Local protester pleads not guilty to threatening officials at Bakersfield City Council meeting
A protester with tears in her eyes pleaded not guilty Friday in Kern County Superior Court to 18 felony charges after she was accused of making threatening statements toward the Bakersfield City Council Wednesday night.
Riddhi Patel, 28, was charged with 10 counts of threatening with the intent to terrorize and eight counts of threatening certain public officials.
The 10 counts of threatening with the intent to terrorize are in regard to five City Council members — Andrae Gonzales, Bruce Freeman, Ken Weir, Manpreet Kaur and Patty Gray — as well as Mayor Karen Goh, City Clerk Julie Drimakis, Assistant City Clerk Sara Ortega, City Attorney Ginny Gennaro and City Manager Christian Clegg, according to the complaint The Californian requested from the Kern County District Attorney’s Office.
At Friday’s hearing, Court Commissioner Sally Ackerknecht granted a protective order that restricts Patel from going within 500 yards of the 10 individuals’ homes, businesses or schools that they attend or have events at. Patel is also ordered to stay 500 yards away from City Hall North and South if she posts bail, which is currently set at $1 million.
For the eight counts of threatening certain public officials, the complaint lists Gonzales, Freeman, Weir, Kaur, Gray, Goh, Clegg and Drimakis as the victims. Clegg and Drimakis are not elected officials, however, the complaint refers to them as such.
The other two City Council members who attended Wednesday’s meeting, Bob Smith and Eric Arias, are not considered victims because they did not feel threatened, DA spokeswoman Daniela Gonzaga said in an email to The Californian.
Patel’s comments came during her second public comment of the night.
“You guys want to criminalize us with metal detectors — we’ll see you at your house, we’ll murder you,” Patel
said before walking away from the podium.
Before the March 27 City Council meeting, new metal detectors were installed as a security measure. Several people spoke about the enhanced security measures at both the March 27 and April 10 meetings, including Patel, who voiced her disdain for them.
Patel appeared in court Friday, weeping quietly to herself, dressed in a brown Kern County Jail jumpsuit, which starkly contrasted with the bright colors she wore during the City Council meeting. She was represented by the Public Defender’s Office Friday.
At Friday’s hearing, a large group of people came to support Patel, including family members and other activists. Most of the group wore masks and filled the courtroom’s gallery. The group declined to comment on Patel’s case. A pre-preliminary hearing is set for April 24 and a preliminary hearing for April 25.