Members of the public who plan to attend court hearings in the case pending against the St. Anthony police officer accused of recklessly shooting and killing Philando Castile will need to follow strict rules of conduct.
An order written by presiding Ramsey County District Judge William Leary addresses everything from what people may wear to what time they may arrive and leave the court proceedings in the case pending against Jeronimo Yanez.
Anyone who arrives at the courtroom after a hearing starts, for example, will be ordered to leave, the order says.
And no one will be allowed to walk out of a hearing until the judge calls for a recess.
Another rule restricts wearing any clothes or buttons or carrying signs that in any way “refer to or call attention to (the case), the defendant, parties or witnesses,” the order says.
Spectators who can’t find a seat in the courtroom will be asked to leave, and no congregating will be allowed in the hallway outside it.
Further, “blocking of or loitering in walkways, doorways, staircases, or near elevator access … in any part of the (St. Paul City Hall and Ramsey County Courthouse),” during proceedings will be prohibited.
Enhanced regulations also will be enforced on cellphone use and other recording devices.
The unusually strict set of rules was issued in the name of providing a “fair and open process that recognizes the responsibility of the state, the rights of the Defendant and the public interest,” the order states.
Leary did not immediately respond Tuesday to a request for further explanation, nor did Ramsey County Chief Judge John Guthmann.
Yanez was charged in November with one count of second-degree manslaughter and two felony counts of dangerous discharge of a firearm for firing several bullets into Castile’s car during a routine traffic stop this past July, killing the 32-year-old black man.
Yanez has said through his attorneys that he shot out of fear for his life after Castile reached for the gun he was carrying in his pocket, despite Yanez’s commands what he was not to move.
Prosecutors say that Yanez recklessly shot Castile, a licensed gun owner, after Castile handed over his insurance card and “calmly and in a nonthreatening manner” told the four-year police officer he was carrying a firearm, according to the criminal complaint filed against Yanez.
When first announcing the decision to file charges in the case, Ramsey County Attorney John Choi said it was the state’s belief that Castile “never removed nor tried to remove his handgun,” at any point during the incident.
The shooting drew national attention and stirred protests around the Twin Cities and the country about accusations of police brutality against people of color.
With that in mind, the case should be heavily attended by members of the media and public.
A hearing is scheduled Wednesday for a defense motion filed in December that seeks to have the case against Yanez dismissed on the grounds that Castile was high on marijuana when he was pulled over and therefore culpably negligent in the shooting.
Prosecutors have refuted that assertion in legal filings, saying they had enough evidence to charge Yanez and that the suggestion that Castile somehow caused his own death through negligence is for a jury to decide.
Wednesday’s hearing is expected to start at 9 a.m.