Perhaps typical, but it certainly puts the lie to the claims of violent protests coming out of the administration, and shows how hollow their justifications are for federalizing the national guard.
Because if it was as bad as they claim, they wouldn’t be letting people off the hook like this.
No there absolutely are protesters who are rightfully arrested, but the cost to prosecute is not worth it to the DA so they drop the case. Protesters really like to be in this grey area of legality so that you can write articles like this.
If the protests truly were as violent as the administration claims, if ICE agents were truly out there fighting for their lives, etc … then they would prosecute. It wouldn’t be “not worth it” to prosecute if things were really that dire.
Law enforcement don't have to be "fighting for their lives" in order to arrest you. The
Cops can and will arrest you if you're impeding their duties. Prosecutors don't have to charge you, and often don't when it comes to political activism. Doesn't mean they can't, the people who are released without charge are being given a break, I wouldn't be outraged over that. And we're talking about 170 citizens who were definitely protesting and interfering with police duties, out of tens hundreds of thousands of police interactions. This is a big fucking nothing burger and you are all losing your minds.
A protestor's actions are arrestable if they meet statutory elements:
- Physically blocking police movement or access (e.g., surrounding a patrol car or blocking arrests).
- Touching, grabbing, or standing too close after a lawful order to back away.
- Ignoring a lawful dispersal order after being warned.
- Using amplification or crowd behavior that prevents officers from issuing commands or making arrests.
Officers typically move to arrest when:
- They’ve given clear, repeated commands (e.g., “Move back,” “Clear the street”) that are ignored.
- The person’s proximity or actions create a safety risk (blocking traffic, interfering with detainment).
- A dispersal order is issued and disobeyed.
- The crowd shifts from peaceful to physically obstructive or destructive.
This process is completely separate from the decision to prosecute those who are arrested. Often, protestors are not prosecuted for political and economic reasons. It's not a crime to arrest someone and not charge them. It's not a violation of the constitution. Nothing has to be dire.
Especially given that they have brought charges against people for trivial shit and then had juries give not-guilty verdicts because the charges are obviously bullshit.
Because if it was as bad as they claim, they wouldn’t be letting people off the hook like this.