Two men were arrested on felony charges during a protest at Tolman Hall on Thursday night and several people were injured, following a sporadically violent daylong demonstration against proposed student fee increases.
The men, Drew Phillips, 25, and Richard Clemons, 30 were arrested on felony charges Thursday night. Neither are UC Berkeley students.
Phillips allegedly assaulted an officer with a shield he was carrying, said UCPD Lt. Marc DeCoulode. The officer was injured and sought her own treatment, and Philips was arrested at 7:58 p.m. for wearing a mask for an unlawful purpose, felony on a police officer and resisting arrest.
While DeCoulode said that he has not heard of any student or bystander injuries, seven police officers were injured. Two went to the hospital, and the others went to seek their own medical services.
At around 9:00 p.m., when Tolman Hall closed, tensions heightened as protesters began to attempt to leave the building.
“We had never told people they had to leave, because they seemed to be doing so naturally,” DeCoulode said. “We were monitoring the doorways because the custodial staff locked the doors at the building’s closing time.”
Freshman UC Berkeley student Stephanie Benitez said she witnessed four police officers attacking a man — likely Clemons, although she did not specify the man’s name — because he tried to exit the building.
“I told the police to just take a second to listen to him scream,” said Benitez, who said she was at Tolman Hall until about 10 p.m. “This isn’t even an issue about tuition anymore. It’s about morality. How can you go to sleep at night knowing you did this to an innocent kid?”
DeCoulode said there was a scuffle at the door at about 9:04 p.m. and Clemons, who appeared to be leaving the building, allegedly assaulted an officer from behind and pushed him. During Clemons’s arrest, police used physical force and batons to take him into custody, for their own protection and because he was resisting arrest, DeCoulode said. He was booked for felony on a police officer and resisting arrest.
“He may have had some minor injuries, but I am not sure,” said DeCoulode.
This incident escalated the action, according to DeCoulode. Right after the struggle, protesters outside threw a chair, pieces of concrete and a large base of a traffic cone at police officers, he said. A window was broken, and one officer was hit in the head with an object and sustained a concussion.
“There was a short period of time, at about 9:15 p.m., when we didn’t let some people leave because that’s when the objects were being thrown at the officers, and we didn’t think it was safe for (the protesters) to leave,” said DeCoulode. “I don’t know that any protesters intended to remain in the building, I think the number of students appeared to be on their way to leave when the altercation occurred.”
Phillips is being held at the Berkeley Police Department Jail Facility with bail set at $60,000. Clemons was sent Santa Rita Jail with bail set at $15,000, according to Alameda County Jail records. Their arraignment is set for 2 p.m. Monday at Wiley W. Manuel Courthouse in Oakland.
After the 12 p.m. rally in Sproul Plaza — where students, organizers and community members gathered to protest proposed student fee increases — approximately 150 protesters marched to Tolman Hall, arriving at about 1:20 p.m. A smaller group then entered the building, clashing with police — who used pepper spray against the demonstrators — as they entered.
“The police followed protesters to Tolman because we always monitor protests,” DeCoulode said. “We do it to ensure that they are able to do things safely for their safety and to ensure that they don’t block pathways or passageways.”
DeCoulode could not confirm the number of police present at the building but estimated that as many as 80 protesters went inside.