10/06/2021
Nick Vazquez needs your help.
Nick recently completed an 800-mile pilgrimage across Florida. When he arrived in Tallahassee he presented his Demands to the Governor DeSantis and was later arrested on the Florida Capitol steps. When he returned to the Capitol a week later, he was arrested again. This time the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (the Governor’s law enforcement agents) seized Nick for violating a bail condition concerning a prior arrest for walking on the Sunshine Skyway Bridge on June 12. Thrown in jail in Leon County and held without bond until September 28, Nick was then transported to the Manatee County Jail, where he remains in jail without bond. His next court appearance is not until October 11. A trial is calendared for October 25. Essentially, after presenting demands the Governor DeSantis, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement has arranged to keep Nick in jail for more than a month - without the possibility of bail.
Not all of us are able to engage in nonviolent civil disobedience. This is your opportunity to take direct action and help Nick, who has been arrested at least 8 times and thrown into jail for warning young people about how climate collapse threatens them. By engaging in a few simple acts of support, you can protest this injustice and help ensure Nick’s safety.
The best way to protect someone in jail is for jail authorities know that the prisoner has support on the outside. Your voice is important.
To begin, identify who you are calling about:
Nicholas Vazquez
Booking #: 2021007431
Case #: 2021MM1939
Then call and email the officials below:
Manatee County Sheriff Rick Wells
941-747-3011
Manatee County Jail Administrators
Corrections Bureau Major Yvonne Miller: [email protected]
Corrections Bureau Major Thomas Porter: [email protected]
Important: When contacting Sheriff Wells, Major Miller, and Major Porter, please remember that Extinction Rebellion America engages in nonviolent civil disobedience. The staff at the Manatee County Jail are not our personal enemies. Thus far, Sheriff’s personnel in the jail have been professional and courteous. Do not engage in verbal or written aggression. Treat jail administrators with respect and emphasize that you expect that they treat Nick with respect.
To protest Nick’s arrest and pre-trail detention without bail, call and email the officials below:
Governor Ron DeSantis
email: [email protected]
phone: 850-717-9337
Gov. DeSantis Chief of Staff - James Uthmeier
email: [email protected]
phone: 850-717-9310
Florida Dept. of Law Enforcement - Commissioner - Rick Swearingen
Commissioner Swearingen does not provide a phone or email contact. However, you can contact the Florida Dept. of Law Enforcement as follows:
email: https://www.fdle.state.fl.us/Contact-Us/Comment-Form.aspx
phone: 850-410-7000
Nothing raises a prisoner’s spirit more than receiving mail or a visit.
Jails regulate both mail and visits; for example, if you write to Nick you must do so on a postcard, envelopes are not allowed. The rules are complicated but doable. Please, consider writing to Nick.
Here are the Manatee County Jail requirements for sending mail.
https://www.manateesheriff.com/Bureaus/MailGuidelines .tab=0
Here are the Manatee County Jail requirements for visiting.
https://www.manateesheriff.com/Bureaus/InmateVisitation .tab=0
Thank you for taking action. If you have questions do not hesitate to contact me.
John Hagar
[email protected]
http://mobilize.xramerica.org/
