In late October, nine animal rights activists were indicted on charges of harassment and extortion related to threats made against Marsh Insurance manager Robert Harper Jr. Last week six of those activists plead innocent to the charges against them.
Ray Kleinert, 17, of East Brunswick, N.J.; Ryan Smith, 19, of Billerica, Mass.; Laura Lungarelli of Guilford, NH; Lisa Lotts, 23, of Boston, Mass.; Alexandra Doane, 18, of Foxboro, Mass.,; and Lauren Gazzola, 23, of Bethel, Conn., plead innocent to all charges against them.
Two activist, Joshua Schwartz of Chicago, Ill.; and Jennifer Greenberg, 17, of Wheeling, Ill. could not make an appearance in court because they were being held on similar charges in New York.
Additionally, prosecutors dropped charges filed against Jacob Conroy, 26, of Seattle, Wash.
Two as-yet unidentified men and an unidentified woman have also been indicted but not apprehended.
Source:
Animal rights activists plead innocent to harassment charges. Associated Press, November 22, 2002.