The Observation Deck

Two days ago, I was made aware that a person had been picked up by Cleveland Police
and was being charged and would spend the night in jail, and that others were involved.

I listened to the story and found the information to be true, as far as the arrest was
concerned. No matter how the story goes, this person, an up-standing member of the
community is having a life changing experience. There is much pain, suffering, and
deep thought going on. AND no matter what happened he has not had his day in court.
Still, within hours, emails with fake names started sending around the case number, the
charges, etc. This man/family has done more for Lakewood over the past 40+ decades
than very few other families around, and on many, many levels.

But lets be honest, that should never matter, we should all be treated equal in the eyes of
the law, and I agree. Justice must be blind. But we are not talking about justice, what we
are talking about is the current digital lynching of people that are merely accused. Because
we have so many fighting for a story, any story, a story to beat the others, to be
sensational and get 2 more clicks, two more viewers. It burned through the net and lines
at the speed of light. To a person that has yet to have his legal day in court. I am not
talking of telling a friend. I am talking about the crush to trash a person that a best did
not even do it, or at worst made a very bad decision that saw no one injured.

Let's run the mug shot, let's trash the family, let give it massive headlines, and let's
scream it from the roofs and emails with fictitious names. When it broke to the net it
was old news compared to what was sent around on day two!! Yeah let's get the clicks,
and let's not give the person their rights, no matter what he has done or hasn't done.
I have had many very heated discussions, and conversations with this person. But he
deserves his rights, and some wiggle room on the accusations based on his 56 years
of trying to do the right thing. I am also sure, he would agree, after his fair day in court,
after some time to think instead of react, he will do the right thing.

But when will we start to do the right thing. I remember years ago neighbors in rooms,
screaming at neighbors at the top of their lungs, "You cannot afford to live here! I have
your tax returns, I know how broke you are!" WTF? Who would want to live in a city like
that? My god, what has happened? A person is tried and hung in the media and through
backroom conversation before he even has his say, his day in court?

This is on top of a rush to get news out two weeks ago, when another civic leader and
elected official son was stabbed in a random act of breaking and entering. In the old days
when the media had some taste and morals, they would leave the name of the victim out
preferring 25 year-old man. Instead of his first and last name, so that on top of being
stabbed, he has to move or fear retaliation. But this is not news, media, you know "real
media" has been all over if it bleeds it leads forever. Who care who get hurt, trampled
and even destroyed as long as you can get a couple more clicks.

8 years ago we started the Lakewood Observer to try and address these very issues,
accountability, real names, and a sense to report news that mattered in a way that was
tasteful and took everyone rights into account. While I have made statements and even
accusations it was always with a real name, offering a real chance for the other to explain
and or defend themselves if need be. This email campaign and the speed of local leaders
and media to all but hang Chas. and Patti Geiger just makes me think, Where is it all headed?

Best city in county? COOLEST CITY?


Chas. Geiger enjoys a laugh as his brother Gordo, and wife Patti listen. I do hope this
sorts itself out, and no matter, it will always be hard for me to forget, what the Geiger
family has meant to this town.

.

Jim, you beat me to it...I was just posting my thoughts when I read yours.

I hesitated to start this thread, as I was not born and raised here, but I do consider Lakewood “home” in the most heartfelt sense of the word. This community has supported and lifted me up in ways I never knew elsewhere, especially at times I could never have imagined.

After reading of Charles Geiger’s recent arrest, I thought it was probably best if we drew as little attention to it as possible rather than contribute to any negative press. On second thought, I decided it might be better to use this forum as a modern day character witness and a place to express our support to the Geiger family as they deal with all that will follow.

Meg Ostrowski wrote:After reading of Charles Geiger’s recent arrest, I thought it was probably best if we drew as little attention to it as possible rather than contribute to any negative press. On second thought, I decided it might be better to use this forum as a modern day character witness and a place to express our support to the Geiger family as they deal with all that will follow.

I do hope those that saw fit to run the story immediately and cash in, report as the rest
unfolds. I also hope they realize that while a laws may be broken, and if so dues need to be paid. It
seems to me at best a series of bad errors, that resulted in no serious damage. It seems
to me 6-14 paragraphs about a non-event "uturn, and a possible brush back of the police
officer(serious)," it hardly a reason to fry a person that I personally have a hard time
believing he did.

Chas and I have had some major disagreements, but he has always been a gentleman,
and a real class act. Patti, is just as good X 10.

This city is really at each others throats. Why? Fear? Anger? Uncertainty? It is out of control.


.

I agree, sometimes the media rushes out to publish without all the facts. It's so easy in the Internet age, the age of Wikipedia posting people's deaths before they die or are even sick...Tim Russert as a perfect example. It's devastating to families and friends. The social contract needs to be considered by any journalist.

So let's wait and see as the truth unfolds what actually occurred and what the outcome is. I will say though that if what I've read so far turns out to be true, that's a whole lot more than "bad decisions". I'm hoping that it all turns out to be overblown or misinterpreted though.

Either way, this is a time for the Geiger family to have some peace and deal with this privately.

Wow, just wow. They must be heartbroken.

We are in this fast sound-byte, short answer, reactive media age. It is like a feeding frenzy dominated by negativity. The style that was once limited to tabloids like the National Enquirer is now common. It's what modern political campaigns thrive on. Whatever is the full factual version of this matter, to rely on partial information is dangerous and unfair.

Regardless of ths outcome unfortunate incident, nobody in this town should forget the generational public service of the Geiger family to Lakewood. Wherever you may agree or disagree, the time invested, effort, and contribution is second to none.

"Pick a little, talk a little, pick a little, talk a little
Cheep cheep cheep, talk a lot, pick a little more"

----Meredith Wilson

I hope everything turns out well for Chas and Family. Unfortunately in today's media, retractions are small and usually located on the back page.

Corey

Corey Rossen wrote:I hope everything turns out well for Chas and Family. Unfortunately in today's media, retractions are small and usually located on the back page.

Corey

Corey

Funny you mention this. One of the many idealistic things we came up with in the two years of planning that
lead to the Observer Project was all retractions and corrections would appear on the same page as the mistake.
This had lead to some red boxes in some pretty embarrassing places including the front page. But what is
right is right, and it has been a complaint of media for decades.

This is the beauty of a longer deadline, and a dedication to what is correct for the community, as opposed to
what can we possibly do to make a name for ourselves. How many lives can we walk on to get 5 more clicks.
The Observer was started because out of city owners could never understand Lakewood as anything more than
a place to make a buck. Sadly they are back creating mountains out of molehills, and even some Lakewoodites
are anxious to burn Lakewood to the ground, for nothing more than hollow vendettas to stroke their own egos.

FWIW


.

The only place I have read about this is in this thread. Thanks for joining the feeding frenzy.

Hi Will,

This story has hit all the other media forms in Cleveland and here. That fact makes me feel like out of self defense we have to try to frame it for ourselves, or have it done "to us." I don't see that as "joining the feeding frenzy", I see it as sticking up for ourselves.

It's been unsettling to me to have someone from our own town who we know from shopping at his store, interacting at School Board meetings, running into him at the cafe-- a neighbor-- characterized by outside, corporate media which has no idea of who he is and what he's done, or that he's part of the fabric of a real place, now defining him for us and handing him back to us as a stranger. "Prominent Lakewood businessman."

Lakewood is a community full of families, some who've been here forever, some for just the time it's taken us to have kids, etc. Upsetting things happen in families sometimes, but the good thing about a family is that you can take the time to settle down, get the story straight, and figure out what to do next, even if all you can do is be supportive, and follow the golden rule. Which is to treat other people the way you'd like to be treated. Especially in difficult situations.

When outside sources characterize someone as a "potential perpetrator" or whatever, it seems like an attempt turn the rest of us into anonymous gawkers at somebody else's trouble. Or to put it another way it makes us all into anonymous strangers.


Jim mentioned the beauty of the Lakewood Observer's retraction policy and that the longer deadline makes it possible to cover stories in a way that's, as he puts it, “correct for the community.” The beauty of the online portion of this project, with all the issues we have with each other, and everybody's disparate personalities, and strategies for communication, is that it's a place where we all own our own words, we know who we’re talking to, and who we’re talking about, so it can be a place where we can be a community and try to take care of each other as such.

On a happier note, the Deck “snow meeting” last night was great because we got to put faces on some of the friends and neighbors on this board, and sit around and talk and drink coffee and try to figure things out in person.

I’m sure what happened at that meeting will be on another thread.

Betsy Voinovich

Will Brown wrote:The only place I have read about this is in this thread. Thanks for joining the feeding frenzy.

Will --

I also first heard of this here, and I thought something like what you said, for about half a second.

But on the heels of that thought: How much better to first receive a piece of information from a person who gives a crap about the people involved? I would have heard it anyway, and better from someone closer to my own situation as a simple neighbor and resident of Lakewood, rather than as a general consumer of News.

There really is a difference between "dirt" masquerading as news (analogous to civic pornography, really) and addressing, as Jim is (and often does) the human side of things. As Betsy said, Jim did not "break" this story. And I don’t at all agree that by speaking of it that we are automatically feeding the frenzy. Most on this Deck seem like the sorts that do follow the news and likely knew of the subject already (even though you and I and I'm sure others hadn't heard of it yet).

All the innuendo barely hidden under the average news story is really insidious, in that it seduces us to think or suspect the worst about each other, usually without our realizing it. It has the effect of separating us by fear, judgment and “confirmation” of our most vicious tendencies.

Maybe as Meg says (on her one hand), we should simply not honor it with the energy of our attention or response. But it also seems to me completely legitimate and honorable to actively re-contextualize any story that’s out there bubbling away evil-ly, and re-frame it as something that is happening to people more or less like ourselves. And any plea to withhold judgment can't be repeated enough, because the temptation to warm our hands over the denigration of others is vast and timeless.

Mike

Cleveland.com actually was the first source to publish it. Everyone else merely copied that. C.com did it 28
hours after the call came in to me, then everyone else regurgitated the story over the next two hours.

My point is, after speaking with police, some of the police there, there is no scenario that actually makes sense
unless someone is lying. What also does not make sense is that either person spent the night in jail. There are
bond schedules for damn near everything. The was no chance of flight risk, they are vested enough in this
community, no one was in danger.

But to listen to many in this town they are acting like there was a sleeping demon deep in these people, and now
we need to fear our safety. Throw in the mug shot and the perfect storm is set to knock a person down at a
point they deserve support, at leas from those they have helped. ie Lakewood.

FWIW

.

FYI - Lakewood Alive just sent out the following press release.

http://lakewoodalive.blogspot.com/2011/ ... opped.html

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE March 17, 2011

CONTACT: William "Bud" Doyle
216-363-6025


CLEVELAND POLICE DROP CHARGES AGAINST GEIGER

(Cleveland) A series of charges brought by Cleveland Police against Lakewood businessman and former Lakewood Board of Education President Charles Geiger have been dropped, according to police sources.

"The investigating detective informed me that, after further study of video tape evidence, they have concluded that there was a faulty identification of Geiger and that any further proceedings against him are going nowhere, "said Geiger's attorney, William "Bud" Doyle.

"The car in question was not Geiger's car."

Police indicated they were continuing the investigation in another direction and that they had sent the video evidence in question to NASA for possible further enhancement.

Geiger, who owns several retail stores in the area, is well-known community supporter serving the Lakewood Board of Education for 22 years, and also serves on the Lakewood Hospital Foundation Board and the Board of LakewoodAlive.

FACTS

Cleveland Police have dropped all charges against W. Charles Geiger.

A faulty identification of Geiger was the basis for the charges; the police, after detailed examination of videotape evidence, have concluded that the car involved in the incident was not Geiger's car.

The investigating detective in the case informed Geiger's attorney, William Doyle, that all charges are dropped and that the department will continue to search for the car and the individual involved in the incident.

####

Outstanding news! Too bad there was a rush to judge in the first place.

Were the charges against Patti Geiger dropped as well?