68 people charged with trespassing related to April pro-Palestine protest at ASU

PHOENIX – Dozens of people involved in an April pro-Palestine protest at Arizona State University in Tempe have been officially charged with trespassing, authorities announced Wednesday.

Sixty-eight protesters face class 3 misdemeanor trespassing charges for allegedly defying police orders to disperse, the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office said. Their names were not released in the announcement.

Class 3 is the least serious type of misdemeanor in Arizona, carrying a maximum sentence of 30 days in prison.

At the time, ASU said 72 people were arrested for trespassing in connection with a tent encampment set up by protesters on April 26. Only 20 of those arrested were ASU students, the school said.

Authorities broke up the protest after midnight for violating campus rules regarding encampments, overnight presence, creating a disturbance and failing to reserve the space, ASU said.

County Attorney Rachel Mitchell said in a Wednesday press release that law enforcement agencies and prosecutors are responsible for keeping the campus safe for students and faculty.

“The right to free speech does not extend to violating the law,” Mitchell said. “The university’s policy is clear – encampments are not permitted in this particular area on campus. The protestors – many of whom were not students – were given the chance, over and over again, to peacefully take down the encampments and leave the area.”

Pro-Palestine protest response led to ASU Police chief departure

The fallout wasn’t limited to protesters. ASU Police Chief Michael Thompson was placed on paid administrative leave while school officials reviewed complaints about his behavior during the demonstration. He never returned to duty and retired in August.

The complaints were lodged after Thompson reportedly cut and removed tents from the encampment while out of uniform.

The ASU pro-Palestinian protest was just one in a wave of like-minded demonstrations at campuses across the U.S. last spring.

“We allow for free expression. We allow for people to gather. We allow for demonstrations,” ASU President Michael Crow told KTAR News 92.3 FM’s the Mike Broomhead Show on May 7. “We have many demonstrations throughout any academic year. We allow for all of that.

“You can’t disrupt the function of the university and you can’t build structures on the campus of the university because that’s disruptive to the institutions.”

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