Judge grants pretrial release for Des Moines protester arrested for leak charge, probation violation

A judge granted pretrial release for Black Lives Matter protester Viet Tran, who has been in jail for three weeks with no bond after being arrested for sharing confidential police documents from a July 1 protest at the Iowa Capitol to a local news station and for violating probation.

Tran, 21, was arrested on a class D felony of charge unauthorized dissemination of intelligence data after he showed a Des Moines Police Department bulletin to ABC affiliate WOI-TV during an interview that was later aired on television, according to police reports.

Tran, who faces up to five years in prison for that charge, is also charged with two simple misdemeanors from the July 1 protest: interference with official acts and disorderly conduct. 

The standard bond for class D felonies is $5,000 cash or surety. For simple misdemeanors, it is $300. Because Tran was on probation for a 2019 assault charge — an aggravated misdemeanor — he faced an additional probation violation charge with no bond. 

During a bond review hearing Thursday, Tran's lawyer, Glen Downey, argued he should be released on bond and that his arrest is being used to silence dissent, but the state prosecutor claimed Tran is a threat to the public.

"It's no secret that Mr. Tran is an activist, that Mr. Tran is engaged in speech that I think the state finds objectionable," said Downey, a civil rights and criminal defense attorney, during the hearing. "The state is more than welcome to find it objectionable, but it's not more than welcome to unconstitutionally use that speech to try to confine him and silence that dissent."

Polk County Assistant Attorney Olu Salami claimed Tran is violent and suggested either no bond or a $20,000 cash bond, based on tweets Tran posted on his public Twitter account and allegations made in a probation violation report filed Thursday morning. 

In the state's motion to resist granting Tran bond, Assistant Polk County Attorney Thomas Miller wrote:

 "(Tran) is a threat to public safety. On July 2, 2020, Defendant posted threats on Twitter threatening harm to Des Moines Police, to Sergeant Paul Parizek, to Iowa State Patrol, and to the governor. Defendant’s Twitter posts also stated 'I want y’all to burn down WHO 13 and KCCI. Gas and matches, that’s all you need.'"

Downey argued the threats mentioned in the resistance aren't credible; rather, the state's refusal for Tran to be released on bond is merely a scare tactic meant to silence protesters.

"They want Tran and others to stop talking, to stop acting," Downey said. "They are using him as an example to chill the speech of others: 'See what happens when you speak out? We'll put you in jail and we're not going to let you out.'"

Fifth Judicial District Judge Celene Gogerty said there were no charges against Tran in any of the allegations made in the probation violation report or the tweets and therefore denied the prosecutor's request, ordering pretrial release for Tran with requirements including a GPS bracelet. 

Tran was released from Polk County Jail Friday morning. He has a preliminary hearing on July 28, Downey told the Register.

Rare leak charge prompts questions, lawyer says 

The document Tran is accused of unlawfully disseminating was used by officers and state troopers to identify and arrest several protesters who police say were involved in a protest June 20 during which a police car was spray-painted and vandalized.

Tran's case is the second time a charge of unauthorized dissemination of intelligence data has been filed in Iowa since 2010, according to an Associated Press report.

Intelligence data, defined by Iowa code, means "information on identifiable individuals compiled in an effort to anticipate, prevent, or monitor possible criminal activity."

Downey questioned the validity of the claim the DMPD bulletin is confidential, since it remains on WOI-TV reporter Eva Andersen's Twitter feed and is accessible to the public.

"Tell me why the DMPD hasn't taken it down if it's confidential? Because they don't believe it," Downey said.

Sgt. Paul Parizek of the DMPD confirmed with the Register that the department had not asked Andersen to take down her tweet with the classified document.

The top of the DMPD bulletin includes a warning the document should not be shared or released to the public, which would violate Iowa code.

Downey took Tran's case pro bono. 

"I believe his case raises constitutional questions about the extent of the DMPD overreacting and its willingness to stifle dissent," he said. "I'm afraid the DMPD does not have the necessary training to deal with these protests constitutionally."

Robert Rigg, Director of the Criminal Defense Program and professor of Law at Drake University, questions whether the document classifies as intelligence data, since it included photos of protesters allegedly taken from social media and news outlets.

"(If) I get something off Facebook and give it so somebody else, is that intelligence data being disseminated? It's information being garnered off of a public source," Rigg said.

Alexandria Dea, 26, faces the same rare charge of unauthorized dissemination of intelligence data, as well as first-degree theft. Police said she took an investigative document from an officer and threw his radio out of reach during the July 1 protest on the Iowa State Capitol grounds.

Dea faces up to 10 years in prison. Dea's attorney, Ronald Langford, had not returned the Register's request for comment as of Thursday afternoon.

Andrea Sahouri covers breaking news for the Des Moines Register. She can be contacted at asahouri@registermedia.com, 515-284-8247 or on Twitter at @andreamsahouri. 

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