'McCrory 11' protesters vow to continue
RALEIGH (WTVD) -- Some members of a group dubbed the "McCrory 11" appeared outside the Wake County Justice Center Friday vowing to continue to put pressure on state legislatures, even as they prepare to go to court on trespassing charges.
The charges date back to June 2 when 11 protesters tried to deliver a letter to Governor Pat McCrory's office and refused to leave until they were able to do so. In the end, they were issued citations by Raleigh police.
"I was trespassing, I know I was trespassing, they gave us a warning and told us to leave if we wanted, so we deliberately stayed. We stayed because we're not being listened to," activist Deborah Ferruccio said.
"We went and took this message to his office because he's part of fast-tracking fracking in our state," added fellow protester Manju Rajendran. "He's part of making it possible for Duke Energy to get away with toxic coal ash, and other forms of environmental destruction."
Another issue motivating these protesters, they said, is the need for Medicaid expansion.
"We are also being kept from life-saving, needed, urgent health care, for more than half a million people," activist Marie Garlock said.
Meanwhile Ferrucio said at her first court appearance Friday, she had the option of accepting a deferred prosecution agreement, but it was an option she said she couldn't accept.
"I couldn't sign that agreement, because I could not get arrested until the next trial and why would I do that? That's part of my civil rights," she said.
