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A class action settlement has been reached in the Pershing Park protest arrest class action lawsuit, resolving allegations that the U.S. Park Police illegally arrested 400 Pershing Park protestors and other individuals in Washington D.C. on Sept. 27, 2002.
News reports state back in September 2002, on the first day of anti-globalization protests, the U.S. Park Police surrounded protestors in order to detain them without warning and perform mass arrests. This practice of detaining and arresting large groups of people is a tactic known as kettling, and is reportedly a popular tactic among police forces across the country. Kettling has also been the cause of several civil lawsuits during protest demonstrations against World Bank and IMF and other entities.
According to the Pershing Park protest arrest class action lawsuit, the roughly 400 individuals arrested in Pershing Park near the White House included non-protestors like nurses in town for a conference and attorneys on their way to work. The arrested individuals were then taken to the Metropolitan Police Department and left hog-tied for hours before they were released from police custody.
These Pershing Park arrests led the Partnership for Civil Justice Fund to represent the protestors and other individuals arrested in the park on Sept. 27, 2002. One suit lead to a settlement with the MPD in 2009.
The Pershing Park protest arrest class action lawsuit against the U.S. Park Police recently ended in a proposed class action settlement that will provide Class Members with $5,000 in awards each. Additionally, the U.S. Park Police have also agreed to provide participants in marches and rallies clear warnings if these participants are violating laws, as well as give the individuals ample time to comply with any police orders. Finally, the Pershing Park protest arrest class action settlement has also set a ban on police from encircling demonstrators in order to detain them.
The U.S. Park Police have denied all wrongdoing in this protest arrest class action lawsuit, but have agreed to settle in order to avoid further attorney and court costs.
Who’s Eligible
According to the Pershing Park protest arrest class action settlement, the proposed Class will include, “all persons who were arrested in Pershing Park in the District of Columbia on September 27, 2002,” except those have already been excluded or opted out of the proposed Pershing Park protest arrest class action settlement.
It is important to note that other protest arrests also occurred on Sept. 27, 2002; however, these other arrests are subject to separate suits.
Potential Award
$5,000
The Justice Department and the Department of the Interior have agreed to pay more than $2.2 million in this Pershing Park protest arrest class action settlement, which will provide $5,000 in compensation for each eligible Class Member.
Proof of Purchase
N/A. If you are an eligible Class Member, you must complete a claim form and mail it to the claims administrator of this Pershing Park class action settlement before June 15, 2015.
Claim Form Deadline
06/15/2015
Case Name
Barham, et al. v. Ramsey, et al., Case No. 02-cv-02283, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia
Final Hearing
06/22/2015
Settlement Website
Claims Administrator
Barham v. Ramsey Administrator
c/o Gilardi & Co. LLC
P.O. Box 8060
San Rafael, CA 94912-8060
1-877-678-0736
Class Counsel
Carl Messineo
PARTNERSHIP FOR CIVIL JUSTICE FUND
Defense Counsel
Marina Utgoff Braswell
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