Legal Observers are individuals who attend protests, demonstrations, or direct actions to observe and record law enforcement actions towards protesters. Legal Observers do not act as part of the protest, but carefully document the actions of the police with the goal of later using that information as an objective account of the events in criminal or civil legal cases. Legal Observers are identifiable by neon green hats that say \u201cNational Lawyers Guild.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n Legal Observers are present to monitor police behavior, not the behavior of protesters. Legal Observers are not protest marshals or \u201cpeace police.\u201d We do not tell protesters what to do, what not to do, or tone-police their messages.<\/span><\/p>\n The Legal Observer\u00ae program is part of a comprehensive system of legal support by our Mass Defense Committee designed to enable people to express their political views as fully as possible without unconstitutional disruption or interference by the police and with the fewest possible consequences from the criminal justice system. The presence of Legal Observers\u00ae may serve as a deterrent to unconstitutional behavior by law enforcement during a demonstration. <\/span>If Legal Observers witness an arrest, they are able to quickly relay that information to our volunteer attorneys to coordinate jail support, preserve evidence, and provide information.<\/p>\n Community members can request Legal Observers for protests, demonstrations, or direct actions. The NLG does not enforce parameters on the types of tactics protesters use. The NLG seeks to function as an effective force in the service of the people by valuing human rights over property interests. <\/span>We do not accept LO requests for events that advance platforms contrary to our mission.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Anyone who fills out our volunteer form, is vetted and approved by the Legal Observer coordinators, and attends a local NLG Utah training. Email us at legalobserver@nlgutah.org<\/a> to get involved! Becoming an NLG member is encouraged but not required. NLG offers a sliding scale membership fee model (https:\/\/www.nlg.org\/join\/)<\/a>. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n To the extent our resources allow, the Utah Chapter provides Legal Observer support to the activist community. \u00a0There are no fees or costs associated with this service; it is strictly volunteer-driven.<\/span><\/p>\n If your request\u00a0is urgent, please indicate the urgency in the subject line of your email. \u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" What is a Legal Observer?\u00a0 Legal Observers are individuals who attend protests, demonstrations, or direct actions to observe and record law enforcement actions towards protesters. Legal Observers do not act as part of the protest, but carefully document the actions of the police with the goal of later using that information as an objective account […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1718,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_kad_blocks_custom_css":"","_kad_blocks_head_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_body_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_footer_custom_js":"","footnotes":"","_members_access_role":[],"_members_access_error":""},"class_list":["post-112","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry","post"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tWhat is the purpose and benefit of arranging a Legal Observer with NLG?\u00a0<\/b><\/h4>\n
What are the eligibility requirements for organizations seeking Legal Observers at an event?<\/b><\/h4>\n
Who can become a Legal Observer?\u00a0<\/b><\/h4>\n
How do I request Legal Observers?\u00a0<\/b><\/h4>\n
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