My opinion, yes.
MR. KUNSTLER: Your opinion was all hell broke loose because of these arrests?
THE WITNESS: Yes.
MR. KUNSTLER: Were you somewhere where all hell broke loose after these arrests?
THE WITNESS: I was in the police building when the march occurred at the police building and I could observe what was occurring in the street.
MR. KUNSTLER: And that is what you call "all hell breaking loose?"
THE WITNESS: That is what I call "all hell breaking loose."
MR. KUNSTLER: Describe "all hell breaking loose."
THE WITNESS: The tie-up in the traffic around the police building, the fact that the police building had to be secured by police personnel at the entrance to the building, and the amount of people who were chanting and screaming and shouting outside the police building.
MR. KUNSTLER: That is what you characterize as "all hell breaking loose," is that correct?
THE WITNESS: That is what I do, yes.
MR.. KUNSTLER: You are smiling when you say that. Is there any reason for that smile?
THE WITNESS: No reason for my smile.
MR. KUNSTLER: Did you see the marchers throw anything at the policemen?
THE WITNESS: I did not observe that long.
MR. KUNSTLER: How long did you observe?
THE WITNESS: A matter of a minute.
MR. KUNSTLER: It was in that minute that you made the determination that all hell had broken loose?
THE WITNESS. Correct.
MR. KUNSTLER: In your definition people marching on the sidewalk, crossing the street, shouting something which you could hear from the thirteenth floor, this was a definition of "all hell breaking loose" in Chicago?
THE WITNESS: Correct.
MR. KUNSTLER: And all of this, do you attribute to Mr. Froines' remarks in the park?
THE WITNESS: In my opinion, yes.
MR. KUNSTLER: You think he instigated all of that?
THE WITNESS: That is my opinion, yes.
MR. KUNSTLER: Detective Riggio, did you ever tell the FBI about the incident, forgetting Mr. Froines' name, did you tell them that an unknown male said these words to you in Lincoln Park?
THE WITNESS: Yes, I did.
MR. KUNSTLER: I will show you D-34, which is a report labeled FBI report on September 25, 1968. I ask you whether it in any way refreshes your recollection as to whether you told them about this incident by looking through the documents themselves?
THE WITNESS: I did tell them about this incident, yes. I don't have to look at the documents.
MR. KUNSTLER: There is no question in your mind that you told them?
THE WITNESS: I believe I did, yes.
MR. KUNSTLER: Now does any mention of that appear in any of those reports?
THE WITNESS: These are not my statements.
MR. FORAN: Object, your Honor.
THE COURT: I sustain the objection.
MR. KUNSTLER: After you had gone to the police station with Hayden and Lowenthal, did you go back to 407 South Dearborn to pick up Rennie Davis again?
THE WITNESS: I believe we went by there, yes.
MR. KUNSTLER: Did you finally find them again?
THE WITNESS: Yes, I did, shortly after midnight of the twenty-sixth.
MR. KUNSTLER: After you saw Davis, what did you do?
THE WITNESS: I fell into step behind Mr. Davis.
MR. KUNSTLER: Behind Mr. Davis. Where did Mr. Bell fall in step?
THE WITNESS: Behind Mr. Hayden.
MR. KUNSTLER: Now you have testified, I believe, there was a crowd of people in the vicinity, is that correct?
THE WITNESS: Correct.
MR. KUNSTLER: Is it your testimony that the crowd in some way interfered with the arrest of Mr. Hayden?
THE WITNESS: The crowd was not permitted to get to Officer Bell or Tom Hayden.
MR. KUNSTLER: And when you say the crowd was not permitted, what did the police officers say to the crowd?
THE WITNESS: The police officers told the crowd to go back along with me, and we held them back from going toward the incident that was occurring.
MR. KUNSTLER: When you say "held back." did you seize people? Did you grab them?
THE WITNESS: Grabbed people, pushed them, just kept people from running past.
MR. KUNSTLER: How many did you grab?
THE WITNESS: Oh, Mr. Davis and a few others.
MR. KUNSTLER: You grabbed Mr. Davis?
THE WITNESS: I didn't say I grabbed Mr. Davis. I held Mr. Davis from going back. I stopped Mr. Davis from going back.
MR. KUNSTLER: Where was Mr. Hayden?
THE WITNESS: Mr. Hayden was laying in the street toward the southwest corner of Michigan and Balbo Drive.
MR. KUNSTLER: How did Mr. Hayden get to the ground?
THE WITNESS: Mr. Hayden fell to the ground.
MR. KUNSTLER: Is it what you would call going limp?
THE WITNESS: I would call it that, yes.
MR. KUNSTLER: Mr. Hayden wasn't offering any resistance, was he?
THE WITNESS: Yes, he was, sir, by pulling away from Officer Bell.
MR. KUNSTLER: Do you recall seeing Officer Bell punch Mr. Hayden to the ground?
THE WITNESS: Officer Bell did not punch Mr. Hayden to the ground.
MR. KUNSTLER: Now, with Mr. Hayden on the ground, did the crowd throw anything at you?
THE WITNESS: Nothing struck me, sir.
MR. KUNSTLER: You weren't hit with any fists, were you?
THE WITNESS: No, I don't recall being hit.
MR. KUNSTLER: You weren't hit with any stones or sticks?
THE WITNESS: No, I was not.
MR. KUNSTLER: Brass knuckles?
THE WITNESS: I was not.
MR. KUNSTLER: I have no further questions.
THE COURT: With that I think we can recess for the day.
October, 15, 1969
MR. DELLINGER: Mr. Hoffman. we are observing the moratorium.
THE COURT: I am Judge Hoffman, sir.
MR. DELLINGER: I believe in equality, sir, so I prefer to call people Mr. or by their first name.
THE COURT: Sit down. The clerk is about to call my cases.
MR. DELLINGER: I wanted to explain to you we are reading the names of the war dead.
THE MARSHAL: Sit down.
MR. DELLINGER: We were just reading the names of the dead from both sides.
THE MARSHAL: Sit down.
THE CLERK: No. 69 CR 180. United States of America vs. David T. Dellinger, et al. Case on trial.
MR. KUNSTLER: Your Honor, just one preliminary application this morning. The defendants who were not permitted by your Honor to be absent today or to have a court recess for the Vietnam moratorium brought in an American flag and an NLF Flag which they placed on the counsel table to commemorate the dead Americans and the dead Vietnamese in this long and brutal war that has been going on. The marshal removed those from the table. First he took the NLF Flag after directing me to order the client to have it removed which I refused to do, and then he removed it himself, and then subsequently he removed the American flag.
THE COURT: We have an American flag in the corner. Haven't you seen it during the three-and-a-half weeks you have been here?
MR. KUNSTLER: Yes, but we wanted the juxtaposition, your Honor, of the two flags together in one place.
THE COURT: Mr. Kunstler, let me interrupt you to say that whatever decoration there is in the Courtroom will be furnished by the Government and I think things look all right in this courtroom.
MR. KUNSTLER: Your Honor, I am applying for permission to have both flags on this Vietnam Moratorium Day.
THE COURT: That permission will be denied. That is a table for the defendants and their lawyers and it is not to be decorated. There is no decoration on the Government's table.
MR. KUNSTLER: That is the Government's wish, your Honor. We don't tell them what to do or what not to do.
THE COURT: But I tell everybody what to do as far as the decorations of this courtroom are concerned and we are not going to have the North Vietnamese flag on the table, sir.
Your motion for flags to he placed on the table, flags of any nation, is denied, and at the same time I point out standing in the courtroom---and it has been here since this building was opened---is an American flag.
ABBIE HOFFMAN: We don't consider this table a part of the court and we want to furnish it in our own way.
THE MARSHAL: Sit down.
THE COURT: I will ask you to sit down.
Bring in the jury, Mr. Marshal.
(jury enters)
MR. DELLINGER: We would like to propose
MR. SCHULTZ: If the Court please---
MR. FORAN: Your Honor. If the Court please, may the marshal take that man into custody?
MR. DELLINGER: A moment of silence---
MR. SCHULTZ: Your Honor, this man---
THE COURT: Mr. Marshal. take out the jury.
(jury excused)
MR. DELLINGER: We only wanted a moment of silence.
MR. FORAN: Your Honor, this man has announced this on the elevator coming up here that he was intending to do this.
MR. DELLINGER: I did not. I would have been glad to, but I did not.
MR. FORAN: Your Honor, I object to this man speaking out in court.
THE COURT: You needn't object. I forbid him to disrupt the proceedings. I note for the record that his name is---
MR. DELLINGER: David Dellinger is my name.
THE COURT: You needn't interrupt my sentence for me.
MR. DELLINGER: You have been interrupting ours. I thought I might finish that sentence.
THE COURT: The name of this man who has attempted to disrupt the proceedings in this court is David Dellinger and the record will clearly indicate that, Miss Reporter, and I direct him and all of the others not to repeat such occurrences.
MR. KUNSTLER: Your Honor, I just want to object to Mr. Foran yelling in the presence of the jury. Your Honor has admonished counsel many times on the defense side for yelling, but particularly when the jury was halfway out the door.
MR. FORAN: Your Honor, that is outrageous. This man is a mouthpiece. Look at him, wearing an arm band like his clients, your Honor. Any lawyer comes into a courtroom and has no respect for the Court and acts in conjunction with that kind of conduct before the Court, your Honor, the Government protests his attitude and would like to move the Court to make note of his conduct before this court.
THE COURT: Note has been duly made on the record.
MR. KUNSTLER: Your Honor, I think that the temper and the tone of voice and the expression on Mr. Foran's face speaks more than any picture could tell.
THE COURT: Mr. Kunstler---
MR. FORAN: Of my contempt for Mr. Kunstler, your Honor.
MR. KUNSTLER: To call me a mouthpiece, and for your Honor not to open his mouth and say that is not to be done in your court, I think that violates the sanctity of this court. That is a word that your Honor knows is contemptuous and contumacious.
THE COURT: Don't tell me what I know.
MR. KUNSTLER: I am wearing an armband in memoriam to the dead, your Honor, which is no disgrace in this country.
I want him admonished, your Honor. I request you to do that. The word "mouthpiece" is a contemptuous term.
THE COURT: Did you say you want to admonish me?
MR. KUNSTLER: No, I want you to admonish him.
THE COURT: Let the record show I do not admonish the United States Attorney because he was properly representing his client, the United States of America.
MR. KUNSTLER: To call another attorney a mouthpiece and a disgrace for wearing a black armband---
THE COURT: To place the flag of an enemy country---
MR. KUNSTLER: No, your Honor, there is no declared war.
MR. HAYDEN: Are you at war with Vietnam?
THE COURT: Any country---
Let that appear on the record also.
Bring in the jury. I don't want---
MR. KUNSTLER: Are you turning down my request after this disgraceful episode? You are not going to say anything?
THE COURT: I not only turn it down, I ignore it.
MR. KUNSTLER: That speaks louder than words, too, your Honor.
THE COURT: And let that appear of record, the last words of Mr. Kunstler, and, Miss Reporter, be very careful to have them on the record.
(jury enters)
THE COURT: I say good morning again, ladies and gentlemen of the jury. Will the witness please resume the stand?
MR. WEINGLASS: Now, it was your assignment to watch Mr. Davis?
THE WITNESS: Correct.
MR. WEINGLASS: Wasn't it also your assignment to threaten Mr. Davis, to tell him to get out of town?
THE WITNESS: That is incorrect, sir.
MR. WEINGLASS: You never threatened him?
THE WITNESS: I don't recall threatening Mr. Davis.
MR. WEINGLASS: You don't recall? But it is possible, isn't it?
THE WITNESS: I did not threaten Mr. Davis or tell Mr. Davis or Mr. Hayden to get out of town.
MR. WEINGLASS: You are positive of that?
THE WITNESS: I am fairly positive of that, yes.
MR. WEINGLASS: Fairly positive? Could you explain to the jury why, when I asked you that just a minute ago, you said you couldn't recall.
THE WITNESS: I already explained that, sir. I can't recall because I didn't make the statement.
MR. WEINGLASS: Isn't it a fact that you were armed and you had a weapon?
THE WITNESS: Naturally, sir.
MR. WEINGLASS: That you struck Mr. Davis on occasion?
THE WITNESS: No, I never struck Mr. Davis.
MR. WEINGLASS: You told him he had better get out of town or he would be killed?
THE WITNESS: No, sir, I never said that.
MR. WEINGLASS: Wasn't the purpose of your mission to drive these two young men out of town so they wouldn't have their peaceful demonstration?
THE WITNESS: No, sir, that was not the purpose of my mission.
MR. WEINGLASS: Didn't you discontinue on Tuesday when you found out that they couldn't be driven out of town, or Mr. Davis was doing nothing wrong?
THE WITNESS: No, sir, that is not true.
MR. WEINGLASS: Nothing further.