Press release from Buncombe County District Attorney Todd Williams:
ASHEVILLE— Today the District Attorney’s Office voluntarily dismissed the remaining pending “Aston Park” littering cases. The dismissal forms indicated “prosecutorial discretion” as the basis for the dismissals.
The cases arose from an investigation initiated by the Asheville Police Department as a result of a series of events at Aston Park in December of 2021 and another incident in January 2022 when rocks were thrown through the front door of Asheville City Hall breaking glass.
Officers with the Asheville Police Department first responded to Aston Park on December 19, 2021 in response to complaints of tents being set up on the property in violation of city ordinance. When officers arrived those present claimed they were having an “art party”, and that the tents were “art”. Officers advised the participants that while the activities could continue until the park’s closing time, the tents would need to be removed. Though the tents were eventually removed, the participants left many items, including multiple wooden pallets screwed together, sheets, and large pieces of furniture. These items were cleared by Asheville City Parks and Recreation before the park could re-open to the public the next morning.
On December 20, 2021, the Asheville Police Department did not respond to Aston Park; however, prior to opening on the morning of December 21, employees with Parks and Recreation again cleared items from the Park, including wooden pallets, signage, chicken wire, sheets and furniture.
That same day, the Asheville Police Department responded again to the park in the early evening. Officers found that the center of the park had been cordoned off with two separate entrances being barricaded by pyramids consisting of eighteen tires bolted together and filled with dirt. Various pieces of furniture and household items were again found, including: a porcelain sink hung from a tree; a full size bed frame and chairs; a vacuum cleaner; streamers hung from trees; large amounts of signage; rudimentary fencing constructed from stakes and chicken wire; and other miscellaneous refuse. Officers informed those present that they were littering and could be charged, but no apparent efforts were made by them to remove the items.
On December 25, 2021, Asheville Police Department responded once again to Aston Park after tents were again erected on park property after the park’s closure at 9:00 p.m. Officers first advised those present that the park was closed, then that they would be arrested for trespassing if they did not leave. While many of those present left, several refused to leave and were arrested. Among those arrested and charged were Reece Jaksec, as well as Matilda Bliss and Melissa Coit, who were later tried and convicted of misdemeanor Second Degree Trespass by a Buncombe County jury. The City later released several relevant body-cam videos.
Approximately two weeks later, when rocks were thrown through the front door of City Hall investigators with the Asheville Police Department identified a suspect by comparing City Hall surveillance video with body-cam video from Aston Park. Officers recognized that the slogan “Stop the Sweeps” which was written on the rocks was also a slogan used at the park. Reece Jaksec was later identified and charged in connection with the damage to City Hall and the littering of Aston Park.
The items and trash brought to and left in the park by the participants was confirmed by weight at the Buncombe County Landfill to be well over 1000 pounds, and required more than 100 man-hours by Parks and Recreation staff to remove. The City of Asheville spent an estimated $2,680 in the clean-up.
After an extensive investigation by the Asheville Police Department, 16 individuals were identified, charged, and indicted for Felony Littering in Excess of 500 Pounds. Messages exchanged by participants and obtained by investigators showed an intent to establish sanctuary camping for unhoused persons at Aston Park under the cover of an “art party” and that they wished to create a situation where “the optics of evicting camps around Christmas might be too much for the city.” Four defendants pleaded guilty and two were convicted by jury trial:
“City parks must remain open for people to gather and recreate in a spirit of shared community and must not be seized and repurposed for non-public use no matter how noble the cause may appear to some. The purpose of enforcement is not to oppress but instead to secure basic rights for everyone to safely use and enjoy public parks. Since the vandalism at Aston Park, however, Buncombe County has suffered from continued violent crime including several homicides, rapes, and an increase in youth gun crime. While the DA’s Office pledges to ensure that our parks remain open for the lawful use and enjoyment of all, we continue to prioritize the prosecution of violent crime to protect public safety and are now dismissing the remainder of the Aston Park cases in our discretion,” District Attorney Todd Williams said.
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