Purported ‘Sovereign’ Arrested In Phoenix After Traffic Stop; Booking Info Gives Hint Of Strange Tale — And ‘New Times’ Fills In The Blanks
Steve A. Baker. (Source: Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office.)
Steve A. Baker’s booking sheet at the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office after his arrest Sunday by Phoenix police during a traffic stop provided a hint that officers had a strange encounter with the 36-year-old man.
Here is how the sheet reads (italics/bolding added):
MARIJ-TRANSPORT AND/OR SELL
BRIBERY-TO INFLUENCE ACTION
MARIJUANA-POSSESS FOR SALE
RESISTING ARREST
MARIJUANA-POSSESS/USE
DRUG PARAPHERNALIA-POSSESS/USE
Marijuana charges are not all that unusual. Neither is a charge of resisting arrest. But a bribery charge?
Phoenix New Times did some digging and discovered that Baker allegedly tried to barter with the officer.
Citing court documents, here is how New Times put it on its Blog:
“. . . if the cop just let him go, Baker said he wouldn’t have to place a lien against the officer’s own home.”
Yes, purported “sovereigns” now allegedly are seeking to put a chill on cops by announcing up front that they can avoid an unpleasant fate — the filing of a lien against their personal property — if they simply hop back in their patrol cars, ignore their sworn duties and let crime go unchecked.
Read the story on the Phoenix New Times Blog.
For additional background on “sovereign citizens” and liens, see this PP Blog story from Feb. 20, 2012: “BIRTH OF A ‘SOVEREIGN’ VERB . . .”
For additional background on another purported Arizona “sovereign — Michael Lee Crane — see this Feb. 15, 2012, PP Blog story. The Blog reported on that date that Crane advised a judge that he “reserved” his “right” to the “Uniform Commercial Code” after he was charged in the brutal murders of Lawrence Shapiro, 79, and Glenna Shapiro, 78, and waiting to be charged in the brutal murder of Bruce Gaudet.
On Aug. 29, the office of Maricopa County Attorney Bill Montgomery announced it was seeking the death penalty against Crane, 32, for the Shapiro and Gaudet killings.
