A Sweetwater man who staged a hunger strike after he was arrested for entering a grand jury hearing last week made bond Tuesday just before his supporters were scheduled to hold a protest at the Monroe County Courthouse.

The protest was originally scheduled for Wednesday at 9 a.m. at the Courthouse, but was canceled and rescheduled for April 20 after Walt Fitzpatrick made his $1,500 bond and was released.
April 20 is when Fitzpatrick is scheduled to have a hearing in Monroe County General Sessions Court.
Fitzpatrick was arrested for trying to arrest the Monroe County grand jury foreman, among others, last week. He and his followers claim grand jury Foreman Gary Pettway is serving illegally and has been for 25 years. A grand jury foreperson is appointed by the presiding Criminal Court judge for a two-year period.

The Tennessee Criminal Court Rules of Procedure describes the appointment of a grand jury foreperson as: The foreperson shall hold office and exercise powers for a term of two (2) years from appointment. In the discretion of the presiding judge, the foreperson may be removed, relieved or excused from the office for good cause at any time.

Fitzpatrick's supporters claim Pettway is actually term limited to two years, meaning every case heard by the grand jury in the past 25 years is null and void. Courthouse employees reported they fielded unending calls Tuesday concerning the situation, with most callers being civil, but a few were reported to be threatening.

Monroe County Attorney Jerome Melson said there is legal precedent showing Pettway has broken no rules serving as grand jury foreman for 27 years. He cited a case from 1983 in Robertson County where William Hailey claimed he had been wrongly indicted in 1975 due to the fact only three people had served as grand jury foreman in 28 years. In 1983 the Tennessee Court of Appeals ruled there is no language in Tennessee Criminal Court Rules of Procedure stating a grand jury foreperson is limited in how many terms they can serve.

"As I understand this ruling," Melson said, "the Tennessee rules concerning the service of a grand jury foreman contains no term limits."
Fitzpatrick, who gave his age as 52 last week, but is now listed as being 58 years old, was arraigned in Monroe County Criminal Court Monday and given a chance at a $1,500 bond, which he made Tuesday.

Fitzpatrick claimed General Sessions Judge Reed Dixon couldn't hear his case as he was part of the "conspiracy" to keep him from indicting President Obama.

Fitzpatrick was arrested April 1 after he attempted to arrest Pettway during a jury hearing. No one other than the jury and the officer presenting his case is allowed in a grand jury hearing.

Fitzpatrick has made several appeals to a grand jury panel to let him speak to the Monroe County grand jury on the belief the president isn't a natural-born American citizen and has no right to serve as the nation's leader. So far, that panel has declined to let Fitzpatrick appear before the grand jury.

 "I was just one of several people he wanted to arrest," Pettway said last week. "He also wanted to arrest the sheriff (Bill Bivens), Madisonville Police Chief Gregg Breeden, Assistant District Attorney Jim Stutts, not to mention the president and Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi."
Fitzpatrick is charged with disorderly conduct, inciting to riot, disrupting a meeting and resisting arrest.

michael.thomason@advocateanddemocrat.com | 442-4575