Oct 30 Stillwater Levy Scandal: In A Nutshell

The organized effort to systematically harass, intimidate and retaliate against citizens who oppose the Stillwater ISD 834 tax levy began during the Summer of 2007.

An anonymous blogger known only as "Stillwater Infidel aka NSA" posted personal information about folks who publicly spoke out against the tax levies at School Board meetings, Open Forums, in Letters to the Editor, and/or posted campaign signs on their private property.

On Sept. 11, 2007, Primary Election Day, a Stillwater couple, members of the group opposing the levy had a bomb blow up in their mailbox. They reported the incident to the Washington County Sheriff's Office.

The problems continued with anonymous posters stating on the CRS834 blog that members of CRS "deserved whatever happened to them" due to their campaign activities against the tax levies. Local media sources covered the story with a slightly sympathetic slant toward the "Stillwater Infidel" and his cohort of pro-levy edu-terrorists. The Stillwater Police stated publicly that in their opinion no crime had been committed in the anonymous postings, so they declined to investigate.

Channel 5 Eyewitness News ultimately outed the Stillwater Infidel as Stillwater resident Tom Nacey. Nacey was subsequently linked to State Auditor Rebecca Otto's campaign as a key contributor. Links were also established between Nacey and dumpbachmann.com, a liberal blog dedicated to fomenting criticism of conservative republican Congresswoman Michele Bachmann. Nacey stated that he did not act alone in posting as Stillwater Infidel. He said he would not reveal the names of others involved in the Stillwater Infidel anonymous postings until after the levy referendum vote in November.

A gentleman running for School Board who is opposed to the school tax levies (not a member of CRS834 but endorsed by them) received many harassing and intimidating emails, letters and phone calls from teachers, school employees, and others. He was so shaken and upset by the angry and nasty nature of the treatment, he withdrew his annual Communication Scholarship awarded each year to a Marine Elementary School student.

A CRS834 member, who is also running for School Board, received anonymous harassing telephone calls, letters, and emails - several from Stillwater Area High School Students. When presented to Superintendent Ryskoski and School Board Chairperson Kathy Bucholtz, the response was, "We do not condone illegal behavior from either side" [of the levy issue].

On Oct. 25, 26, 27 and 28, over 200 anti-levy campaign signs were stolen. In some cases, notes were left. On Oct. 25, the Pioneer Press publishes an article after receiving pressure from the pro-levy group, Yes to Kids, regarding the theft of their campaign signs in the Stillwater School District. Yes to Kids members blame the anti-levy group.

On Thursday, Oct. 25, between 9:00 and 10:00 p.m., someone started stealing "Vote No Demand Accountability" and "Jim Kremer for School Board" signs from all over School District 834. Several people whose signs were stolen found notes in their mailboxes or on their front step the next morning.

Friday morning, people began contacting Stillwater Police to report the crimes. One gentleman went to the School District Office to report the crime, and after finding the district employees very "defensive," he went to the Stillwater Gazette who promised to do a story on the thefts.

Saturday, a CRS834 supporter went to a field where a sign had been stolen in order to remove the rebar that had been holding up the sign. Right by one of the pieces of rebar, the gentleman saw a cell phone laying on the ground. The cell phone revealed several pieces of information about the owner of the phone and his family contact information. The seventeen year old owner of the phone is an Honor Roll student at Stillwater High School. The question was how best to use the evidence of a continued, organized effort to harass, intimidate, threaten, and thwart the Civil Rights of citizens opposed to the school tax levies. Due to the complete lack of interest by local and county law enforcement the CRS834 group referred the information they had gathered to a Channel 5 KSTP Investigative Reporter.

Channel 5 produced a story on the sign thefts and evidence found which aired on Monday, Oct. 29, at 6:00 and 10:00 p.m. While the story didn't do justice to the history of levy opponent intimidation and harassment, the story did cover the sign thefts and cell phone discovered at the scene of the crime.

There is a lingering sense of hope that the entire story will be thoroughly investigated by local, county, state and federal law enforcement and ultimately reported by other ethical news sources going forward.

In case anyone has forgotten:

• Intimidation is against the law.
• Harrassment is against the law.
• Trespassing is against the law.
• Defamation is against the law.
• Bombing a mailbox is against the law.
• Stealing is against the law.
• Attempting to restrict a person's right to express their political views is a violation of the U.S. Constitution.

Cross-posted at Wright County Republican