PORT TOWNSEND — A Monday demonstration intended to draw attention to Port Townsend police practices was abruptly canceled the night before it was to occur and has been rescheduled.
The demonstration was scheduled for the steps of the Jefferson County Courthouse, 1820 Jefferson St., and was in response to a June 25 incident in which a Port Townsend man alleges he was mistreated by city police during a traffic stop.
Although no formal paperwork against the alleged mistreatment has been filed, the allegations have been disseminated on the social media website Facebook.
On Sunday night, 18 hours before the demonstration was to occur, the sponsor posted the postponement notice on its Facebook page, reading with words capitalized, “We Are Postponing The Demonstration Until A Later Date. We Ran Out Of Time To Do This Right. We Hope To Have Someone Soon That Will Be Taking On A Role For This Event.”
On Monday afternoon another notice appeared stating that an hourlong demonstration is planned Monday, Aug. 29, at 5 p.m.
Port Townsend Police Chief Conner Daily said his officers were following procedure when they stopped a car that contained Travis Moegling on June 25 and attempted to arrest him for failure to comply.
The police say that Moegling resisted arrest and had to be forcibly restrained, while Moegling claims excessive force by the police, including improper use of an electric stun gun.
The demonstration was initially advertised on Facebook by an organization called Port Townsend Brutality and has nearly 400 friends or followers.
Over the weekend, a second group called Clallam Brutality appeared on Facebook and now has 19 friends.
Both pages are run anonymously.
Moegling is scheduled to appear in Jefferson County District Court on Aug. 10 to face charges of failure to wear a safety belt, failure to obey a police officer, obstructing a law enforcement officer and resisting arrest.
If convicted, he could serve one year in jail.
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Jefferson County Reporter Charlie Bermant can be reached at 360-385-2335 or charlie.bermant@peninsuladailynews.com.