CHARGES TO BE DROPPED AGAINST ARRESTED COALITION MEMBER

Friday, December 17, 1999: Today, Friday, December 17, Collier County Sheriff Don Hunter and the Coalition of Immokalee Workers jointly announce that the Sheriff,s Office will recommend that charges of obstruction filed against Mr. Greg Asbed of the Coalition should be dropped. Mr. Asbed was detained in the course of the farmworkers, protests in Immokalee on Monday morning, December 13, as a result of uncertainty over whether the land on which Mr. Asbed was standing when he was arrested was public or private. In a meeting held between Sheriff Hunter, Sheriff,s office personnel and legal counsel, and Mr. Asbed and his legal counsel, it was agreed that the land was in fact likely public property. As a result, the Sheriff,s Office agreed to recommend that all charges against Mr. Asbed be dropped. Mr. Asbed also agreed to release the Sheriff,s office from any legal claims that might arise from his arrest. The cooperative tone of the meeting reflected the spirit that has characterized the relationship between the Coalition and the Sheriff,s office over the past several years. All parties agree that the same sense of cooperation will result in furthering the interests of the entire Immokalee community in the future.