Back in the United States, charges have been officially dropped against fifteen antiwar veterans and their supporters arrested in October outside the presidential debate at New York’s Hofstra University. The so-called Hempstead 15 had been charged with “disorderly conduct” and “failure to obey a lawful order.” They were arrested as they tried to enter the debate in an effort to ask the candidates about the Iraq War, war resisters and veterans’ treatment. One of the veterans, Nick Morgan, was hospitalized after his face was trampled by a police horse. Outside the hearing Thursday, Morgan said he plans to launch a civil suit.

Nick Morgan: “There’s an investigation that’s been held up while we get the criminal cases out of the way. So I think that investigation is going to be able to be opened up. And we have a whole litany of items that the police officers were in violation of, including constitutional rights and civil rights. So if it goes to court, it will be tried in federal court, with a jury, so they’ll be able to discover evidence.”