Jose “Chille” DeCastro’s appeal of the dismissal of his federal civil rights lawsuit against the City of Ironton, retired Ironton Police Chief Pam Wagner, Ironton Officers Brad Spoljaric, Chance Blankenship, Evan McKnight and Robert Fouch (The City Defendants), and Major Chapman, Jane Doe and Lawrence County, Ohio, (the County Defendants) has been denied.
DeCastro was suing over an incident in April of 2022 that brought him great fame on YouTube as he livestreamed his refusal to leave the Ironton City Hall after it had closed for the night.
The YouTuber arrived about 15 minutes before closing and was accompanied by a small number of supporters. He demanded a room to essentially teach a first amendment course that night. He was informed that the building was closing, and he’d have to wait for his room for another day.
An outraged DeCastro refused to leave the building even after a warning that he would be arrested on trespassing charges. His students all left the building quietly, but DeCastro refused to leave, and cooperated with police when they came to arrest him.
The original charges he made against the police included damage to his iPhone while in custody and violations of his first, fourth and fourteenth amendment rights. The case lingered since 2022 and at one point he made an amended complaint that eliminated the County Defendants and failed to state a claim against the City Defendants.
DeCastro managed to blow through multiple deadlines to state claims against all of the defendants, which resulted in the case being thrown out in December of 2022 until it wasn’t as DeCastro made a reply right after the very last deadline that saw the case revived.
It then lingered for most of last year until it was finally thrown out and again, DeCastro demanded the right to make a third amended complaint instead of dismissal based on new evidence he claimed that YouTube’s “atomic clock” showed that he really wasn’t trespassing since YouTube apparently said it wasn’t past 5:00PM yet.
DeCastro appealed to the sixth circuit appeals court, and it has lingered since last fall until now, when the appeals court finally denied the appeal and upheld the decision to dismiss the case.
Essentially, DeCastro failed to include the County defendants in his amended complaint and failed to state a case against the city defendants. He failed to show that his phone was damaged and failed to show that his rights were violated.
The Court also found that even if the “atomic clock” showed the clock displayed on the wall of the City Hall was wrong, it was still the time that the police believed to be when the building should have closed. DeCastro was given warnings and was able to leave the building at any time before or after closing and before his arrest.
DeCastro, perhaps hedging his bets, filed a new version of the lawsuit in federal and state level courts in Nevada. He claimed jurisdiction in both courts since his customers live in Nevada and are impacted by the events in Ironton. Neither court case has gone anywhere as DeCastro was incarcerated soon after the filing dates.
Also, before he was incarcerated, DeCastro had been putting out a series of videos on one of his alternate channels featuring his highly fictionalized account of the events in Ironton that led to the lawsuit.
It is unclear if DeCastro can appeal this verdict.
For more information on Jose “Chille” DeCastro’s court cases, please visit: https://thepublicdocuments.com/active.
Case Links
The Public Documents of Jose Maria “Chille” DeCastro
https://thepublicdocuments.com/
DeCastro vs. Peter, etc. – California State Superior Court
https://www.lacourt.org/casesummary/ui/index.aspx?casetype=civil (Use case: 23SMCV00538)
DeCastro vs. Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department
https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/67210646/decastro-v-las-vegas-metropolitan-police-department/
DeCastro vs. Mcknight (Federal Court filed in Nevada vs. Ohio)
https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/68308740/decastro-v-mcknight/
DeCastro vs. Wagner (Ironton) – APPEAL
https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/67862227/jose-decastro-v-pam-wagner/
Feb 14, 2024 Arrest (Las Vegas)
https://municourt.lasvegasnevada.gov (Defendants, DeCastro, Jose, 9/11/74)
Maryland Criminal Complaint by Collin Campbell
https://casesearch.courts.state.md.us/casesearch/inquiry-search.jsp (Use case: D-09-CR-24-000572)
DeCastro vs. State of Nevada (Appeal of March 2024 conviction)
https://www.clarkcountycourts.us (Use case: C-24-381730-A)
DeCastro vs. Evan McKnight, Defendants (Lawsuit against Ironton filed in Nevada state court)
https://www.clarkcountycourts.us (Use case: A-24-888450-C)
Rodgers v. Winfrey (Deboraugh Rodgers Federal Case)
https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/66901243/rodgers-v-winfrey/
Dollarhide v. Dickens (Jason Dollarhide Federal Case)
https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/64862375/dollarhide-v-dickens/
DeCastro vs. Abrams & Peter (Dismissed)
https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/64946355/decastro-v-abrams/
DeCastro vs. Wagner (Ironton) (Dismissed)
https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/63235878/decastro-v-wagner/
DeCastro vs. Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department – APPEAL (Dismissed)
https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/67693595/jose-decastro-v-lvmpd/
Wallace v. Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department (Dismissed)
https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/67423252/wallace-v-las-vegas-metropolitan-police-department/
Maryland Peace Order by Collin Campbell (Closed)
https://casesearch.courts.state.md.us/casesearch/inquiry-search.jsp (Use case: D-09-CV-24-809545)
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