Previously: BART: All Stations Reopen For Service
6:24 PM: At least 45 protesters were arrested during demonstrations against BART Monday night, according to BART officials and police.
San Francisco police arrested at least 40 protesters late in the evening, and a total of five were arrested by BART police on the Civic Center BART platform early in the demonstration, according to officials.
The protest on the BART platform started small, with 20 to 30 demonstrators gathered on the platform at around 5 p.m., surrounded by police and reporters.
BART police began making arrests minutes after the demonstration began.
One man announced to a circle of reporters shortly after 5 p.m. that a BART police officer had told him that if he raised his voice, he would be arrested. He began chanting loudly, and was quickly detained.
BART spokesman Jim Allison declined to say whether BART police used different tactics Monday night than they had during previous protests on July 11 and Aug. 15.
“Last night when BART police witnessed what they deemed to be criminal activity they made arrests,” Allison said.
He said that all protesters detained on the BART platform were arrested under Section 369i of the California Penal Code, which states that anyone who interferes with the safe and efficient operation of a train is guilty of a misdemeanor.
“At least one or two were using amplified devices to shout on the platform level, which creates a dangerous situation” and could prevent riders who are hearing impaired from hearing train announcements, Allison said.
He also said that an unruly group of protesters on the platform creates a danger of someone being knocked onto the tracks, where high voltage rails could cause serious injury.
“It is frustrating for our customers to have these continuing disruptions by demonstrators when there has been a program in place for 25 years for peaceful protests outside the fare gates,” Allison said.
“We’re going to do what it takes to make sure everyone’s safe,” he said. “If people engage in criminal activity they risk arrest, and that should be clear to everyone based on last night.”
After Civic Center station closed at around 5:30 p.m., protesters were ordered to leave and the group moved into the street, marching up and down Market Street throughout the evening.
The Powell Street and Civic Center BART stations were closed at various points throughout the evening as the protesters marched, but Allison said the crowd control was successful in that the Montgomery and Embarcadero stations–the busiest in San Francisco–remained open.
He said the agency regretted that the protests were a challenge for San Francisco police, and that many people were inconvenienced on the street level.
San Francisco police said they arrested about 40 people during the BART protest and dispersal orders were given several times throughout the demonstration.
Two people were arrested shortly after the protest began after disobeying dispersal orders and one person was arrested on suspicion of igniting a flammable substance at Fourth and Market streets, police spokesman Officer Albie Esparza said.
When demonstrators marched to the first block of Grove Street, at least 35 others were arrested on suspicion of failure to disperse upon command of a traffic officer and pedestrians in the roadway, Esparza said.
Monday night marked the third time that BART stations have been shut down due to protests since July 11.
The July 11 protest was organized by the group “No Justice, No BART” in response to an officer-involved shooting at the Civic Center BART station on July 3. A BART police officer shot and killed Charles Hill that day, after Hill allegedly threatened officers with a knife.
On Aug. 11, BART said it had intelligence that another disruptive protest was being planned and shut down cellphone service in several stations to prevent protesters from communicating in stations and tunnels.
That protest failed to materialize, leading BART spokesman Linton Johnson to declare the precaution was successful in disrupting the protest.
But blocking cellphone service prompted strong criticism from civil liberties groups like the American Civil Liberties Union and the Electronic Frontier Foundation to declare the tactic was illegal.
The tactic also drew the attention of the hacker protest group “Anonymous,” who called on their loose collective of members to hack BART websites, flood BART offices with emails, faxes and phone calls, and called for another protest on Aug. 15.
The Aug. 15 demonstration shut down all four downtown San Francisco BART stations.
After that, Anonymous also called for Monday’s protest and for another protest on Aug. 29.
BART will hold a special board of directors meeting at their headquarters in Oakland on Wednesday to discuss the tactic of blocking cellphone service to prevent protests. BART has invited members of the public to attend.
Blocking cellphone service was ordered by BART’s interim general manager Sherwood Wakeman, leading some board members to criticize BART’s management for not consulting the board before making a decision.
1:42 AM: San Francisco police said about 40 people were arrested during Monday evening’s BART protest, which shut down two downtown San Francisco BART stations at several points throughout the roving demonstration.
Protesters gathered on the Civic Center BART platform at 5 p.m. The protesters chose the platform to gather because Charles Hill was killed there by a BART police officer on July 3, after Hill allegedly attacked the officer with a knife. The shooting set off a string of protests that have shut down San Francisco BART stations three times since then.
San Francisco police Officer Albie Esparza said dispersal orders were given several times throughout the protest which started at the Civic Center and made its way east on Market Street and back toward the Civic Center throughout the evening.
Two people were arrested shortly after the protest began after disobeying dispersal orders, Esparza said.
At Fourth and Market streets one person was arrested on suspicion of igniting a flammable substance and when demonstrators marched to the first block of Grove Street, at least 35 others were arrested, Esparza said.
All protesters were arrested on suspicion of failing to disperse upon command of a traffic officer and pedestrian in the roadway, Esparza said.
Police also recovered a hammer from the demonstration.
Police said their goal is to accommodate demonstrators and allow them their constitutional right to protest while protecting lives.
Previous BART shut downs stemmed from the July officer-involved shooting. On Aug. 11, BART said it had intelligence that a disruptive protest was being planned and shut down cellphone service in several stations to prevent protesters from communicating in stations and tunnels.
That protest failed to materialize, leading BART spokesman Linton Johnson to declare the precaution was successful in disrupting the protest.
But blocking cellphone service angered the hacker protest group “Anonymous,” who has been behind many of the protests. The group called on their loose collective of members to hack BART websites, flood BART offices with emails, faxes and phone calls, and had called for another protest on Aug. 15.
Anonymous has established the hashtag #opBART on Twitter, on which the group called for a third protest Monday, Aug. 29 at the same time and location as Monday’s protest, which affected commuters, BART and Muni riders for the second week in a row.
8/22 10:16 PM: Police arrested at least 30 to 40 demonstrators during protests that originated at the Civic Center BART station and then led police back and forth through downtown San Francisco, drawing traffic to a standstill and closing two BART stations at several points throughout the evening.
A few dozen protesters gathered on the Civic Center BART platform at 5 p.m. BART quickly closed the station when protests began, arresting several protesters that raised their voices, declaring it was illegal to protest on the BART platform.
The protesters chose the platform to gather because Charles Hill was killed there by a BART police officer on July 3, after Hill allegedly attacked the officer with a knife. The shooting set off a string of protests that have shut down San Francisco BART stations three times since then.
After being ordered to leave the station, demonstrators moved to the street, joining with other protesters already there, and 50-60 started marching east on Market Street. They blocked traffic, yelling “No justice, no peace!” and “Hey BART, what do you say, how many kids did you kill today?”
Police on foot escorted the protesters on either side, directing traffic with motorcycles in front of the march, and police cars in the rear.
When protesters arrived at the Ferry Building at Embarcadero Plaza, they demanded to be let into the building. Police blocked protesters from entering, while employees peered out at the unruly mob. Some demonstrators wore masks, others carried signs against censorship and police brutality, and two even protested naked.
Shortly after, protesters turned around to march back west on Market Street. The protest grew as they marched, and at certain points there were more than 100 demonstrators.
They marched to United Nations Plaza, outside the Civic Center BART station, where they briefly gathered in the plaza around a portable radio playing dance music. A handful of protesters then blocked Market Street outside the plaza, between Seventh and Eighth streets.
Police then announced the demonstration on Market Street was illegal, as it blocked traffic in both directions, even holding up a San Francisco Municipal Railway train proceeding west on Market Street.
Police made several arrests as they tried to push the crowd back onto the sidewalk. Protesters set off firecrackers and pushed police lines, but were eventually corralled back onto the sidewalk.
Protesters then took off east again, this time running at times to stay ahead of police, lighting smoke bombs and throwing them into the street, and overturning garbage cans.
Protesters darted in and out of the streets, running to avoid police, before reconvening and marching nearly to Montgomery Street. They turned around before reaching Montgomery Street, heading back west.
At the corner of Market and Fourth streets, police attempted to disrupt protesters by forming a line and demanding protesters return to the sidewalk. At least one protester was arrested, held down by several police as he lay on his stomach in the middle of the busy intersection. Protesters were scattered between the corners, yelling at police that held them on the sidewalk.
A group of about 40 protesters reconvened west of the police lines and started marching west on Market Street again, blocking traffic without a police escort. More demonstrators used garbage cans to block traffic and threw firecrackers into the street.
At Grove Street the demonstrators turned right, and some shouted that they were marching to City Hall. But police formed a line at Larkin Street, and used batons to force protesters onto the sidewalk, knocking several to the pavement.
About 40 protesters and some members of the media were detained in an encirclement of police on Grove Street between Market Street and Larkin Street. As of 9 p.m., police were still in the process of making arrests.
The protests forced the closure of the Civic Center and Powell Street stations at several points throughout the evening. Civic Center was closed for a total of two hours and 36 minutes and Powell Street for a total of one hour and 38 minutes, according to BART.
Tonight marks the third time since July 11 that protests caused station closures during rush hour in San Francisco.
On July 11, the group No Justice, No BART organized a protest in response to the BART police shooting of Hill. During that demonstration, protesters blocked train doors to prevent them from leaving the station, resulting in the closure of three San Francisco BART stations.
On Aug. 11, BART said it had intelligence that another more disruptive protest was being planned and shut down cellphone service in several stations to prevent protesters from communicating in stations and tunnels.
That protest failed to materialize, leading BART spokesman Linton Johnson to declare the precaution was successful in disrupting the protest.
But blocking cellphone service has drawn more attention to BART. Civil rights groups have blasted BART for the unusual tactic, calling it illegal and unconstitutional.
The hacker protest group “Anonymous” reacted angrily, and called on their loose collective of members to hack BART websites, flood BART offices with emails, faxes and phone calls, and called for another protest on Aug. 15.
That protest shut down all four downtown San Francisco BART stations, leaving commuters trapped outside of locked gates.
BART has continued to defend the decision to block cellphone service, most recently in a letter to BART customers Saturday explaining the service disruptions and stressing that stopping cellphone service was necessary to ensure safety on the platform.
BART’s defense has not stopped criticism of the agency, however. Today the National Lawyers Guild released its own statement condemning BART’s actions as unconstitutional.
“The BART decision to terminate cellphone service during public protests is an unconstitutional prior restraint on free speech precisely designed to censor criticism of the deadly use of force by BART police,” the statement said.
Scott Morris, Bay City News
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