As promised, Roland “Buzzy” Roy has hired a lawyer to fight the $500 fine he got last February for illegally crossing the border from Derby Line into Canada to get a pizza.
Roy, a pharmacist, recently hired the St. Johnsbury-based firm Sleigh & Williams to challenge the fine he received from U.S. Customs and Border Protection on February 6, 2010. On that night, Roy strolled along Church Street across the border into Standstead, Quebec and was stopped by Vermont State Police as he re-entered.
Miffed about the encounter with the cops, Roy crossed two more times that night, ultimately getting stopped by border guards and fined $5000 — a penalty later lowered to $500.
(Roy made national news when NPR did a piece about him. Click here for that story. Click here to read 7 Days’ staffer Lauren Ober’s cover story about the towns).
Now, he wants the $500 fine expunged, but Customs and Border Protection hasn’t responded to his appeal. In a complaint filed in U.S. District Court in Burlington on Nov. 19, Roy asks the court to compell the feds to rule on his fine request.
In the filing, attorney David Sleigh notes that the 67-year-old Roy has lived in Derby Line his entire life, is an elected official, operates a small business and has no criminal record. Like other Derby Line and Stanstead Quebec residents, Sleight writes, Roy has been crossing the border almost daily since he was a teenager to visit friends, shop or dine out.
The cross-border culture is deeply ingrained in these two towns. The public library and opera house both straddle the international border. The towns share a municipal water supply and sewer system. In Roy’s case, many of his regular customers live on the Canadian side.
“But for reasons that remain unclear,” Sleigh writes, “the enforcement at Church Street changed, suddenly and without notice on February 6. …There had been no notice given as to the sudden new enforcement of a ban on crossing the border at Church Street.”
File photo by Matthew Thorsen.
This article appears in Dec 1-7, 2010.
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Meanwhile, while these sharp pizza sniffing agents were busy following the aroma of Oregano, an 18 wheeler drove by them with 30,000 pounds of cocaine(not bananas) Thanks to the late Harry Chapin for helping me with these words.
Buzzy is a trustee of the village. There was an agreement in place, between the trustees and the Border & Customs Enforcement management that besides Main Street, Church Street would stay open to pedestrians. In return, BCE would construct gates on two other streets that join the border villages. Then they got extra money for extra city/town/county police from all over the state (“Operation Stone Garden”, federal money)and started super-enforcement in violation of the agreement and with officers untrained in border operations and protocols. The friendliest border became a model of police paranoia in the name of security. A victory for terrorists.
Sent: Saturday, February 02, 2019 at 12:14 AM
From: “Grattan Puxon”
To: dale.farm@btinternet.com, “jASON CROTEAU”
Hi Jason,
Have to put it this way because of what we’re doing to
build a Roma Nation Mandate.
M’ikmaq bands and their militias published materials with the former Gypsy Lore society in1888 Nova Scotia.
Persons of mixed Romani and other [Mikmaq etc] can if they
are interested be included as Voters.
Each will need to say so and provide an email address.
Having said this, we need just as much to have alliances
with people, especially those fighting land issues. We were
allied to First Nation organizations and flew their flag during
the ten year Siege of Dale Farm [which involved a riot police
assault using Tasers in 2011]
Brexit has caused us to postpone the 11th Congress.
Grattan
chair DT
Good luck in your campaign
Grattan
To Whom It May Concern
This is to inform you that Jason M. Croteau of m’ikmaq
lejeneue family line roots
is a candidate member of the IRU (International
Romani Union).
The IRU, which has its roots in the 1st World
Romani Congress, in London in 1971, has held
ten such Congresses since that date for the purpose
of maintaining a collective representation
on behalf of M’igmaq, wabanaki , Abeneki Nation in canada and usa and other roma communities
around the globe.
The 10th Congress, which took place last year in
Skopje, Macedonia, adopted a program under the
title Democratic Transition, which has the aim of
creating a grass-roots electoral roll. It with this
work that Mr Croteau is assisting.
Sincerely,
Grattan Puxon
chair IRU Democratic Transition Commission
Romvote@gmail.com
The ligitamacy of this government they called a “democracy ” is being questioned by wabanaki and also roma people jews and others who faught off the nazis during ww II. most of the issues relating to borders are also related to the united nations and its two faced polices. they fund and operate social weflfare programs and the NSA but they say they are opposed to those agencies. It make no sense to have to go though organisations like the un and subsidies . those entitieis are not even governed by our own nation first nations or canada . and the people caught up in their system suffer
It would be good for the editior and others to discuss the issues tribal people have with the borders. a lot of culture is lost or someone like VCNA tries to reulate or shame foreign tribal people and romani. Its not a state that allows for much of any genuine culture . Instead the state tells people to be hippies or unitarians their abuses means people act lost and in an identity crisis and people dont think for themselves