Chris Kaihatsu, the Chicago Independent Media Center repoter who was arrested while covering a Mayor's Conference protest here in Madison in June, had his pre-trial conference with a representative of the Dane County District Attorney's office on Thursday, August 8. Chris has maintained his plea of not guilty.

Chris Kaihatsu, the Chicago Independent Media Center repoter who was arrested while covering a Mayor's Conference protest here, had his pre-trial conference with a representative of the Dane County District Attorney's office on Thursday, August 8.

The entire meeting took less than three minutes and was conducted in a noisy conference room where three other representatives from the DA's office were holding simultaneous conferences with other people making their way through the justice system.

Kaihatsu, wearing a suit and tie, listened as the DA spokeswoman offered him essentially the same deal he was offered at his initial appearance in court: if Chris would agree to th charge of disorderly conduct, the DA would agree to settle the case for time served and not issue a fine (The charge is not a criminal charge - it is an ordinance violation, similar to getting a traffic ticket).

Chris maintained his plea of not guilty and had prepared several documents to support his case, including coverage of the protests and his arrest from the Madison IMC and other local news outlets. The DA representative told him that "this was not the proper forum" to present the evidence and that he could submit his exhibits in court.

A trial date has not been set, but Kaihatsu is expected to receive notice of a date for a court trial in four to six weeks. It is likely that he will be defending himself, as he has no attorney and is not eligible for a public defender in this case.

An audio recording of the meeting was made - if the sound quality turns out to be adequate, a copy of it will be posted here.

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