photo by: Kim Callahan/Journal-World

Phillip Michael Eravi appears Thursday, Feb. 26, 2026, in Douglas County District Court with his defense attorney, Angela Keck.

A trial for a Lawrence activist accused of interfering with law enforcement in 2023 now has the narrowest of windows to proceed, or else it could be dismissed due to the state’s speedy trial guarantees.

A Douglas County District Court judge on Tuesday refused to dismiss the case against Phillip Michael Eravi, who faces one count of interference with law enforcement in connection with an armed standoff May 19, 2023, between police and a shooting suspect. Police maintain that Eravi, a local activist and frequent public commenter who often films police activity, walked into a perimeter area that they were trying to keep clear because it was in the line of fire from the suspected shooter’s residence. Eravi has denied the charge, saying he had a right to be where he was.

Eravi’s attorney, Angela Keck, had asked the court to dismiss the case because she alleges prosecutors took far too long to turn over all relevant materials in the case, which prosecutors are required by law to do.

Judge Amy Hanley on Tuesday ruled that dismissal of the case would be inappropriate and counter to state case law. However, she did rule that the amount of time it took for the prosecution to provide all materials should be counted against the state when determining if the case meets the state’s definition of a speedy trial.

With those days added to the equation, the Aug. 24 trial date would be the 174th official day of the case. State law requires a trial to begin within 180 days. Thus, any delay of more than six days puts the case in jeopardy of being dismissed due to the speedy trial provisions.

Hanley, who on Tuesday said the case has consumed more court time than any case she has presided over, said she’s committed to keeping the case on schedule so that the charges can be decided.

In fact, Hanley agreed to postpone a hearing in an unrelated case so that the Eravi case could take the time slot for a new motion that his defense teams filed earlier this month. That new motion is seeking dismissal on the grounds that the Lawrence Police Department had a scheme in place to target Eravi.

The court heard no arguments on that motion on Tuesday, although Douglas County Assistant District Attorney Adam Carey told Hanley that his office had found no evidence thus far that any such scheme existed.

Hanley set a half-day hearing for June 29 to allow Keck to present witnesses to the court who Keck alleges have knowledge of the scheme. The prosecution will get a chance to refute those arguments, and Hanley said she will rule at that time whether the case should be dismissed or continue.

What won’t happen, Hanley said, is another continuance in the case. She pointedly told both attorneys in the case that they had strict time limits to meet for the June 29 hearing, and that the hearing wouldn’t be allowed to stretch into a separate day.