Occupy LA Lawyers to Issue an Injunction
Occupy LA protesters may file an injunction with a federal judge to contest the eviction notice issued by Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and City Council Sunday.
Attorneys for the Occupy movement are expected to argue that the protesters' First Amendment rights are being violated and that the City Hall Park is a traditional public forum for First Amendment activity.
LAPD Cmdr. Andy Smith said the department's "number-one objective'' is to keep the streets safe rather then force an immediate exodus. "Our goal right now is to try and keep it as peaceful as possible,'' Smith said.
Hundreds of Los Angeles Police officers arrived to begin "de-occupying" the LA camp early Monday morning and were met by protesters who were blocking the intersection at 1st and Main streets, the Occupy LA blog reported.
By 4:30 a.m., several hundred riot officers had convened and declared unlawful assembly, but the police did not take any aggressive action to forcibly clear the majority of the protesters.
Many of the protesters were simply pushed back into the park boundaries to clear the streets.
Four people were arrested for throwing objects at officers, the LAPD confirmed.
On Sunday, Mayor Villaraigosa issued a statement officially announcing the closure of City Hall Park, where the protesters have camped out for the past 60 days.
"It is time for Occupy LA to move from focusing their efforts to hold a particular patch of parkland to spreading the message of economic justice and a restoration of balance to American society," the mayor said in the statement.
Although the park officially closed Monday morning at 12:01a.m., the mayor said the occupy protesters would have "ample time" to move out their belongings.
The Occupy LA protesters plan on moving their center of operations to the LA port.
Occupy LA runs a live stream at their website.
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