Aurora protest leaders facing charges, prison
Leaders of protests against the death of Elijah McClain face years in prison after two prosecutors filed a bevy of charges against them Thursday for a variety of alleged crimes — from stealing counterprotesters’ signs to inciting a riot and kidnapping.
All of the protesters — Lillian House, Joel Northam, Terrance Roberts, Whitney Lucero, Trey Quinn and John Ruch — face felonies. The charges are connected to demonstrations held in Aurora on June 27, July 3, July 12 and July 25.
Arrest affidavits more than 30 pages long for those arrested explain how Aurora police used recordings of livestreams, a transcript of a call between House and Aurora Police Chief Vanessa Wilson and social media posts by protesters to build a case against those arrested.
House, Northam and Roberts have been the face of protests in Denver and Aurora during the summer. House and Northam were organizers for the Party for Socialism and Liberation, which has led massive demonstrations in Aurora and Denver in the past few months. Roberts is a wellknown activist in Denver and Aurora and is co- founder of the Front Line Party for Revolutionary Action.
The Party for Socialism and Liberation called for the charges to be dropped and said those arrested were lead organizers, in a Facebook post Thursday afternoon. In a livestreamed statement later in the evening, the organization said the charges criminalized the act of protest.
“Those arrested were the leaders to demand justice for Elijah McClain, who was brutally murdered by the Aurora Police Department,” the group said in the post. “They are still in jail, with the exception of one person. They are facing multiple felony charges and years in prison in an obvious frame- up aimed at stopping the movement for justice for Elijah McClain.”
Jurisdiction over Aurora is split between the 17th and 18th judicial districts, which cover Adams and Arapahoe counties. Both district attorneys, Dave Young and George Brauchler, denied requests by The Denver Post for interviews.
Charges against the protesters from the 17th District center on a July 3 protest where demonstrators surrounded an Aurora police precinct for about seven hours. Prosecutors allege the protesters blocked streets around the station and blocked doors.
Three of the protesters — House, Northam and Lucero — face charges of attempted firstdegree kidnapping in connection to the protest because they “unlawfully and feloniously attempted to imprison or forcibly secrete 18 officers with the intent to force them or another person to make a concession to secure their release,” the news release states.
Eighteen officers were inside the police station at the time the approximate 600 protesters were demanding that the three officers involved in the death of Elijah McClain be fired and criminally charged.
Police also allege that the occupation became a riot when the protesters blocked streets around the precinct and blocked the station’s doors because it “created a danger of violence and property damage.”
Aurora police leaders contemplated sending in a helicopter to retrieve the officers from the building but found that plan unfeasible.
Colorado law defines a riot as “a public disturbance involving an assemblage of three or more persons which by tumultuous and violent conduct creates grave danger of damage or injury to property or persons or substantially obstructs the performance of any governmental function.”
“We support the First Amendment right of people to protest peacefully in our community, but there is a difference between a peaceful protests and a riot,” Young said in a news release. “When individuals cross the line and break the law, they will be prosecuted.”
Charges filed by the 18th District include felony theft against House and Northam for allegedly taking signs from two counterprotesters during a June 27 demonstration — one of the first large protests of the killing of Elijah McClain during which police forcefully cleared the lawn in front of the Aurora Municipal Center. House and Northam then led protesters to block lanes of Insterstate 225, East Sixth Avenue and Sable Boulevard.
Other charges stem from a July 12 car protest House and Northam led that impeded traffic and a July 25 protest where a driver drove his Jeep through a crowd blocking an interstate and a member of the crowd fired a weapon at the Jeep, striking two others. Investigating officers blamed the violence on House, Northam and Roberts for creating a “tumultuous and dangerous situations.” The Jeep driver has not faced criminal charges, but the alleged shooter faces charges of attempted murder and assault.
Combined, the six protesters face 33 felony counts and 34 misdemeanor charges. Each faces years in prison if convicted.
The Party for Socialism and Liberation scheduled a march for noon Saturday at the State Capitol to protest the arrests.