'Ed' Found Guilty
posted 11:32 pm Wed March 26, 2008 - Campbell Co., VA
reporter:
Josh Farmer
posted by:
Webteam
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A Rustburg man says the laws of Virginia don't apply to him. Wednesday afternoon, he went on trial for weapons charges. This all started back in November when police arrested him for driving a car with homemade license plates.
The plates read simply "Ed" -- the only name he would the officers. He said he'd given up his last name, along with his driver’s license, birth certificate and social security card because he didn't want to be beholden to any form of government. The argument didn't sit well in court.
Meet Ed.
Edward Martin, Anarchist - "I am not a debtor, a person, a thing, a fiction, a corporation, a resident, a citizen, an enemy of the state, a human being, an individual, or any other dead term I may have missed that the system labels men with."
Ed doesn't believe in what he calls that 'fictional entity' known as the Commonwealth of Virginia (web) . Rejecting government, as a principle, isn't necessarily illegal, but driving without a license, scraping off a vehicle identification number, and concealing a weapon without a permit is. That's what brings him here.
Martin - "Sir, until the prosecution proves that they have jurisdiction over me, I'm not entering any pleas to any charges."
Judge Flannagan, Campbell County Circuit Court - "Well, I'm sure you may be aware Mr. Martin, that that position is a little bit unusual."
Unusual or not, it's Ed's only defense.
Martin - "I'm not guilty of any of the accused crimes because I'm not commercial property of the Commonwealth, and nobody's proved that I am."
Whoever thought they'd have to?
Paul McAndrews, Prosecutor - "I think when you're traveling through any part of the United States and you break any of its laws or any of the states' laws, you're subject to them."
That's whether you choose to sign on or not.
Martin - "There is no crime in this case. There are no injured parties, no victims, no accusers, no true witnesses or broken contract in this case."
What there is -- a state code and, it turns out, that's not something you can opt out of.
Judge Flannagan - "I do find that you are guilty."
Ed, whose real name is Edward Martin, was convicted on five counts -- two felony weapons charges and three misdemeanor traffic violations. He'll be sentenced on May 19th.
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