Former University student Ian Van Ornum, who Eugene police tasered and arrested at the anti-pesticide rally he organized downtown last May, is raising money to help offset his legal fees.
The former student will hold a concert on Sunday at Cozmic Pizza to raise funds for the fees he incurred while fighting the charges of disorderly conduct and resisting arrest, which he was convicted of last month.
Van Ornum’s band, The Mossy Top String Band, and another band, Sunheart, will play at 8 p.m. and collect donations to support Van Ornum.
University junior Cimmeron Gillespie, who has helped Van Ornum organize the event, said the 19-year-old cannot afford the court-appointed fees on his own.
“Right now he has $600 left to pay, and this will help pay for that,” Gillespie said. “Ian’s not a wealthy person.”
While the concert will garner support for Van Ornum, Gillespie said, it’s also about addressing some of the questions raised by the student’s arrest.
“There are broader issues of police behavior,” he said. “And what exactly are our rights? (Van Ornum) feels like he was just doing his thing – exercising his right to free speech and doing street theater. And clearly it ended very poorly for him.”
Van Ornum and witnesses to his arrest plan to speak at the event.
Gillespie said it is also an opportunity for the community to connect with Van Ornum personally.
“There’s what you read in the paper and there’s another perspective,” he said.
From a name in headlines to a person in the flesh, Gillespie said, the University and Eugene communities will get to know Van Ornum, the face of the city’s most controversial Taser case.
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