Tara McGovern took their dog Maxwell for a walk. Earlier that morning, McGovern was questioned in front of a jury of peers. Following their testimony and some arguments from lawyers, the jury went to deliberate and McGovern went home and walked their dog.
“It would be nice to move on to the next step,” McGovern said.
They walked around the park two times. The dog pooped once. And McGovern got a call from their attorney.
“Well guess who’s not guilty?” said Gina Messamer, a partner at Des Moines’ Parrish Kruidenier Law Firm. “It’s you.”
A jury found Tara Dutcher, who goes by McGovern, not guilty of the offenses disorderly conduct and interference with official acts. McGovern was among hundreds of people who blocked an intersection in Iowa City during an October protest. The protest opposed a speaker who advocates against gender affirming care for minors.
The University of Iowa City Police Department charged seven people in connection with the event. Most were charged with disorderly conduct for obstructing the street, a serious misdemeanor, and with interfering with police’s actions, a simple misdemeanor. Six people took a plea deal from the Johnson County Attorney. McGovern was the only person who took the charges to trial.
While McGovern’s charges were relatively minor, the charge for obstructing the street gained attention as it was part of a recent change in Iowa law that increased the penalties for protest related charges.
Moments after learning about their victory, McGovern said their attention turns to the future.
“But there certainly are possible things that could unfold as we move forward in terms of looking into why this could have happened and if there is a way we can prevent this from happening again,” McGovern said.
