Two men who helped lead summer protests in Appleton against police brutality charged months later with threatening officer at rallies

Natalie Brophy
Appleton Post-Crescent
Protesters demonstrate during a Black Lives Matter protest on Saturday, June 6, 2020, at Houdini Plaza in Appleton, Wis.

APPLETON - About three months after hundreds of people gathered in downtown Appleton to protest the death of George Floyd, Outagamie County prosecutors charged two Black men with threatening police officers during those rallies. 

Activists assert the charges against the men are the Appleton Police Department's attempt to silence free speech in opposition of police and scare people from protesting law enforcement. They're pushing to get the charges dropped. 

Charges filed against Ravel Wright, 21, of Appleton, and Justin Waters, 22, of Allouez, in early September accuse the men of threatening and yelling obscenities at Appleton police officers who were "providing security" during the summer protests, according to the criminal complaints.

Similar protests were held across the country over the summer in the wake of Floyd's death. Floyd, a Black man, was killed in May when Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin knelt on his neck for more than eight minutes during an arrest. Chauvin is charged with second-degree unintentional murder and second-degree manslaughter, and three other officers involved in the arrest are also facing criminal charges. 

Many of the nationwide protests were lead or inspired by the Black Lives Matter Foundation, an organization focused on issues that affect the Black community, including racial injustice, police brutality, voting rights and suppression. The group was formed in 2013 after the man who killed Trayvon Martin, George Zimmerman, was acquitted.

The Outagamie County district attorney's office charged Wright on Sept. 4 with threatening a law enforcement officer, a felony, and disorderly conduct in connection with a May 31 protest. Prosecutors filed the same charges against Waters on Sept. 9, plus a second charge of disorderly conduct, in connection with the May 31 protest and a June 6 protest. 

Prosecutors also filed an additional charge against Waters on Sept. 11, accusing him of resisting arrest while officers were trying to take him into custody on the charges stemming from the protests. 

Both Wright and Waters are free in lieu of $2,500 signature bonds. According to online Wisconsin court records, neither man has a criminal record in the state. 

The charges against Wright and Waters are an example of "white supremacy in action," said Kathy Flores, the anti-violence program director with Diverse & Resilient and the city of Appleton's former diversity and inclusion coordinator. Diverse & Resilient is an advocacy group that works with LGBTQ individuals and marginalized community members impacted by violence.

"These are young men," Flores said. "They may not be the most sophisticated protesters out there. They’re learning. They have a long way to go. But this essentially shuts them down. This essentially silences their voices and the voices of our Black community here, who might be too afraid in light of this to even stand up to the police when they feel they have been wronged. And that’s white supremacy.”

Outagamie County District Attorney Melinda Tempelis declined an interview request for this story, saying in an email that, as the cases' lead prosecutor, she's prohibited from speaking about pending cases under Wisconsin Supreme Court rules

The Appleton Police Department also declined a request for an interview with Chief Todd Thomas because the case is still pending, spokesperson Meghan Cash said in an email.  

Wright's attorney, public defender Jennifer Kelley, did not respond to messages requesting an interview for this story. 

Charging documents accuse Wright, Waters of threatening officers 

The criminal complaint against Wright accuses him of threatening to cause bodily harm to Appleton police Lt. Jack Taschner. 

According to the complaint, Wright was participating in a protest on May 31 in downtown Appleton at Houdini Plaza. He grabbed a megaphone and began addressing the crowd gathered, yelling obscenities and stating he had gotten a concealed carry permit to "kill the same people killing us!” He said, “I promise you, I’m going down with a fight," the complaint states. 

He later approached Taschner and said, “I will hunt you and your families down for what you did to my people. I’m worse that (sic) Malcolm X. I will burn it all down from top to bottom," according to the complaint.

Wright went up to other officers, who were not specifically named in court documents, and shouted obscenities as well. The complaint describes that Wright's "fists were balled and his stance was aggressive" when yelling at the officers. 

The complaint does not say if the exchange between Wright and officers was filmed on officers' body cameras. 

MORE: Read the complaint against Ravel Wright (language warning)

MORE: Read the complaint against Justin Waters (language warning)

The complaint against Waters accuses him of threatening to cause bodily harm to officer Anthony Jenkins while Jenkins was in his police car during a June 6 protest in downtown Appleton. 

According to the complaint, protesters surrounded Jenkins's car and he was "trapped" inside. Waters came up to the driver's side and yelled at Jenkins to get out of the car and participate in the group's chants, the complaint states.

Jenkins did not get out of the car and Waters said he and the other protesters were going to tip it over. According to the complaint, he bent down as if to start flipping the car over, but stopped when other protesters did not join in. Waters continued yelling obscenities at Jenkins and said, "Why you scared, you got a gun," according to the complaint. 

Based on the footage from Jenkins' body camera, "Waters seemed to be antagonizing Officer Jenkins and goading him into a physical confrontation," the complaint states. The police car was vandalized during this confrontation, but the complaint did not specify who spray-painted the car.

Jenkins called for assistance while the protesters were surrounding his car, but they moved on before police took further action, according to the complaint. 

Protesters gather for a Black Lives Matter march and rally on Saturday, May 30, 2020, at Houdini Plaza in Appleton, Wis.

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In a separate incident during the May 31 protest, prosecutors say Waters verbally abused officer Cole Kantner and it was captured on officers' body cameras. 

According to the complaint, Waters and a group of protesters came up to Kantner. Waters turned to the crowd and said Kantner had told Waters' "little bi-racial sister she was gonna be the next George Floyd,” the complaint states.  

According to the complaint, "this caused angry looks from many of the protesters and several of them moved closed to Officer Kantner. Waters appeared to be intentionally agitating the crowd." 

Waters told Kantner to take off his badge so the two could fight and "leaned forward in his stance, clenched his teeth, balled his fists and nearly touched Officer Kantner," according to the complaint. 

"Take that badge off I’ll knock yo f***** head right even further back," Waters said to Kantner, according to the complaint. 

Kantner did not respond to Waters, the complaint states. Then Waters said if Kantner said anything like that to his little sister again, "you gonna be right here hung by you (sic) f***** neck. That’s a promise" and pointed toward the monument at Houdini Plaza, according to the complaint. 

Kantner then moved across the street to get away from Waters and the others "who were engaging in threatening behaviors" but Waters followed Kantner and "continued to verbally abuse him," the complaint states. 

Neither man has entered pleas to the charges, but both are scheduled to make their next court appearances Dec. 3. If convicted of the felony threatening an officer charge, they could both face up to six years in prison. 

Activists question timing of, motivation behind charges  

Protesters gather for a Black Lives Matter march and rally on Saturday, May 30, 2020, at Houdini Plaza in Appleton, Wis.

Community activists believe the charges against Wright and Waters never should have been filed and are calling for them to be dropped immediately. They questioned the timing of the charges; Tempelis did not file them until three months after the protests had happened. 

“Truly, if you’re feeling threatened, it shouldn’t take months (for charges to be filed)," said Amy Ongiri, the director of film studies at Lawrence University and a local activist for LGBTQ and minority rights. "And you’re a police officer, you have every access to the resources to report it and to get it taken seriously. Why does it take so long?”

Activists are also skeptical that the officers mentioned in the complaint actually feared for their safety when they were confronted by Wright and Waters. Some Appleton police officers were seen kneeling with protesters and took the time to speak with them, march with them and dance with them.

“They were charged with threatening a police officer and, in order for that to happen, the police officer had to feel they were in fear of their lives," Flores said. "These police officers protested with them, walked with them and photo op-ed with them all summer long. You cannot tell me these police officers were fearing for their lives.”

David Hassel, a Green Bay civil rights attorney representing Waters, raised similar questions during an interview with The Post-Crescent. He said he doesn't understand why the authorities are going after Waters. Hassel said Waters plans to plead not guilty to all charges. 

"We’re going to pursue the defense very aggressively because this is a young man with a bright future ahead of him," Hassel said. "And he really just does not deserve to have any of this on his record going forward. After all he’s done for the community, this is the reward he gets.”

Waters is reluctant to return to Appleton because of the charges, Hassel said. He hopes more information about the authorities' motivations behind the charges will come to light in court. 

"The Outagamie (County District Attorney's Office) and the Appleton Police Department owe some sort of explanation why this took on such great importance," Hassel said. "And why Justin (Waters). And why they’re continuing to pursue these charges, and actually file these charges quite a while after the major protests were over.

“I hope that eventually we either get an explanation or that they think better of what they’ve done and drop the charges,” Hassel said. 

Activists are encouraging the community to call or email Tempelis and Thomas to demand the charges against the men be dropped. Flores said prosecuting Wright and Waters "doesn't protect police any differently." 

"This doesn’t solve any of the community’s problems," Flores said. "It just tells protesters that we’re under a scrutiny as protesters with our speech in a way that other people aren’t. And Black Lives Matter protesters – Black Black Lives Matter protesters, especially."

Activists are using social media to encourage people to contact the Outagamie County District Attorney's Office and Appleton Police Department to demand charges be dropped against Ravel Wright and Justin Waters, two Black men who helped lead Black Lives Matter protests in Appleton.

Jim Palmer, the executive director of the Wisconsin Professional Police Association, said not prosecuting Wright and Waters would be a disservice to those who protest peacefully. 

"I think it should be just as important for activists who want to make sure that their messages of reform and change are heard," Palmer said. "This should be just as important to them as it is to law enforcement officers, who shouldn't have their families and their safety threatened at what was probably an otherwise peaceful protest event."

The WPPA represents and advocates for the interests of Wisconsin's police officers. As someone who works closely with police, Palmer said he absolutely fears for officers' safety when they have to respond to protests and civil unrest.

"I think these two cases involving Mr. Wright and Mr. Waters kind of highlight some of the challenges facing officers that are working these protest events and activities, attempting to keep everyone safe and at the same time, protect the rights of expression that are guaranteed under our Constitution," Palmer said. "And when you have certain individuals at these events, whether they're trying to goad officers into a conflict or incite some type of violence or flatly threatening officers and their families, that is of significant concern."

Molly Collins, advocacy director for the ACLU of Wisconsin, said she is not familiar with any other cases in Wisconsin of protesters being charged with threatening police officers during rallies.

“There is no sort of statewide data source where we would be able to see what kind of charges or tickets were issued as a result of people’s participation in protests," Collins said. "By far, the most common tickets people have been getting are either curfew violations if they are protesting after a municipality has (issued) curfew or disorderly conduct.”

APD trying to silence protesters, activists say

Wright and Waters were not the only people who shouted obscenities and other similar sentiments at police during these rallies. Other people of all ages, genders and races participated and were justifiably angry at repeatedly seeing and hearing about police killing Black people and then not being held accountable, Flores and Ongiri said. 

The authorities are going after Wright and Waters because they were leaders, activists said. The charges against the two men are the authorities' attempt at silencing free speech and discouraging further protests against the police — and it's working, Ongiri said. 

People demonstrate during a Black Lives Matter protest on Saturday, June 6, 2020, at Houdini Plaza in Appleton, Wis.

"(People are) extremely afraid," Ongiri said. "The first arrest was shocking. The second one was like a notice, like, 'Watch out, you might be next.' And believe me, everybody feels like they might be next. I sat with people the day after they arrested Justin (Waters) and we were talking about, ‘Well, what did we say?’ We’re supposed to have the right to assembly, we’re supposed to have the right to free speech and you’re sitting there thinking like, ‘Did I say anything that could be constituted as a threat?'"

Palmer said the idea that the prosecution of Wright and Waters is an attempt by police to silence critical speech is "absurd" and "absolutely ridiculous."

Not all speech is protected under the First Amendment. The United States Supreme Court has ruled that true threats are not protected speech, but threats said in jest or as hyperbole are protected.

Most of what Wright and Waters said to officers, such as insults and swear words, falls into the protected speech category, University of Wisconsin Law School professor and First Amendment expert Anuj Desai said. But some of their statements — like "I will hunt you and your families down for what you did to my people" and "you gonna be right here hung by you (sic) f***** neck. That’s a promise" — could be interpreted as crossing the line into constitutionally unprotected speech, Desai said. 

"Whether it is protected or unprotected speech depends on whether or not those words constituted a true threat," Desai said. "And to determine whether or not those words constituted a true threat depends on the circumstances."

It's up to the prosecution to lay out those circumstances for a potential jury to interpret and to prove that a person's words are "a precursor to some real potential act of violence," Desai said.

"The tricky part about it, ultimately, is what is in the mind," he said. "(Prosecutors) do have to prove what is in the mind of the criminal defendant. It is not enough, for example, just to show that the officer was scared.

"(Prosecutors) do need to prove not just that the officer was objectively scared, but that the defendant, subjectively in his own mind, intended to carry out the threat," Desai said.

Based on his reading of the criminal complaints in these cases, Desai said he doesn't think a judge is likely to throw out the cases for violating Wright's and Waters' First Amendment rights. 

Palmer said it is clear that Wright's and Waters' speech crossed the line.

"I think it's clear that these weren’t individuals that were merely yelling derogatory comments at police officers," Palmer said. "Law enforcement officers are long accustomed to that. These rose to the level of, in one case, threatening an officer, his kids, his family. And in the other, trapping an officer in his squad car, which was vandalized. In both cases, there were overt attempts on the part of these individuals – from the criminal complaints that are documented – that they were trying to goad law enforcement into some kind of conflict. And I think that does cross the line."

Protesters demonstrate during a Black Lives Matter protest on Saturday, June 6, 2020, at Houdini Plaza in Appleton, Wis.

Activists disagree that Wright and Waters were truly threatening police and doubt the officers actually feared for their lives. Ongiri contends that the Appleton Police Department is attempting to portray the men as violent "thugs," which could ruin their lives if they're convicted of felonies, she said. 

“I think a lot of very negative, anti-Black racism is at work to squelch Black Lives Matter and ruin these guys’ lives," Ongiri said. "Unjust doesn’t quite cover it, but it’s definitely unjust.”  

“I’m very upset at the injustice of this," Flores said. "These two young men have a real chance to be leaders in this community. This police department doesn’t want to see them as leaders because they’re leading a Black Lives Matter movement and that’s not what they want to see rise up in Appleton.”

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Contact Natalie Brophy at (715) 216-5452 or nbrophy@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter @brophy_natalie