A local activist who was arrested last month after cursing during a Tarrant County Commissioners Court meeting won't get another court hearing until November.
EJ Carrion, 37, was charged with disrupting a meeting, a Class B misdemeanor and hindering proceedings by disorderly conduct, a Class A misdemeanor. He was arrested a week after the meeting.
Carrion's court hearing Thursday was dismissed, and court records show his next hearing is set for Nov. 12.
He told KERA News the case should have been dropped and that he should be able to continue speaking at commissioners court meetings.
"At minimum, I wish that accountability was met, this was just an inappropriate overpower grab," Carrion said.
Carrion is well known in the community as the host of 817 Podcast and a regular attendee of commissioners court as well as Fort Worth City Council meetings.
He had used a profane word twice during his allotted time to speak. Carrion then called County Judge Tim O'Hare a small man as he left the room before O'Hare told him he was disrupting the meeting.
Profane, obscene, or slanderous remarks are among several things prohibited during these meetings, according to the Tarrant County Commissioners Court Rules of Decorum.
"Convicted of nothing, he can now be searched without a warrant at any time, cannot own a firearm, and could be arrested if he attempts to speak at public comment," Steven Lawrence, one of Carrion's attorneys, said Thursday. "Meanwhile, his travel is tracked by the Flock mass surveillance system. We intend to pursue restoration of the First, Second, and Fourth Amendment rights and civil redress from Judge O'Hare, Tarrant County, and anyone else responsible."
KERA News reached out to O'Hare and will update this story with any response.
His arrest also raised concern from Democratic commissioners and community members.
Carrion said he wants to pursue legal action — similar to what former state lawmaker Lon Burnam filed last week.
Burnam was arrested at the Aug. 4 meeting after sheriff deputies carried him out of the room by his hands and feet. He had lied down on the floor when they told him to leave the meeting.
His suit is asking for O'Hare to be removed from office.
Penelope Rivera is KERA's Tarrant County Accountability Reporter. Got a tip? Email Penelope Rivera at privera@kera.org.
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