Johnson County attorney faces censure for charging trans protesters at Chloe Cole event

Several arrests stemming from a fall protest have caused a stir in the Iowa City community.

Johnson County Supervisor Jon Green and the Iowa City Human Rights Commission have condemned charges against seven transgender and non-binary persons who participated in a protest on the University of Iowa campus against controversial activist Chloe Cole.

Green has drafted a resolution voicing his disapproval of the arrests and the Johnson County Democratic Party will consider it at a central committee meeting on Thursday. Green's proposed censure is aimed at Johnson County attorney Rachel Zimmermann Smith, who filed the charges against the protestors.

The Human Rights Commission has also asked the county attorney's office to dismiss the charges, saying in a statement on Jan. 24 that the arrests "raise important questions about the actions of law enforcement and the broader functioning of the justice system."

Most protesters arrested nearly a month after an October rally outside of Cole's speech have pleaded guilty after being charged with disorderly conduct and interference with official acts. More than 100 demonstrators circled the intersection of Madison Street and Jefferson Street on Oct. 16 during Cole's appearance at the University of Iowa Memorial Union.

The Press-Citizen reported that the protestors blocked traffic south on Madison Street.

From October: Detransitioned Chloe Cole shares transgender journey as protesters, police clash on UI campus

Cole's appearance stirs controversy

Cole, a “detransitioned” activist, shared her experiences with a gender transition process with a crowd inside the union, a process that she said began at age 12. She also spoke of her efforts to keep minors from transitioning.

Criminal complaints indicate protestors blocked traffic for 20 minutes during an alleged “unlawful assembly” outside the student union.

Police say they tried to open a single lane of traffic for vehicles while allowing the "unlawful assembly" to occur, but the protesters blocked police from helping nearby vehicles.

A complaint against one of the individuals said that the protestors allegedly “had to be physically pushed, pulled and restrained” from the road multiple times so they would not be in front of vehicles. That same person also allegedly “hip-checked” an officer who was attempting to remove them from the road, according to police.

The charges against six of the seven were filed on Nov. 3, nearly three weeks after Cole's visit, according to court records. The seventh person was charged in mid-December.

Each alleged protestor was contacted on Nov. 14 by a University of Iowa Police Department detective, according to a website set up in support of the people charged.

More: University of Iowa makes Mercy Hospital transition official with new downtown signage

JoCo Democrats to consider censure of county attorney on Thursday

Green said he was "immediately alarmed" when he found out that all seven protestors arrested identified as transgender or nonbinary.

Green is introducing a censure as a formal show of disapproval against county attorney Rachel Zimmermann Smith.

“As it became clear that the folks who were being charged were all transgender or nonbinary, I mean that was alarming,” Green said. “And so I took some time to wait to see what facts came out, if there was any explanation attempted as to why the identities of the folks being charged were all transgender and nonbinary. I didn't hear anything. I made repeated attempts.”

Green said he spoke with Zimmermann Smith on several occasions, but they weren't “sufficient enough to address my concerns,” he said.

“I wanted something that was calibrated to meet the moment, but I also wanted something that is going to give my fellow Democrats the opportunity to go on the record to express how they feel about things,” Green said. “And I'm sure that will happen during the discussion of the resolution Thursday.”

The proposal will go to the county Democrats’ central committee at a Thursday night meeting at Carpenters Local 1260 in southeast Iowa City.

Zimmermann Smith ran as a Democrat in 2022 when she won the seat vacated by the retirement of long-time county attorney Janet Lyness.

She told the Press-Citizen she was upholding the law by charging the protestors.

“As county attorney my job is not to do what is politically popular or convenient but to uphold the law without fear or favor,” Zimmermann Smith wrote. “I cannot comment further on pending cases, or the actions of the vice chair of the Johnson County Board of Supervisors.”

Johnson County Supervisor V Fixmer-Oraiz, a transgender person of color, also released a statement on Facebook on Tuesday night, denouncing the actions of Zimmerman Smith’s office and asking their fellow party members and the community to help protect the rights of the transgender community.

“As a queer, transgender, Person of Color, I am used to being told to wait,” Fixmer-Oraiz wrote, responding to claims that this resolution would be unprecedented. “But when the government is actively stripping away the rights of my people, the people I was elected to serve, I find it unconscionable that members of the Democratic Party would tell me that now is not the time to set precedent.”

Fixmer-Oraiz was elected to the Board of Supervisors in 2022. They provided a list of elected officials who will be on-site for Thursday’s vote, including a few of Coralville and Iowa City’s city councilors, mayors from Coralville and Swisher, and Fixmer-Oraiz’s peers.

Fixmer-Oraiz was adamant that they use this moment as an opportunity to speak out in support of the LGBTQ+ community.

“Now, as is often the case, the vast majority of those who are able to vote have nothing to lose,” Fixmer-Oraiz said in the social media post. “I am the only transgender elected official in this county. With this state legislature, I stand to lose everything. Members of my community. My mental health. My dignity.”

More: Coralville startup Inseer is using AI to address workplace injuries. Here’s how it works

Trial awaits for at least one protester

Originally, each of the seven protestors charged faced disorderly conduct, a serious misdemeanor, and interference with official acts, a simple misdemeanor.

In one of the plea deals agreed to by a protester and reviewed by the Press-Citizen, the defendant agreed to pay $350 — a $250 fine plus roughly $100 in court costs — and incur no more than six months of probation when sentenced as part of their agreement, forgoing a trial.

At least one of the arrest protesters is headed for a jury trial that is set to begin in March.

An online fundraiser supporting the arrested protestors has raised more than $10,000 to cover legal fees for the seven.

More: Iowa City Senior Center's Black History Ball is a night of celebration and community connection

Iowa City's Human Rights Commission calls for dismissal of charges

The Iowa City Human Rights Commission statement asked the county to dismiss all charges. The organization claims a recent law "criminalizes a standard practice of protest: blocking traffic."

They said arresting transgender and nonbinary protestors will continue to silence "the most marginalized and discriminated against among our community," which the commission said includes the black and brown community as well as immigrants and the LGBTQ+ community.

"They are all harmed by this unjust law and the blind enforcement of it," the statement reads.

The Human Rights Commission has asked local law enforcement to "review" how future protests are handled in Iowa City to "ensure it is a place that protects our universal and constitutional right to assemble and speak freely without fear of retribution.

The commission closed by asking the community to support one another.

"Stand up and speak out when you see targeted discrimination and urge our elected officials to protect the human rights of those most at risk," the Human Rights Commission said.

Ryan Hansen covers local government and crime for the Press-Citizen. He can be reached at rhansen@press-citizen.com or on X, formerly known as Twitter, @ryanhansen01.

This article originally appeared on Iowa City Press-Citizen: Charges against seven trans protesters spark uproar in Johnson County