Petition: Drop the charges against protesters
STAMFORD — Nearly 2,000 people have signed an online petition asking the state to drop all charges against people arrested during march last summer held to protest the death of Stamford resident Steven Barrier.
Barrier died in police custody on Oct. 23, 2019.
The petition, which had about 1,800 signatures online and 150 on a physical copy as of Wednesday afternoon, seeks to overturn the arrests made by police on activists marching for police reform and accountability in Stamford on Aug. 8.
The arrests came as tensions between police and protesters boiled over during a clash on Broad Street following a march and demonstration at police headquarters.
By the end of the protest, six people were arrested, and officers and demonstrators alike claimed injuries. Five individuals were charged with interfering with police and breach of peace, while one woman faced an additional charge of inciting a riot.
In the aftermath of the incident, police claimed the marchers had acted in a provocative manner and disobeyed police instruction to disperse and reopen streets to vehicular traffic.
The demonstrators, however, say police officers were aggressive and used excessive force on nonviolent protesters as they were dispersing.
“If the charges against the Stamford protestors are not dropped, the city will set a disturbing precedent that threatens to diminish freedom of speech and other democratic rights. Working people, students, social justice activists, and all supporters of democratic rights must stand against this injustice,” the petition reads.
Evan Fritz, one of the organizers behind the petition, said the end goal is to end police “repression” of the public’s right to protest.
“If we can show that the community in Stamford and around the state wants these charges to be dropped that will make a real statement in support of our democratic rights in Connecticut,” Fritz said.
While one of the six cases — for interfering and breach of peace — has already been dropped by the state, the other five are still pending.
But what effect this petition will have on the remaining five cases remains to be seen.
Attorney Phillip Russell, who represents the five defendants, said he and his clients were “encouraged” by the support shown in the petition and they remain confident that their innocence will be proven, one way or another.
“A petition is not normally how we would go about defending a criminal charge or prosecuting a claim, but I’m sure that the prosecutor’s decision will be based on the law and the evidence and will not be swayed by the petition,” he said.
Paul Ferencek, the state’s attorney for the Norwalk/ Stamford Judicial District, said his office had not received any petition as of Monday afternoon.
Ferencek did say the state has offered deals to all five defendants, though. However, both Ferencek and Russell declined to provide any further details on those offers.
All five remaining defendants are scheduled to appear in court on May 17.