Earlier this afternoon, the 9 students who occupied the rooftop ledge of Wheeler Hall at UC Berkeley on March 3 were charged with one count of misdemeanor “trespass with intent to interfere.” We are posting a copy of the charge letter received by 7 of the 9 below; the DA did not charge the other two, as they had never previously been arrested for campus political activity.
If you recall, the terms of the negotiations during the occupation included the provision that no conduct charges would be filed against the students involved, and UCPD Chief Mitch Celaya told a law student on the negotiating team that he would urge the DA not to file charges. Of course this is far from what Celaya conveyed to the Daily Cal a few days later:
UCPD Chief of Police Mitch Celaya said police will encourage the district attorney to bring charges against the ledge-sitters. However, as of Friday, police had not yet brought the cases to the office for review, according to Deputy district attorney Teresa Drenick.
While we’re on the topic, the meeting with the Chancellor about Berkeley’s own privatization program “Operational Excellence” stemming from these negotiations is set to begin at 3:30 this Friday. After the meeting ends 2 hours later, there will be a discussion of the outcome and the planning of next steps. You can view a more detailed schedule here.
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