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HOLLIDAYSBURG -- A Tyrone man was convicted Monday of defiant trespassing by going to a bank's drive-thru window after receiving a written notice to stay off bank property.
Dr. Hil Rizvi, who represented himself at trial, told a Blair County jury that he was in a dispute with First National Bank, which left him with no choice but to use the drive-thru on Oct. 14, 2020. Rizvi said he went there to get his name on a cashier's check the bank issued.
Evidence in the case revealed that the bank issued a notice on Sept. 2, 2020, stating that as of Sept. 30, 2020, it was closing his account and that he should stay off bank property.
Tyrone police responded when bank personnel reported that he was at the drive-thru.
Assistant District Attorney Ian Hausner asked the jurors to convict Rizvi for his failure to comply with the bank's request.
"This is a simple trial," Hausner said. "He was not permitted to be on the property."
Rizvi tried to tell the jury in his closing that his dispute with the bank was part of a larger dispute. He also told them that because of decisions rendered by Judge Jackie Bernard, the jurors wouldn't be hearing more details or a witness he wanted to call.
In response, Bernard spoke of her trial responsibilities that include determining if evidence and testimony is legally permissible.
The judge also prevented Rizvi from calling a witness because the witness was supposed to testify about Rizvi being confronted outside a courtroom in April 2021. When Rizvi offered no satisfactory answer as to how that's relevant to the Oct. 14, 2021, trespassing allegation, Bernard barred the witness.
Rizvi also wanted the jury to hear about his three days in jail Feb. 5, 6 and 7, 2022, after being arrested on a warrant for failing to attend a court proceeding for which he said he didn't get notice.
Rizi said he was on a hunger strike at the prison when brought to the courthouse in February 2022, in leg irons, for a bench warrant hearing. And when he complained about prison conditions, he said Bernard told him to write a letter.
After the jury took about five minutes to render a guilty verdict on the misdemeanor offense, Bernard set Rizvi's sentencing for July 7.
When Rizvi pointed out that he's already spent three days in jail, Bernard told him he could make that argument at sentencing.
Mirror Staff Writer Kay Stephens is at 814-946-7456.