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OFF BEAT: N.H. city takes on parking meter Robin Hoods

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Real-life Robin Hoods are being hunted — not by the Sheriff of Nottingham, but by the city of Keene, N.H.

The group, which refers to itself as Robin Hood and the Merry Men and Women, patrols the streets of Keene and feeds people’s parking meters before a ticket can be issued by parking enforcement officers.

Once the meter is paid, the group reportedly slips a card under the windshield wipers saying, “Your meter expired; however, we saved you from the king’s tariffs.”

The city of Keene didn’t take too kindly to this and sued the group of six people in May, alleging they harassed and taunted the city’s three parking enforcement workers, according to court documents.

The group reportedly has ties to Free Keene, a group that describes itself as acting against government, which it describes on its website as “a violent monopoly.”

In the suit, the city alleges that since December, the six Robin Hooders have “regularly, repeatedly and intentionally taunted, interfered with, harassed and intimidated the (parking enforcement officers) in the performance of their employment duties by following, surrounding, touching or nearly touching, and otherwise taunting and harassing … and video recording the (parking enforcement officers) at close proximity as they perform their duties.”

The group reportedly responded that it has prevented approximately 4,000 violations from being issued.

The city of Keene is seeking to prevent the group from continuing to interfere, taunt and harass the parking enforcement officers, according to the lawsuit.

One of individuals named in the suit, James Cleaveland, said in a blog post that he intends to address each of the case’s points in his answer to the lawsuit.