Who is Eric King?

Eric King is an imprisoned parent, artist, poet, and partner who needs support defending himself as he faces serious federal charges from the Bureau of Prisons (BOP).

Eric is currently serving a ten year sentence in BOP for Use of Explosive Materials to Commit Arson. On September 11, 2014, Eric threw two molotov cocktails and a hammer through a window of an unoccupied Kansas City congressional building. Eric was charged in the federal court in Kansas City; in 2016 he accepted a non-cooperating guilty plea and a mandatory minimum 10-year federal sentence for the case. As part of his plea and sentencing Eric publicly and proudly acknowledged that his intent was to take direct political action in solidarity with the community of Ferguson, Missouri following the August 2014 police killing of Michael Brown, Jr.   He has been in BOP custody since he was sentenced in 2016.

Even in prison, Eric is committed to using his poetry, art, and writing for liberation and a world free from domination and oppression.

Learn more about Eric, read his writing, share his struggle here: http://www.supportericking.org

Follow Eric's support team on twitter: @SupportEricKing

August 17, 2018

In 2017 Eric was transferred to FCI Florence, part of the notorious federal prison complex in Florence, Colorado. On August 17, 2018 an Administrative Lieutenant from FCI Florence ordered Eric to attend a private "interview" in a prison storage room. BOP officers who removed Eric from the storage room heard him say that the Administrative Lieutenant attacked him and that Eric was defending himself. Officers took Eric out of the storage room and to the Special Housing Unit (SHU) where they stripped him, shackled him to a bed, and held him in isolation without ability to communicate with his loved ones or a lawyer for three days. Eric had visible injuries when he was transferred out of Florence to USP Leavenworth on August 20, 2018, and he has experienced tingling in his limbs, headaches, blurred vision, and nausea daily since August 17, 2018.

The New Federal Charge

In May 2019 Eric was indicted by a grand jury in the District Court of Colorado for a new federal felony charge of Assaulting a Federal Official. The charge is based on what the government says happened during the interview in the Florence storage room with the Administrative Lieutenant. Eric now faces up to 20 additional years in federal prison, and is fighting this charge while still in the custody of his accusers.

What will funds be used for?

All funds will be held in trust by the law office and used to pay legal costs and fees associated with defending Eric, his principles, and the rights Eric and every prisoner has to live without fear of harassment, abuse, and deprivation at the hands of the state.

Legal Fees:  Money paid to the employees of the law office for their time, services, and labor in the case, including legal consultation and counseling, jail visits, scene visits, paralegal work, court appearances and trial, legal research & writing, administrative work, and filing motions and briefs with the Court. Eric's legal team is retained but has agreed to work on his case for the rates paid by the courts to public defenders and court-appointed lawyers.

Costs: The expenses associated with proper preparation and defense of a case, including exhibit production, travel costs, court reporters (transcript costs are separate), professional/expert witness consultation and visit fees, photocopier and printer costs, delivery and courier services, and document reproduction. 

Donors and supporters should understand that donation to the Eric King Legal Defense Fund (1) does not create an attorney-client relationship between the donor and the law office, and (2) does not create a way for any third parties to interfere with the independence and professional judgment of the law office. The law office takes our ethical obligations to our clients seriously - supporters should understand that donating to Eric's defense in this case does not mean that folks will have access to or participate in privileged attorney-client communications between Eric and the law office. For more information on third party payer/donor expectations in relation to payment of legal fees, please see Colorado Rule of Professional Conduct (RPC) 1.8(f) and American Bar Association Model RPC 1.8(f). A good explanation of the rule can be found in the Colorado Bar Association Formal Opinion 129 (“Ethical Duties of Lawyer Paid by One Other Than Client”)(2017).

"one day," a poem by Eric King: