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UC Berkeley Served With 15 Million Lawsuit For Police Brutality On Occupy Protesters
UC Berkeley served with 15 million dollar federal lawsuit on behalf of 30 plaintiffs for police brutality and "UCB's political witch hunt" as a result of November 9, 2011 Occupy protest on campus and later arrest.
On Wednesday, June 13, 2012 attorneys Ron Cruz and Monica Smith, served a $15 million federal lawsuit on behalf of 30 plaintiffs on UC-Berkeley administrators and police for police brutality, false arrest, retaliatory prosecution and civil rights violations of Occupy Cal protesters who participated in a demonstration on the campus on November 9, 2011. The lawsuit asks for redress and damages calling the University's actions against the plaintiffs “..UCB’s political witch hunt against protesters.”
The lawsuit names as defendants UC Berkeley Chancellor Robert Birgenau, Executive Vice Chancellor, George Breslauer, Harry LeGrande, Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs, Linda Williams, Associate Chancellor, John Wilton, Vice Chancellor for Administration and Finance, Claire Holmes, Associate Vice Chancellor for Public Affairs and Communications, Mitchell Celaya, Chief of the University of California Police Department at Berkeley, Gregory Ahern, Chief of the Alameda County Sheriff’s Office, Howard Jordan, Chief of the Oakland Police Department, Alameda County Sheriff’s Deputy Chavez, UC Berkeley Detective Rick Florendo, police officers Garcia, N. Hernandes, King, Lachler, Obichere and Roma and Does 1-100. The allegation of Does allows the attorneys to amend the complaint later to bring in more defendants as the case proceeds in federal court.
Lead plaintiff and BAMN national organizer, Yvette Felarca, stated “We demand justice. Education is a right, and people fighting to defend it should not be met with brutality and a political witchhunt by UC-Berkeley or any other university administration,” She was the first person struck and the target of multiple baton blows in the YouTube video that went viral of November 9 police brutality.
Felarca went on to say “We want this to set the precedent for every university administration that they will not attack our right to protest for public education. Through the course of this lawsuit, we will use every means at our disposal, including legal and direct action, to expose UC-Berkeley’s policy of political suppression and win justice”.
The federal complaint was newly amended since it was originally filed with the U.S. District Court last November to add a demand of $7.5 million in compensatory damages for physical and emotional harm and denial of constitutional rights as well as $7.5 million in punitive damages.
In March, 2012 the University and Alameda County District Attorney’s office charged Felarca and 11 other plaintiffs with misdemeanor charges and imposed illegitimate stay-away orders banning her and 12 other protesers from all UC property. All the stay-away orders were dismissed by the Alameda District Attorney’s office after attorney Ron Cruz filed a motion objecting to the orders. The vast majority of the criminal charges have been dismissed against all the people who were charged criminally.
In a statement attorney Ron Cruz declared “The amended lawsuit now includes five more individuals who were arrested November 9, 2011 demanding redress for false arrest, bringing the total number of plaintiffs to thirty. Also, five of the plaintiffs who joined this lawsuit last November were subsequently prosecuted on bogus criminal charges by the University—a clear case of retaliatory prosecution for filing this lawsuit and being outspoken leaders in the movement.”
The lawsuit names as defendants UC Berkeley Chancellor Robert Birgenau, Executive Vice Chancellor, George Breslauer, Harry LeGrande, Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs, Linda Williams, Associate Chancellor, John Wilton, Vice Chancellor for Administration and Finance, Claire Holmes, Associate Vice Chancellor for Public Affairs and Communications, Mitchell Celaya, Chief of the University of California Police Department at Berkeley, Gregory Ahern, Chief of the Alameda County Sheriff’s Office, Howard Jordan, Chief of the Oakland Police Department, Alameda County Sheriff’s Deputy Chavez, UC Berkeley Detective Rick Florendo, police officers Garcia, N. Hernandes, King, Lachler, Obichere and Roma and Does 1-100. The allegation of Does allows the attorneys to amend the complaint later to bring in more defendants as the case proceeds in federal court.
Lead plaintiff and BAMN national organizer, Yvette Felarca, stated “We demand justice. Education is a right, and people fighting to defend it should not be met with brutality and a political witchhunt by UC-Berkeley or any other university administration,” She was the first person struck and the target of multiple baton blows in the YouTube video that went viral of November 9 police brutality.
Felarca went on to say “We want this to set the precedent for every university administration that they will not attack our right to protest for public education. Through the course of this lawsuit, we will use every means at our disposal, including legal and direct action, to expose UC-Berkeley’s policy of political suppression and win justice”.
The federal complaint was newly amended since it was originally filed with the U.S. District Court last November to add a demand of $7.5 million in compensatory damages for physical and emotional harm and denial of constitutional rights as well as $7.5 million in punitive damages.
In March, 2012 the University and Alameda County District Attorney’s office charged Felarca and 11 other plaintiffs with misdemeanor charges and imposed illegitimate stay-away orders banning her and 12 other protesers from all UC property. All the stay-away orders were dismissed by the Alameda District Attorney’s office after attorney Ron Cruz filed a motion objecting to the orders. The vast majority of the criminal charges have been dismissed against all the people who were charged criminally.
In a statement attorney Ron Cruz declared “The amended lawsuit now includes five more individuals who were arrested November 9, 2011 demanding redress for false arrest, bringing the total number of plaintiffs to thirty. Also, five of the plaintiffs who joined this lawsuit last November were subsequently prosecuted on bogus criminal charges by the University—a clear case of retaliatory prosecution for filing this lawsuit and being outspoken leaders in the movement.”
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This wave of police brutality is no surprise... Did you know that the Israeli Mossad is training some of our small-town cops now? The Posse Comitatus act has prevented the military from being used as law enforcement, so they've found a clever way around it: make the police INTO the military! This is just one piece of the bigger picture showing that the US is headed for martial law... Check out http://www.martiallawusa.com if you want to see more signs that our Constitution is being dismantled.
That is interesting Brennan. I never realized this was being done although ever since Barack Obama signed NDAA which would allow for indefinite incarceration of any of us without trial, Obama has been more than willing to do whatever it takes do away with our constitutional rights. What is ironic is he is a professor of constitutional law which he taught while living in Chicago prior to running for Congress and President of the United States so you would think he would know better.
Now we know Obama has a kill list of Americans though his administration has denied Freedom of Information Act requests made by the New York Times and the American Civil Liberties Union for information on his "targeted killing" program. http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-201_162-57457612/obama-administration-rejects-foia-requests-from-nyt-aclu-for-targeted-killing-papers/?tag=stack .
Moreover, Obama's United States Attorney General Eric Holder has been held in contempt by the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee for failing to produce documents on the America's arms dealers who have sold guns and other weapons to members of drug cartels that have then been used to kill thousands of Mexican civilians turning Mexico into a battlefield. http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/ticket/committee-votes-hold-eric-holder-contempt-over-fast-202646073.html
The Obama administration as well as Republican administrations has always turned a blind eye to the millions of dollars made by American companies manufacturing weapons because they accept political contributions from these wealthy corporations and/or individual corporate executives who donate to Democratic and Republican candidates. The Obama administration is an aider and abettor in the deaths of millions of people throughtout the world by failing to stop the flow of arms to right wing military regimes in places like Egypt or to rebel groups through the CIA in Syria. The American governemnt is part of the military industrial complex that make money on the deaths of other human beings.
So what happened to "transparency in government" Obama promised while running for office as he promised "change" from the policies of George W. Bush? Instead Obama has become more of the same but actually worse as he siliences his critics including American citizens who would raise their voices in protest to his policies. He is worse because he provides arms, tanks and other military weapons to local police departments through his Department of Homeland Security Urban Areas Security Initiative.
In Berkeley the City Council is voting on purchasing an armored vehicle that would be shared by the city of Berkeley, the University of California and the Albany police departments. http://www.dailycal.org/2012/06/18/local-police-agencies-seek-share-armored-vehicle-2/. Obama will turn American cities into armed camps bringing civil war from abroad to the streets of America with guns aimed at American citizens.
Now we know Obama has a kill list of Americans though his administration has denied Freedom of Information Act requests made by the New York Times and the American Civil Liberties Union for information on his "targeted killing" program. http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-201_162-57457612/obama-administration-rejects-foia-requests-from-nyt-aclu-for-targeted-killing-papers/?tag=stack .
Moreover, Obama's United States Attorney General Eric Holder has been held in contempt by the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee for failing to produce documents on the America's arms dealers who have sold guns and other weapons to members of drug cartels that have then been used to kill thousands of Mexican civilians turning Mexico into a battlefield. http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/ticket/committee-votes-hold-eric-holder-contempt-over-fast-202646073.html
The Obama administration as well as Republican administrations has always turned a blind eye to the millions of dollars made by American companies manufacturing weapons because they accept political contributions from these wealthy corporations and/or individual corporate executives who donate to Democratic and Republican candidates. The Obama administration is an aider and abettor in the deaths of millions of people throughtout the world by failing to stop the flow of arms to right wing military regimes in places like Egypt or to rebel groups through the CIA in Syria. The American governemnt is part of the military industrial complex that make money on the deaths of other human beings.
So what happened to "transparency in government" Obama promised while running for office as he promised "change" from the policies of George W. Bush? Instead Obama has become more of the same but actually worse as he siliences his critics including American citizens who would raise their voices in protest to his policies. He is worse because he provides arms, tanks and other military weapons to local police departments through his Department of Homeland Security Urban Areas Security Initiative.
In Berkeley the City Council is voting on purchasing an armored vehicle that would be shared by the city of Berkeley, the University of California and the Albany police departments. http://www.dailycal.org/2012/06/18/local-police-agencies-seek-share-armored-vehicle-2/. Obama will turn American cities into armed camps bringing civil war from abroad to the streets of America with guns aimed at American citizens.
Finally somebody suing those Bastards. I totally support this
Thank you for your comment about Posse Committatus (sp?). Obama is increasingly making our country into a police state by making available through his Department of Homeland Security's Urban Security Initiative military grade weapons to local police departments. These weapons include military arms and armored vehicles as seen here: http://alethonews.wordpress.com/2012/07/02/uc-berkeley-to-use-federal-funds-to-purchase-200000-armed-personnel-carrier/.
In the article above the University of California at Berkeley is purchasing an armored vehicle to be used against civilians. There are 1200 cities that already have these vehicles
Moreover Obama has already announced that FEMA prisons can be used for "prolonged detention" which is "indefinite detention" against civilians under NDAA as you can see here: http://alethonews.wordpress.com/2012/07/02/uc-berkeley-to-use-federal-funds-to-purchase-200000-armed-personnel-carrier/
In the article above the University of California at Berkeley is purchasing an armored vehicle to be used against civilians. There are 1200 cities that already have these vehicles
Moreover Obama has already announced that FEMA prisons can be used for "prolonged detention" which is "indefinite detention" against civilians under NDAA as you can see here: http://alethonews.wordpress.com/2012/07/02/uc-berkeley-to-use-federal-funds-to-purchase-200000-armed-personnel-carrier/
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