A trial date was set for a Mitchell man charged with obstruction after he refused to leave a Mitchell School Board meeting last September after not complying with the district’s mask mandate.
Reed Bender’s jury trial was set for August 2 at the Davison County Courthouse.
Mitchell police attempted to remove Bender from the meeting after he refused to wear a mask in compliance with the Mitchell School District’s mask mandate. Bender initially resisted the officers, and police threatened to use a taser on him. He left the meeting shortly thereafter.
The incident attracted national and international attention during the debate over masks and personal freedoms.
The obstruction charge is a misdemeanor punishable by up to one year in jail. Bender turned himself in to authorities after he was indicted by a grand jury in October. He was then released on a personal recognizance bond. A motions hearing was set for July 8.
(Story provided courtesy of KMIT.)
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