http://www.nytimes.com/2016/10/18/us/judge-rejects-riot-charge-against-amy-goodman-of-democracy-now-over-pipeline-protest.html 2016-10-18 00:41:52 Judge Rejects Riot Charge Against Amy Goodman of ‘Democracy Now’ Over Pipeline Protest The radio host had been facing charges over her reporting on demonstrations against the 1,170-mile pipeline in North Dakota in September, her lawyer said. === The radio journalist Amy Goodman spent the weekend with the threat of a riot charge hanging over her, arising from protests over a planned oil pipeline in North Dakota. But on Monday a judge rejected the case for lack of evidence. Ms. Goodman, the host and executive producer of the syndicated radio and web show “Democracy Now!” on Pacifica Radio, had planned to enter a not guilty plea on Monday, but District Judge John Grinsteiner judge declined to sign the charging document, bringing the case to a stop — at least for now. She and her lawyers declared victory on Monday, but Ladd Erickson, a state prosecutor who is assisting the Morton County state’s attorney’s office in the case, said other charges were possible. “I believe they want to keep the investigation open and see if there is any evidence in the unedited and unpublished videos that we could better detail in an affidavit for the judge,” he said via email. “The Democracy Now video that many people have seen doesn’t have much evidence value in it.” Mr. Erickson had informed the broadcaster of the planned riot charge. Ms. Goodman had characterized that as a threat to journalism and the First Amendment. Appearing in a Ms. Goodman, a Polk Award-winning journalist, was originally charged with criminal trespass The project has been the On Friday, the prosecutor, Mr. Erickson, dismissed the “The prosecutor seems to be determined to charge Amy with something,” Reed Brody, a lawyer for Ms. Goodman, said in a phone interview on Monday, before the judge’s decision. Ms. Goodman, 59, “I wasn’t trespassing,” she said. “I wasn’t rioting. The ‘Democracy Now’ team and I were there to report, to document what was happening on the ground. These charges are simply a threat to all journalists around the country: Do not come to North Dakota.” Mr. Erickson, the prosecutor, “She’s a protester, basically,” he said. “Everything she reported on was from the position of justifying the protest actions.” Mr. Brody said that the prosecutor could seek other charges, such as disturbing the peace. “It’s hard to see what the State of North Dakota gains by charging a reporter with a crime for doing her work,” he said. “If the attempt is to prevent people from talking about the Dakota Access pipeline, it certainly has not worked out for them.” The 1,170-mile pipeline has drawn thousands of protesters, many from the Standing Rock Sioux and other tribes who say that federal authorities approved the project without fully taking into consideration the tribes’ concerns that it would damage their water supplies and cultural sites. The federal government