An attorney for a National Rifle Association lobbyist Tuesday said recent protests at the home of Chris Cox in Alexandria, Virginia, earlier this month were coordinated to take place with a court appearance by a Lincoln woman accused of vandalizing his home in January.
But a lawyer for Patricia Hill, a research assistant professor of sociology at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, said attempts to change the narrative about his client and the evidence against her are threatening her right to a fair trial in a Virginia courtroom.
Hill was arrested Jan. 11 for misdemeanor destruction of property after she allegedly vandalized the Cox home. Alexandria police said Hill used red spray paint to vandalize the residence in October 2017 and again in January 2018.
Libby Locke, an Alexandria attorney who represents the Cox family, said the lobbyist's home has repeatedly been vandalized over the past few months with fake blood, as debate over gun rights and school safety has been waged nationally.
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Locke said protests held in front of Cox's home and a business owned by his wife are relatively new developments, however. She said a protest earlier this month led by Amanda Gailey, an associate professor of English at UNL, was "clearly designed to coincide" with Hill's appearance in a Virginia courtroom.
"In light of this history and relationship to someone who is willing to break the law, the Cox family does not view these activities as peaceable protest exercise," Locke said in a statement.
Gailey said the April protest, which she held with Catherine Koebel of Virginia, was legal and nonthreatening.
The duo, who called themselves "The Great American Gun Melt," passed out flyers calling for a boycott of the NRA and the small Alexandria business run by Cox's wife, according to a Facebook page for the organization, which describes itself as "The left flank of Gun Control."
The two also held signs in front of Cox's home. Gailey's read: "NRA Chris Cox profits off dead kids." Koebel's was an oversized check to Cox signed by "Grim Reaper, CEO."
Locke said Gailey and Koebel's actions were designed to harass and intimidate Cox and his family.
“These coordinated tactics have crossed the line of civility and human decency — veering into the public targeting of a wife and family of someone with whom they have a political disagreement.â€
Washington, D.C., attorney Jon Bourdon, who represents Hill, said the allegations police used to obtain a warrant — that the Lincoln woman used red spray paint to vandalize the home — were untrue.
“It should have been clear to everyone at the time, as it is abundantly clear now, that there was no spray paint,†Bourdon said in a statement Tuesday. “It appears that the untrue allegation concerning spray paint has been abandoned without acknowledging that it was simply not true.â€
The attorney added Hill was being unfairly connected to incidents with no bearing on her case.
“Like every American, Dr. Hill is entitled to a fair trial, which includes her right to be fairly and accurately confronted with the evidence against her,†he added. “It is inappropriate and runs counter to our system of justice to recast evidence outside the courtroom before the trial begins.â€
Hill is scheduled to appear again in a Virginia court May 21, where she faces a Class I misdemeanor.
Gailey, who advocates for gun control locally through “Nebraskans Against Gun Violence,†met Koebel online. The English professor was part of the protest of Turning Point USA at UNL last year that drew national attention, as well as
During that incident, Gailey held a sign asking the conservative student organization to put her on its “Professor Watch List†of faculty it says are radicals.
Gailey declined to comment Tuesday, but told the Washington Post over the weekend the protests are part of an effort to put social pressure on the Cox family: “People need to stop treating these predatory, sick people like they’re just a neighbor.â€
A UNL spokeswoman, Leslie Reed, said the university is not involved in the protests against Cox or the criminal allegations against Hill.
“They did this on their own time and were expressing their own beliefs and it really has nothing to do with the university,†Reed said. “In addition, the charge against Hill is a local law enforcement matter in Virginia and it is premature for us to comment upon that.â€