incapable of being trespassed

Union 16 - Not Guilty - 200 occupy warehouse

Posted by admin on Wed, 06/06/2012 - 07:48

A Seattle judge has ruled 16 activists were not trespassing after they occupied a vacant Capitol Hill building in December. Some 200 activists occupied the Union Cultural Center at 10th and Union for about 10 hours before they were forced out in a pre-dawn SWAT raid by Seattle police.

According to court records, Judge Judith Hightower ruled the building was abandoned, incapable of being trespassed. The building had been empty for more than a year and was scheduled for demolition two weeks after the activists moved in.

Hightower dismissed the trial May 24; it was slated to start this week. The 107-year-old building had since been demolished to make way for new mixed-use development.

Kimberly Mills, spokesperson for the City Attorney's office, tells CHS the judge denied the prosecutor's request to reconsider the ruling.

Braden Pence, who represented some of the UCC 16, says the ruling calls into question how and why Occupy crackdowns were carried out.

From: CHS

For some background on the

10th and Union Occupation

10th and Union Warehouse Marriage Celebration

OKUPAS

U10
the liberated warehouse was another of those perfect cresting waves of beauty, one of many incredible moments of shear unbelievable perfection, where we find each other in perfect sync, dumbfounded in space and time together harmonous, with eyes wide and surging sweating adrenaline high, we can't help but grab each other as though the battles are over~ as though we may have won~ we each of us survived and we now have a home and a starting point to build a new future for you and us and them and her

we marched from SCCC i showed up late, didn't know where we were going, we didn't march far four blocks and into the building and started building and cleaning up and pulling nails and setting up lights and painting and talking and skating and painting /everyone was drawing and painting and working there was electricity and huge white walls and 200 people,working to create a new home / laying out boundaries and community space / a medical ward/ people sang and danced. . . there was a fundraising performance ~ until. . .

the police showed up and we barricaded ourselves inside then continued painting and had a little discussion GA food arrived we ate and talked and talked and lived and burned. . .
but, i had to go home and sleep / the boys were sick and momma was worried and sleepless
at 4 AM the calls started streaming in . . . you've seen the pix and the news damn~ life happens fast up here ~the wonder crashed in the face of SWAT teams storm
but man, those moments of pure free happiness of grabbing each other and smiling laughing hugging and jumping around in solidarity,
are worth every crushing low we will face forever

at 4:03 am the SPD with fire-department assistance came in through the roof and all the doors to our new homeless warehouse and evicted our geographical dream

to arrest 15 peaceful protesters. . . call in the SWAT team and the fire department



i have heard on the street that the owner of the building was seen onsite with a handgun /protecting property which will be demolished anyway


that's it thanks

NE!L~