Delaware Man Charged After Regularly Criticizing Wilmington Council President, Officials At Public Meetings
WILMINGTON, Del. (CBS/AP) -- The council president of Delaware's biggest city is pressing criminal charges against a man who regularly criticizes her and other officials at public meetings. The News Journal reports that Dion Wilson of Wilmington was arrested at his home Wednesday on misdemeanor charges of harassment and disorderly conduct.
Court documents show City Council President Hanifa Shabazz told police she feared for her safety.
Wilson is free pending a December arraignment but his release conditions bar him from entering the city government building.
Wilson says his arrest is an overreach of power and an attempt to silence him. John Flaherty, a board member for the Delaware Coalition for Open Government, called Wilson's arrest an outrage.
"To have the police department come to his home and arrest him for expressing views contrary to what the City Council president believes, it's just not how democracy should work," Flaherty told the News Journal. "If anybody is at fault, it's the City Council president for abusing the right to use city law enforcement personnel for her own political purposes."
At one council meeting last month, Shabazz prevented Wilson from speaking during public comments, and Wilson responded with profanity.
(©Copyright 2019 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
