Police in riot gear, arrest UCD students in Davis

By Kimberly K. Fu Posted: 11/20/2009 The Reporter.com

Anger over a controversial student fee hike approved for the University of
California system exploded Thursday into a protest on the Davis campus
that ended with a show of force by authorities from throughout the region
-- including Vacaville -- and more than 50 arrests.

As temperatures dipped into the 40s, chanting outside the school's
administration building, Mrak Hall, grew to a feverish pitch. Each time a
cadre of police officers clad in riot gear made entry into the building,
and then exited with a passel of handcuffed students and teachers in
custody, a collective cheer would sound and a new slogan uttered.

"Hell no, we won't go," was popular, as were "The students are justified,
UCD is occupied" and "The students, united, will never be divided."

Though tensions ran high, participants -- of which there were several
hundred -- emphasized that the gathering was peaceful and that no violence
had occurred.

Andrew Saetern, a 21-year-old student protester, had been at a protest at
the Berkeley campus earlier in the day and returned to Davis after
receiving a text message about the protest.

"This has been going on since 10 a.m.," he said. "I've been here since
noon. And it's not just undergrads (protesting), it's graduate students.
My teacher got arrested, too."

Saetern described the instructor, who teaches Spanish 2, as very
supportive of the students.

"This started as 20 people, then 30, 50... We'll be here tomorrow, too,"
Saetern said.

Students explained that the basically peaceful protest turned more
emotionally charged as the hour hit 5 p.m., when the building officially
closed. After 5 p.m., those still inside the building were considered to
be trespassing.

For the next two hours, officials said, the group was asked by campus
police to leave. Following repeated refusals, outside agencies were called
for backup.

The California Highway Patrol arrived en masse, as did officers from
Vacaville, Davis, Winters, Yolo County, Sacramento and more.

By 9:30 p.m., an estimated 52 men and women had been arrested. The
majority were housed in a paddy wagon, which the protester occupants
rocked each time more arrests were made. The rest were placed in the back
of patrol cars.

Meanwhile, two campus police staffers assigned the arrestees numbers, and
their belongings were placed in corresponding brown bags.

It's believed that those arrested were designated by fellow protesters to
be arrested, officials said, and a lawyer for the protesters had
reportedly been notified.

Further details regarding the arrests were unavailable at press time.