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Tucson Police use violence against marchers

by Open-Publishing - Friday 5 November 2004
9 comments

Demos-Actions Police - Repression Elections-Elected USA

ARIZONA-USA

Tucson Police use violence against marchers
by Emrys Wednesday November 03, 2004 at 11:35 PM

TPD arrests 6 and shoots marchers with pepper bullets

Tucson Police reacted with unwarranted violence against protestors in Tucson for committing the crime of walking in the street. About 200 people joined the “Don’t just vote, take action” march organized by several activist groups in Tucson, spearheaded by the National Lawyers Guild.

Police arrested a total of 6 people during the march, two of whom were given felony charges of resisting arrest. Police shot marchers with pepper bullets - small paint ball style bullets filled with CS gas. They discharged one pepper spray canister into the crowd at the beginning of the march.

Officer P. Tosca was the one who fired the pepper bullets, giving one marcher two large welts on her back.

Assistant police chief Roberto Villaseñor told Arizona Indymedia that “A lot of people made it clear that they probably wanted to make more symbolic gestures than just chanting or just holding up signs.” But he said there were no instances of violence or property damage. In fact, no one committed any violent acts during the march what-so-ever. Villaseñor said TPD’s main concern was the safety of cars in the street - he didn’t want any drivers to have to make “evasive maneuvers” to avoid a protestor.

The march congregated on a street corner in front of Tucson’s federal building. People lined the side of the road and held a variety of signs while others took turns speaking through a portable PA system.

A wide array of comments were made, from “we need to work within the system and change it,” to “Fuck this shit! Fuck this police state!”

The Dry River Collective has called for an anti-police protest in front of the Tucson Police Department station, 270 S. Stone at 4:00 pm on Thursday, November 4.

For more photos and information:

http://arizona.indymedia.org/news/2004/11/22767_comment.php#22817

Forum posts

  • Dear Americans,

    Tomorrow we celebrate the day of rememberence. Freedom has only been free because someone else has paid for it. Now they are getting old or have passed from this earth. The duty and the resposibility now rests with us. So do not rest. Rise up and scream from whatever hilltop you can climb and say no. You will be beaten; you will be imprisoned; you will be maligned; but you will be free because if enough of us stand up for our God given rights, they couldn’t reload fast enough to stop us. A wave of fascism is returning to the world and to American. While concentrating on the communist threat, we allowed the fascists from Europe to come to the free world fresh from WWII to assist us. They entered our armies, our police, our legislatures, our intelligence agencies, and our schools. Now the damage they wrought must be identified and purged from the body of our nation before they go further. The black shirt of the fascist must be the first thing to go from our police as a symbol at least. Good guys don’t wear black. They never have. Let no one rest until this sacred duty is achieved.

    • Yes to all of the above, I couldnt have felt it any other way.......This country is the only and last country with God Given Rights that Our Forefathers sacrificed their lives for. We need to repay the favor. God Help and Save Us.

    • HOW ARROGANT CAN SOMEONE BE.IT IS NOT YOUR GOD GIVEN RIGHT TO INVADE OTHER PEOPLES COUNTRIES AND KILL INNOCENT PEOPLE.IT IS NOT YOUR GOD GIVEN RIGHT TO THREATEN ANY NATION AGAINST YOU.GOD WILL JUDGE THE WICKED,YOU HAD BETTER LOOK OUT.

      MONEY IS THE ONLY GOD THE US GOVERNMENT WORSHIPS.

  • Behavior such as this is applauded by the Illuminati types and the neo-cons which infest the government today. And, thanks to vote fraud, we are in for at least 4 more years of this, and it will escalate.

    When those who think they are the Chosen stop being Useful Idiots and are kicked to the curb, themselves, they too, will know what this kind of gulag treatment feels like. And they will deserve it. What goes around comes around.

  • IT APPEARS TO ME That vioaence was in fact used by TPD against civillions. Due to the FACT thet PIMA COUNTY SHERIFFS squad cars give LEAGLE ADVISE on the sides of there cars ie. (RESIST DRUGS AND VIOLENCE) it would appear that the sheriffs give advise to resist violent shots to the back or to resist a unlawfull imprisionment, this is how I see it. Myby one of the spectaters should have grew some testickuler fortitude and made a citizens Arrest on the Law breaking cops under A.R.S. 13-3884 RIGHT OF PRIVITE PERSON TO MAKE AN ARREST! for the charge of Unlawfull imprisionment, assault (shooting someone in the Back with anything is in fact an assault.) The cops addmitt that there was no problems caused by pedestriens, so the thought police leeped befor they looked. everyone who reads this article and has any information like pictures showuing cops crookedness should post a Internal Affairs complaint ON THE Tucson Police Web Site

  • Bravo to the Tucson police! As always the media spins it so that every one of those marchers are saints and didn’t do anything to provoke the police or the people who live in that area.

    • Fortunately, we can read and hear honest police officers who love correct constitutional principles getting out, but also letting the rest of us know of the curruption and the vicious training they recieve. No, they are no longer "officer friendly" but are in all too many cases corrupt power hungry criminals with badges.

      Officer Jack McLamb has been heard on the radio nation wide, and is absolutely a valueable source I’ve listened to who recounts the obvious.

      McLamb is not popular by the criminal elements with badges in Arizona, but fortunately, he is beyond reproach and they will never be able to kill his testimony that all readers should search out for a great education.

      We are living increasingly in a Fascist Police state, where there is no justice, just brutal thugs with badges with more and more currupt judges who stand in allegience with them in corruption. You who claim the police are in the right, will one day fall victim to the corruption you now champion. It will come down some day to bite you. You will be the victim of injustice by state authority and police manipulation and or brutality. In that day, lets see what tune you sing.

    • Well, as an eywitness to the even in question, I can attest that the protestors did not do anything to provoke the police. The people in question gave the cops wide berth on the city street, spilling off the sidewalk and into the street. This was their offence.

      As someone who lives in the area, the protestors did nothing to provoke me. And I have to say that all of my personal encounters with the Tucson Police, particularly the bicycle police that patrol the area, have been completly positive. Most of these men and women are trained professionals who are both courteous and vigilant. I dont have a beef with TPD. However, the use of violence in this situation was totally unwarrented and the officers involved need to be subject to the same justice system to which they are pledged to defend.

      Your Kudos smell of facsim, and that creeps me out even more than the use of the pepper gun.

  • please go to www.copwatch.com www.infowars.com www.stanley2002 .org and fight this evil government.