Meridian “Playground Mom” Sara Brady to Face Trial in February

In the early days of Governor Brad Little’s “stay-at-home” order, a number of incidents in Idaho made national news.

One case dealt with a mom who was charged for holding a “garage sale” in violation of the governor’s order and another incident where a mom, Sara Brady, was arrested for trespassing at a playground (Kleiner Park) in Meridian.

Recently, the case against the mom in northern Idaho was dismissed. The law firm of Dindinger and Kohler was defending her and you can read more about that dismissal here.

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The case is still ongoing however in the Meridian case against Brady and is scheduled for a two-day trial in February of 2021.

The trial will take place nearly 10 months after Brady’s arrest on April 21st this last spring. Back in July of this year, Brady plead not guilty to the trespassing charge.

Idaho Dispatch asked Brady about the upcoming trial and if she thought the case would have been dropped by now. Here is what Brady told us:

Part of me never thought the case would go this far because I don’t think it’s a legitimate case. But then you’ve got to consider that it’s happening for political reasons. It’s the State’s attempt to legitimize their mishandling of Covid. They’re using me as an example and dragging me through an expensive, drawn-out legal battle to discourage others from using common sense and standing for their rights. This isn’t about a mom standing on wood chips at a playground–it’s about my refusal to bow to the State. They will use thousands of your tax-payer dollars to prove a point: don’t stand up, or we will make you regret it. Since it’s gone this far, that’s the only conclusion I can come to. As for my feelings, the moment I was served with a notice that the case was being handled by the office of the Attorney General of the State of Idaho, I knew I would make the choice to stand now rather than bow forever.

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For those unfamiliar with the case, Brady was at Kleiner Park in Meridian which was closed at the time. Under  Little’s “stay-at-home” order many cities, including Meridian, had closed their public parks.

Brady and a number of other families went to the park anyway to let their kids play on the playground.

Some individuals planned the get-together as a form of protest against the health order. Brady denies that she was part of the planned event and says she was going there to meet up with a few other moms and their kids.

The city said there was a sign and caution tape at the park which had been put up by the city but was taken down by citizens who were at the park. Brady told Idaho Dispatch that those items were already taken down by the time she arrived.

Eventually, the police showed up at the park and began asking parents to leave the playground because it was closed.

In one video shot by Ashley Everly, Brady can be seen having a discussion with one of the police officers at the park while she is standing in the bark of the playground.

Approximately 25 seconds into their discussion the officer can be heard telling Brady she has “five seconds” but does not clarify what will happen after the five seconds. The presumption is that the officer would likely arrest Brady for being on the playground.

As the officer is counting down, Brady turns and tells the officer to arrest her.

Brady told Idaho Dispatch that she did not go to the park that day to get arrested and did not think the officers were enforcing Meridian’s shutdown order.

Now Brady is scheduled to face trial on February 17th and 18th for the charge.

Do you think Brady deserved to be arrested and should face trial for her charge? Do you believe the state is going too far in pursuing this charge?

Let us know in the comments below.