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Three Arrested, Fence Damaged After Altercation At UC Berkeley Oak Grove

A group of tree-sit supporters clashed with UC Police outside the oak grove near Memorial Stadium early Thursday in an altercation that led to three arrests and damaged the newly built fence around the site.

About 50 people arrived at the grove at about midnight after attending a benefit concert to raise funds for The Longest Walk, an annual 4,400 mile trek across America in the name of protecting Native American sacred sites, said protest supporter and UC Berkeley senior Marcella Sadlowski.

The group came to pay homage to the tree-sitters for guarding sacred tribal land, Sadlowski said. She said supporters passed tobacco to the protesters and offered prayers and songs.

"We are protecting a sacred site here," she said.

Some tree-sitters "decided the fence was inhumane" and started to dismantle it, Sadlowski said, prompting the arrival of UCPD officers.

UC Police Lt. Rick Dillard said three people--including one tree-sitter--were arrested on charges such as resisting arrest and committing battery against officers. No details about who was arrested on what charges were available.

Several officers with helmets and batons were visible outside the grove about two hours after the incident. Others were repairing an approximately 20-foot span of the fence where the chain link material had been partially pulled down.

Dillard said some officers donned helmets because one of the people who was arrested was "throwing some sort of liquid" on them.

Sadlowski said police treated the protest supporters harshly, including by shoving them as they tried to shield the tree-sitters.

One man was pushed off the short retaining wall where the sidewalk meets the edge of the grove and a woman was shoved against a parked car, Sadlowski said.

Police said they could not yet comment on the details of the altercation.

The tree-sitters have occupied the oaks since December in protest of a proposed athletic center slated to be built on the site of the grove.

The city of Berkeley, a neighborhood association and an environmental group sued the university to stop construction. A ruling by Alameda County Superior Court Judge Barbara Miller is expected in the coming weeks.

Protest supporters plan to rally at the grove at noon today, Sadlowski said.

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