SACRAMENTO, Calif. — On Monday, March 4, 84 people were arrested during a protest in East Sacramento. This protest happened two days after the Sacramento County District Attorney's Office decided not to criminally charge the two officers involved in the shooting death of Stephon Clark.
Do protesters have rights? Yes, but a lot of those rights rely on the judgment of the police officers.
"It has to be reasonable exercise of discretion," stated civil rights attorney Mark Merin. "When someone crosses the street other than a street corner, theoretically you could be violating the law."
Part of the reason why so many people were arrested on Monday night was due to the officers trying to disband the protest. The protesters were legally allowed to be there, but, once the officers deemed it to be an unlawful assembly, actions were taken.
"The only basis for disbanding it is an unlawful assembly," Merin said. "Unlawful assembly is one that threatens violence, and police have a right to order and disband."
But, according to Merin, officers have to issue a warning before an arrest is made in this situation.
"If an officer wants someone to get out of a street, or a place that the individual shouldn't be, the first thing you should do is say 'Please, can you move on the sidewalk. Please, can you do such and such.' If they don't, you get a citation," Merin said.
Ultimately, you are afforded the right to protest, as long as you do it in a lawful way. However, there's a bit of a gray area between an officer's judgement and what they feel is an appropriate measure of protest. As long as you comply with officers, everything should be okay.
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A protest over the shooting of an unarmed black man by Sacramento police has ended with at least 80 arrests, police said. Among those detained were clergy and a reporter.