Within about 25 minutes of pro-Palestinian demonstrators entering Cal Poly Humboldt's Siemens Hall on April 22, a decision had been made.
"I want them out of the building," Chief of Staff Mark Johnson tells then interim Police Chief Peter Cress, moments after he and two other officers arrived on scene. When Cress returns less than 10 minutes later to inform Johnson demonstrators declined what he described to them as "an opportunity" to move their protest onto the university quad, where it would have been within the university's Time, Place and Manner policy, Johnson is blunt in his assessment.
"So, they've elected for the shit show?" he asks. "OK. They can choose the easy way or the hard way."
These brief exchanges — captured amid more than nine hours of body camera footage from the first officers on scene that day released to the Journal in response to a California Public Records Act request — illustrate the decision to clear the building, through mass arrests, if necessary, came quickly. And while messaging from CPH administration has cast the decision as a response to an increasingly dangerous situation, the footage clearly shows it came before any widespread vandalism had occurred within the building, and before protesters barricaded the building's entrances and exits.
The distinction is a potentially important one, as protesters told the Journal in the spring their goal had been a soft occupation of the building — one that held the space to bring awareness to the humanitarian crisis in Gaza brought by the Israel-Hamas war, but one that allowed classes and administrative operations to continue. Administrators, meanwhile, have insisted the demonstration was not "a peaceful protest," but "lawless behavior that was premeditated."
What's clear in retrospect is the police response to Siemens Hall that day — and the violent confrontation that came when officers attempted to clear the building only to be pushed back by protesters — did not bring the swift end to the situation that administrators had envisioned. Rather, when police left the scene some six hours after they'd arrived, the occupation was entrenched, with the entrances to Siemens Hall blockaded and vandalism inside the building widespread — a significant portion of it decrying the police use of force that had just occurred. The university estimates protesters caused $1.2 million in damage, though it has not provided an explanation or documentation of that tally, despite numerous requests. The occupation would last another eight days and draw international media attention, ultimately ending when administrators — having already taken the unprecedented step of canceling in-person instruction and instituting a hard closure that threatened anyone who set foot on campus with arrest — summoned hundreds of police officers from throughout Northern California to forcefully clear Siemens Hall and the surrounding area.
The footage released in response to the Journal's request offers the most detailed moment-by-moment account of the protest's infancy and how police and administrators responded. It paints a picture of a small university police department ill-prepared to deal with such a situation, and documents how police and administrative decisions seem to have diverged from widely accepted best practices for policing protest activity.
But the footage is by no means comprehensive. Of the six university police officers on scene that day, the Journal only obtained body camera footage from four, none of which capture the entirety of their deployment. A university public records specialist told the Journal the department's vendor was unable to recover footage from two of the officers and two other cameras had "technical issues," while batteries died on yet two others partway through the incident. Footage from Cress' camera, meanwhile, included an unexplained gap of more than two hours. (The university said it would release that outstanding footage to the Journal by Sept. 30 but had still failed to do so as the paper went to press Oct. 1.)
Nonetheless, what's been released offers the fullest picture to date of the situation officers faced when they arrived at Siemens Hall that day and how they responded.
Spencer Fomby, a retired police captain with 22 years of experience and who now serves as the Public Order Section Chair for the National Tactical Officers Association, spent years helping the Berkeley Police Department respond to demonstrations, like those in the wake of the 2009 police shooting of Oscar Grant, and incorporating de-escalation principles into the department's critical incident and public order responses. In an interview with the Journal, Fomby says campus protests are inherently complex and dynamic, but offered some key best practices.
First off, Fomby says occupying a building is not an act of protected free speech, so administrators certainly have the authority to threaten protesters with arrest if they refuse to leave. But he notes communication is essential.
"You have to attempt to communicate with the protest group, letting them know they're violating certain rules and potentially laws, and then telling them there's a consequence for their actions," he says, adding a uniformed officer is generally not the best choice to engage in this communication, as it can be seen as an escalating factor or make the situation confrontational.
In the footage released to the Journal, Cress is the only person who has this type of conversation with demonstrators at the protest's outset, and he never fully articulates the potential consequences if they refuse to leave the building. (They reportedly only learn of plans to arrest them sometime later when they're relayed by a local reporter shortly before police in riot gear begin staging outside the building's glass doors.)
Fomby says he also learned through firsthand experience the importance of making sure decision makers fully understand the potential outcomes of their directives. For example, he says, someone giving an order to clear protesters from a building should be made to understand that if those protesters resist arrest, officers will use force, which could have bad optics and escalate tensions.
If such a conversation occurred at CPH, it's not captured on camera.
Finally, Fomby says it's important to understand the emotionality of these situations.
"It's such an emotionally charged event that people who have never been involved in criminal activity or with police will become resistive, just because they're so passionate," he says, adding that, as such, when there's "no real threat to the building, nobody is in danger," it's best to slow things down and communicate.
At CPH, after the initial decision was made to clear the building, the body camera footage does not give any indication that any efforts to re-engage in communication with protesters was made for hours, not until well after police had tried — and failed — to forcefully remove them.
The principles mentioned by Fomby align closely with those detailed in a variety of white papers and guidelines issued on policing protests by the likes of Police1, the RAND Corporation and the U.S. Department of Justice. In addition to guidance on broad strategy, these publications also offer detailed suggestions, many of which do not appear to have been followed in the Siemens Hall response. For example, the publications suggest that officers in tactical gear — like helmets and shields — should stage where protesters cannot see them because the mere sight of them can escalate tensions.
This did not happen at CPH, where the sight of officers in tactical gear appears to have escalated tensions — leading to the barricading of doors and an intensifying of protest activity — to the point Cress at one point tells sheriff's deputies in vests and helmets standing directly in front of the entrance to Siemens Hall, "Your presence has changed things considerably."
CPH Interim President Michael Spagna sent a campuswide email Sept. 11 reporting, in part, that the spring protests were the subject of an after-action review "of how the events in April were handled and what could have been done differently," details of which will be shared with the campus community "in the near future." The Journal has requested copies of any documents generated by the review, and the university has indicated it will respond by Oct. 31.
Below, find a timeline of the first six hours of the protest that eventually shuttered Cal Poly Humboldt last spring, compiled entirely from video footage of the incident, as well as the initial police calls for service.
4:25 p.m. — Presidential aide Paula Petersen calls the University Police Department's non-emergency line to report there's "some little protest, little something going on" but "we're fine and safe." Petersen says the protesters are disrupting the university's Time, Place and Manner Policy and requests an officer respond. A few minutes later, dispatch calls back to ask Petersen how many people are involved in the demonstration and she says she doesn't know. "We heard them coming and we just locked and shut the shades so as not to engage," says Petersen, who then calls back again a short time later to report protesters have begun erecting tents in the hallway.
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4:48 p.m. — Petersen calls back a fourth time at Chief of Staff Mark Johnson's direction. "There are two [protesters] right outside our door," she says. "The chief of staff went out, asked who they were; they refused to identify themselves. They're occupying the space — air quotes 'occupying' — and he wants them removed."
[audio-6]4:48 p.m. — Then UPD Interim Chief Peter Cress, Lt. Janelle Jackson and Sgt. Andy Martin enter Siemens Hall from its east entrance, which opens onto the university quad, to find a tent set up in the foyer and about a dozen protesters standing nearby. "Hey everybody, we're just going to need to let the staff and faculty, like, exit so they feel comfortable," Cress says. "You guys are good with that?" A protester replies, "Yep." Cress then asks if anyone is leading the protests and someone responds, "No." "It's like a grassroots effort, huh? OK. I'll be back in a bit. Thank you," says Cress.
4:50 p.m. — After walking down the second floor hallway, which is free from graffiti or damage, and exchanging pleasant greetings with a few protesters passing by or sitting in the hallway, Cress enters the president's suite and connects with Johnson and interim Vice President of Risk Management and Safety Cris Koczera. "First order of business, we'll get the building cleared out of staff and students and faculty," Cress says. "I had a brief conversation with the group that's outside [the dean of students office]. I just said, 'Hey, you guys going to be good with letting staff and students walk through?' And they said, 'Yeah, no problem, no problem.' So that shouldn't be a problem. We'll get everybody out. It's almost 5 [p.m.] anyway." Koczera then asks if they should close the building, noting classes are scheduled into the evening. Cress says not yet. "Let's see if they'll agree to move out to the quad," he says. Johnson then chimes in: "They're downstairs and they're actually blocking the lower entrance. ... There's about two dozen of them down there, and I want them out of the building." Cress responds, "We can do that," and turns off his body camera.
4:50 p.m. — As Cress speaks with admin, Jackson and Martin go through the building's second floor door-to-door to check on staff and students, making sure everyone is OK and offering to escort people from the building. All indicate they feel safe and are comfortable exiting on their own. After checking one room, Jackson calls Martin over to show him a poster on the wall. "Dude, 'Sucking at something is the first step toward being kind of good at something,'" she reads with a laugh. "I mean, it's not wrong," Martin responds before they continue on.
4:53 p.m. — Jackson and Martin escort an employee out from the Economics Department, and as they do so, the department door placard comes into view with the word "Divest" written on it with a black Sharpie. It's the first of two instances of vandalism visible in the entirety of the footage. As they walk the employee out the southwestern entrance to the building, Martin addresses the protesters gathered there. "The only thing I'm going to ask, if staff wants to go, let staff go. You guys know the deal. I'm not too worried about it," he says. "And furniture. Don't move furniture," Jackson adds. "But staff first, please," Martin says. "Thanks, guys." As the pair walks up the stairs, the group chants out, "Free Palestine!"
4:56 p.m. — Martin and Jackson split ways, with Jackson joining Cress, who turns his body camera back on and stops her. "Let me just brief you on the plan here first," he says. "Nobody is going to occupy the building. The building is shut down the moment they refuse to leave. If they refuse, the building will close and we'll shut it down and eventually we'll move people." Jackson suggests they're going to need more officers, and Cress calls the Arcata Police Department to request additional units.
4:56 p.m. — Jackson and Cress then go downstairs to the building's southwest entrance below the president's office, the one Johnson was referring to, and find about 20 protesters milling about. They've set up a tent in the foyer, but with a clear path on one side allowing access to the doors. "How are y'all?" Cress asks, to which one of the protesters responds, "Groovy." Another protester calls out to the group that they don't have to "talk to cops," and Cress concedes that's true but says he's open if they want to have a conversation. "Here's the offer and the opportunity," he continues. "You can't be in the building because the building is going to close. We're happy to set you up on the quad. You can't spend the night on the quad, but if you wanted to, you could be on the quad for a lawful protest within policy. Is there anybody who will take me up on that offer?" There's a brief silence, after which a protester responds, "I don't think so, man." Another protester decides to start reading some anarchist zines aloud, and Cress reiterates, "That's the offer that's on the table."
4:57 p.m. — Martin, still going door-to-door, enters the presidential suite, finds Johnson and others, and asks if anyone wants an escort out. "I don't have any fears for my safety or anybody else's safety," Johnson says. "What I'm concerned about is not allowing that to take root anywhere in the building. They're free to go out in the quad and voice their political opinion all day and all night, as long as they're not sleeping on campus property. But they're not going to camp out in the administrative building on campus. ... This is not a violent group. They're just misguided."
5 p.m. — Martin continues checking on rooms, locking them behind him so the protesters can't gain access. He contacts a chemistry class, a professor in an empty classroom and another class in progress, with everyone indicating they feel safe. They are left to continue what they were doing. "If people are comfortable, I'm not too worried about them hanging out," Martin tells one instructor. "Are they crowding people?" the instructor asks. "I haven't seen them crowding any people. They are less than impressed with the uniform, but that's to be expected and I haven't seen them interacting with anyone else in a negative way," Martin responds.
5:03 p.m. — Upon returning upstairs, Jackson and Cress find a pile of art supplies on the floor. "Looks like abandoned property to me," Jackson says, before both move the supplies behind a locked door.
5:05 p.m. — Cress informs Koczera, "It was a firm no" on the protesters moving to the quad. Koczera asks if she should set up the university's emergency operations center and Cress agrees. "The way they responded, it's going to be," he starts, before the vice president of risk management interrupts. "It's going to be a shit show, isn't it?" she asks. "The way they responded, they didn't show any indication they were interested in a cooperative resolution," Cress responds. Johnson then emerges from his office. "So, they've elected for the shit show?" he asks. "Like I told Cris, they've indicated they are not willing to comply cooperatively," Cress responds. "OK," Johnson says. "They can choose the easy way or the hard way."
5:05 p.m. — Martin contacts some students in a computer lab, and when they indicate they don't know what's happening in the hallways, he reports that there's a protest and police are offering to escort folks out of the building. "Is it, like, bad?" one of the students asks. "No. It's loud," Martin responds. The students opt to stay and Martin says, "Call us if you need us," before locking the door and leaving.
5:08 p.m. — As she and Cress walk back toward the building's west entrance, Jackson suggests calling in the Humboldt County Sheriff's Office, as well, and setting up a location for processing arrests and citations. Cress then addresses the group at the doors that open onto the university quad. "The building is now closed, so everyone will need to exit," he says. "We're happy to set the group up with space right there on the quad, but what you can't do is be in the building ... So are you guys willing to comply with that?" There's a brief pause, then someone responds, "It kind of sounds like no." Another protester calls out: "We want divestment and we want transparency, otherwise take a hike." Cress asks what that means and the protester responds, "Divestment from the state of Israel, divestment from the military industrial complex." Cress then asks, "Does that happen from you guys remaining here? I'm just asking. Anyway, let's just leave it at this: I encourage dialogue. I understand your position but I encourage conversation throughout this process." He then exits the building and immediately calls dispatch to request the Eureka Police Department and sheriff's office send units.
5:12 p.m. — Martin reports he's done contacting everyone in the building and heads to rejoin Cress and Jackson, finding them at 5:14 p.m. near the building's eastern entrance, where Jackson is telling a protester his tent is now "blocking pathways." After some back and forth, the tent is moved, allowing Cress, Jackson and Dean of Students Mitch Mitchell to continue what they were doing: moving trash cans, chairs and other items from the hallway and securing them behind locked doors. Martin helps, grabbing a donation bin, then moves on to continue the effort down the hall.
5:15 p.m. — Moving west down the second floor hallway, Martin passes a protester playing a small, red concertina accordion. "Take you a long time to learn that?" he asks. "I just learned it about 10 minutes ago," the protester responds. "For reals?" Martin responds. "Well played, well played."
5:16 p.m. — Martin moves to clear some reading materials off a shelf about halfway down the hall and a protester tries to grab some of them out of his hands. "Wow, wow, wow. Don't take stuff out of my hands," Martin says. "They're taking our shit," the protester says, before pleading, "Please give me that. Please give it to me. They're mine." Martin asks the protester's name and they decline to give it, prompting Martin to say he can't determine ownership of the stack of zines in his hands so is going to secure them. "They're from the anarchist library!" the protester responds. "I take it back," Martin responds. "It does say Anarchist's Library on it. I'm happy to give it back to you." He hands the protester the stack and moves on down the hall.
5:17 p.m. — Jackson looks at Martin and says, "I'm tempted to say, 'Grab the fire extinguishers.'" "Nope," Martin responds definitively, and they move on to other things, taking pictures off the wall and moving a large potted ficus into a nearby office.
5:22 p.m. — Officers ask a protester to get out of a chair in the southwestern entrance on the first floor so they can secure it. "Sorry, it's the university's property," Martin says, adding that the protesters are "misappropriating it." "It's being used as a chair," one responds. "Yep, but it's also university property," Martin responds, adding that if the protester doesn't comply he'll have to move to "another option." "You guys are here with every intention of a peaceful protest and I'm happy with a peaceful protest but," Martin starts before a loud chant of, "Free, free, free Palestine," cuts him off. Nonetheless, the protester gets out of the chair and police move it. "We pay your salaries, we pay for these chairs," a protester calls as the officers walk away.
5:23 p.m. — Officers confront another protester in a chair, tipping it forward until they get out, then taking it to a secured office as chants continue.
5:24 p.m. — Officers approach a third protester. "I would really appreciate you getting out of this chair," Martin says. The protester doesn't move, as others approach, yelling, "Please, no touching students. Please, no touching students." Mitchell stands a few feet away but does not engage. Martin seems ready to push the issue as onlookers grow more animated, but Cress approaches and the decision is made to leave the chair, with the protester still sitting in it.
5:37 p.m. — Protesters play instruments — the accordion, a large guard shaker and a 5-gallon bucket used as a drum — and loudly chant as police re-contact the classes in session in the building, now telling people they have to leave the building and escorting them out.
5:41 p.m. — Having cleared the building of everyone but protesters, Cress, Martin and Mitchell convene briefly outside the building's southwestern entrance. "Fuck you, Mitch Mitchell," a protester taunts through a megaphone, as the three discuss plans. Cress asks Mitchell to monitor the entrance. "Just keep an eye on things," he says. "Let us know if things get violent or if there's any property damage that gets started." "You can be Mall Cop," Martin jokes. "Observe and report, sir."
5:46 p.m. — Cress radios dispatch to advise he and Martin are remaining on scene while Jackson develops an operation plan for the forced removal of protesters from the building. Cress and Martin walk up to the university quad.
5:50 p.m. — Martin tells Cress that "if this is going to take a while," he might want to ask the next staffer responding to bring some food and water. Dispatch then radios to let the pair know it has received a 911 hangup call from the Siemens Hall elevator with an unintelligible female voice.
5:51 p.m. — Cress and Martin head back into the building to check on the elevator. Martin again advises the protesters they need to make sure they leave a pathway for folks to enter and exit at the doors. They get to the elevator — passing a glass partition to the president's suite on the way, to which someone has affixed a "Free Palestine" bumper sticker, the second of two instances of vandalism visible in the footage — and find students using it to move chairs. They report everything is OK, and the officers turn to leave. On their way out, freelance reporter Ryan Hutson stops them to ask, "What's the plan for this?" and if protesters would be allowed to stay overnight. "No, it won't be overnight," Cress says. "Do you foresee arrests happening?" Hutson asks. "That's up to them," Cress replies, adding that they've already been asked to leave multiple times. As the officers exit the building, Martin thanks the protesters near the building's eastern door. "I appreciate the walkway," he says. Hutson would later tell the Journal Cress' comments to her were the first protesters learned they might be arrested for refusing to leave the building, saying the atmosphere then changed notably.
6 p.m. — Cress asks Martin, "Alright, so what's the next logical evolution of this thing? We have an ops plan that Janelle will run past me, a cease and desist." Martin responds that police should make sure everyone is aware of the exit points and make announcements on both floors of the building so protesters have an opportunity to leave, adding that police should use a public address system because the protesters will try to "overtone" the announcement. He then suggests bringing in a neutral legal observer to watch over any action. Cress then asks how they would be notified and Martin says he doesn't know, though they quickly determine she's already on scene.
6:04 p.m. — The two officers are standing in front of the building entrance that opens onto the university quad, which is almost entirely empty. As a student journalist snaps some pictures, a female student attempts to walk past Cress and Martin into Siemens Hall. "Nope, you may not go in," Cress says, putting his hands on her to physically prevent her when she tries to continue walking past. She indicates the bag of stuff she's carrying is "for students," and asks if she's being detained. Cress indicates she is and the building is closed, saying she cannot continue past. She pauses a moment, then says, "Well, if you're going to arrest me, arrest me," and tries to push past. Cress grabs the straps of her backpack and holds on, prompting shouts of, "Get your hands off of students!" from protesters at the doorway nearby. Another protester approaches and puts their body between Cress' and that of the female student whose backpack he's holding, saying, "Get your hands off of students!" He lets go as about a half-dozen other shouting protesters approach, and points to the camera man, saying they have her identification. "We're students," a protester shouts. "Get your hands off of us."
6:05 p.m. — Cress calls dispatch: "Would you just note that several students have pushed past us and into the building, despite warnings not to." As dispatch replies, another student walks between Cress and Martin. As Martin attempts to place hands on her, the protesters again come forward, shouting, "Don't touch students," until he stands down. As a protester bangs a bucket with a drum stick and others chant, "Let them in, let them in," others walk in, drawing cheers from within the building.
6:07 p.m. — Cress talks with Jackson, who is working on the operations plan, and says he'll send someone down with the armory key, which Jackson says they need to find flex cuffs — or disposable handcuffs used for mass arrests or detentions.
6:09 p.m. — The first Humboldt County sheriff's deputies arrive on scene.
6:11 p.m. — Vice President of Facilities Management Michael Fisher approaches Cress and informs him someone has tied the door shut from the inside at the building's first floor, southwestern entrance with shoelaces or some kind of cord. As Fisher finishes, two Arcata police officers arrive on scene and Cress briefs them, saying the protesters have been asked to leave but aren't being "voluntarily compliant." He says, "Unless there's a change in direction, it's going to go the route of dispersal order and arrests."
6:13 p.m. — Dispatch calls to advise there are additional subjects entering Siemens Hall from the southwest entrance.
6:14 p.m. — Jackson calls and Cress asks, "What's the actual plan for entry and dispersal." Apparently responding to a question from Jackson, Cress then approaches Martin to ask if he knows where the flex cuffs are. He says there may be some on a cabinet in the armory and possibly others in the trunks of patrol cars. Cress then asks again about the plan. He advises there are still two groups — one at the building's eastern entrance, and the other at its southwestern entrance — asking if the plan is to take them one at a time. "Just push them to one location?" he asks after a pause. "If we pick them off on one end, at one location, and just let [the] rest of whoever wants to flee out the back ... maybe they go out the door and leave. ... Maybe that's not the worst thing in the world to have happen," he says. Cress then indicates he would rather not work up the stairs, so they agree to start on the second floor at the eastern entrance and go from there.
6:20 p.m. — Cress advises officers the building's western doors opening onto the university quad need to stay open, asking them to hold them ajar, noting Fisher's report that protesters tied one set of doors shut from the inside. As Cress conveys the message, it's apparent in the footage that protesters are already putting a makeshift barricade into place with a trash can, a recycling bin and chairs clogging the entryway. Moments after Cress gives the directive, a sheriff's office team arrives in helmets and tactical vests. A small group of bystanders begins to gather on the quad to watch.
6:23 p.m. — Protesters can be heard within Siemens Hall practicing exercising their right to remain silent in unison.
6:25 p.m. — A loud chant breaks out from within the building: "Disclose, divest, we will not stop, we will not rest."
6:27 p.m. — Sheriff's deputies report Humboldt County jail staff is en route with another vehicle to transport arrestees. "Oh, that's fantastic," Cress responds. Moments later, Cress advises the deputies the plan is to take arrestees from the building, through the university quad, to an Arcata police van waiting nearby, behind Nelson Hall East and the Gutswurrak Student Activities Center. As chants from within the building grow, Cress tells the deputies, "Your presence has changed things considerably."
6:30 p.m. — Cress calls Johnson and advises, "We're getting close to go-time here." He estimates there are probably 60 students inside who are "actively fortifying things" and police have 15 to 17 bodies ready to make entry, saying they'll start from the university quad entrance and work from there, first issuing a dispersal order and then making arrests.
6:32 p.m. — Mitchell advises Cress he's observed students through the southwestern first floor entrance bringing furniture upstairs. "Everything from downstairs was taken upstairs," he says.
6:38 p.m. — Cress updates Jackson with reports that protesters have now barricaded the southwestern and eastern entrances to Siemens Hall, in addition to having tied the doors on the southeastern entrance closed. Cress suggests having a team go in through a different door to "surprise them," but then says that would leave officers barricaded in the building, and it's decided they'll just send a team into the eastern entrance to remove the furniture barricade before clearing the building. "But we need to get going," Cress says. "They're definitely fortifying things."
6:41 p.m. — Cress and deputies cut the cord that had tied the building's southwestern doors shut, with Cress leaving the deputies in place to physically hold the doors open to prevent them from being tied shut again.
6:45 p.m. — Jackson calls Cress to revisit the option of entering through different doors to bypass the barricade and take the protesters by surprise. "If you go through [the other door], you're going to be on the other side of the barricade with them," Cress says, before directing Jackson to bring the team to the university quad to stage in front, remove the barricade and then enter the building. "It's as simple as this, come up and make the decision when you get here," Cress says.
6:49 p.m. — As the crowd on the quad grows, Cress asks people near Siemens Hall to give officers "a bubble" of space. "What's a bubble?" a middle-aged man standing nearby asks. "Just a bubble so they don't have to focus on two different things," Cress responds. "What bubble? I don't see a bubble," the man responds. "You're the bubble," Cress tells him. "You're a magical bubble, sir." "What's it based on?" the man asks. "Is there a bubble law?"
6:57 p.m. — The bubble man continues to try to engage Cress in conversation. "When you get home from work, you should look at some videos of what's going on in Gaza," he says. Meanwhile, the crowd on the quad continues to grow.
6:59 p.m. — Cress asks someone to bring him two additional body cameras from the station — one for him and one for Martin — apparently because their batteries are running low.
7 p.m. — Chants from within the building continue to grow louder, repeating, "Cops, go home, leave us the fuck alone."
7:04 p.m. — Jackson arrives at Siemens Hall — now wearing a helmet and tactical gear — with officers from various agencies, including some with crowd control shields. Jackson asks Cress to request more batons from the armory, noting not all officers have one.
7:06 p.m. — Officers form a line in front of Siemens Hall's western entrance, between the doors and the growing crowd of onlookers, who are now joining in chants with protesters in the building, yelling, "Boycott, divest!"
7:06 p.m. — "Really? These are students and y'all are showing up with fucking guns!" one protester yells at Cress. "These are students," the protester tells Cress when he asks her to back up. "You have guns. You have weapons. These are students calling for peace. And you are leading this. You are literally about to lead violence among students."
7:09 p.m. — Police read the dispersal order and begin removing furniture from the barricade at the western entrance to Siemens Hall. Cress directs officers in front of the building to push protesters back. As officers pull furniture from the blockade, the protesters behind it inside the building become increasingly animated, jumping and shouting, "Free, free, free Palestine!" Inside the building, as the officer begins reading the dispersal order, some protesters begin an Indigenous prayer, burning rosemary and other herbs.
7:14 p.m. — An officer reports to Cress that some protesters inside the building are now throwing cans at officers attempting to remove the barricade. The crowd of bystanders outside the building grows increasingly loud, converging on the line of officers. An Arcata police officer holding the door open tells several Eureka police officers with shields to move to the front of the barricade to protect others from projectiles. As she does, Jackson approaches Cress to report, "They're throwing shit." "OK," Cress responds. "Are you ready to start bringing people out?" Jackson says no, reports that "they still have stuff in the way" and tells Cress to have officers move the group outside the building back farther.
7:16 p.m. — Cress does not direct officers to move the group of bystanders back and instead stands monitoring the situation. Inside Siemens Hall, a scrum has now broken out, with protesters pushing back against officers' efforts to push their way into the building. A Eureka police officer loses her footing and is pinned against the furniture barricade. Officers wield batons against protesters, hitting at least two over the head — leaving a bloody wound to one's scalp, and a large bruise on another's forehead — and jabbing others. A protester uses a 5-gallon water jug to bonk a helmeted officer over the head, footage of which will soon go viral nationally. Cress radios dispatch to request additional units from allied agencies. "Send them Code 3," he says, as screams seemingly come from all directions.
7:17 p.m. — Two protesters are pulled from the fray at the entryway and pinned to the ground, with officers cuffing their hands behind them, as the group outside the building screams, "Leave them alone." As the protesters are lifted — one to their feet, the other carried — Cress yells for officers to lift them by the shoulders, not their hands or arms, to avoid injuring them.
7:20 p.m. — Cress pulls Fisher aside near the quad and says police need a facilities truck that can be backed up to the entrance of Siemens Hall and loaded with furniture pulled from the blockade. He expresses concern that the increasingly angry group outside Siemens Hall may use the furniture for other purposes if it's not secured.
7:22 p.m. — Cress and Jackson discuss next steps, with Cress asking where additional officers should be directed as they respond. "Here," Jackson says. They agree the crowd outside Siemens Hall needs to be pushed back and furniture from the barricade secured before any attempt can be made to clear the building. "I'm more concerned about the crowd out here," Cress says.
7:24 p.m. — Cress tells someone on the phone, "I've got everyone in the county coming Code 3. They are not going peacefully. They're resisting."
7:24 p.m. — Martin approaches Cress and tells him he needs to go talk to deputy Peter Leipzig, saying he wants to "pull everyone" and call in the SWAT team. Cress then walks to library circle where Leipzig is on the phone. "What do you need?" Leipzig asks. "I need people on that line," Cress says. Leipzig suggests calling in SWAT, "just for the bodies," and Cress agrees, making clear he doesn't want a full SWAT response but needs additional personnel. Cress then tells a group of officers nearby to follow Leipzig back to the front line, saying, "He's got the mission."
7:27 p.m. — Dispatch advises that every allied agency in the county is sending units, adding that California Highway Patrol is sending a helicopter.
7:28 p.m. — Cress returns to the quad and makes his way to the entrance to Siemens Hall but finds his path blocked by protesters. "Excuse me," he says, repeating the request with increasing urgency as the group does not part. Some shoving ensues until several officers come to Cress' aid, violently shoving the crowd back, yelling, "Back up, back up!" A protester shouts, "Get the fuck out of here, you pigs!"
7:30 p.m. — The crowd in front of Siemens Hall continues to grow, becoming increasingly vocal and hostile to officers.
7:31 p.m. — Officers begin a push to move the crowd outside the building back, yelling, "Move back," as they push protesters backward in unison. "Gimme a pepperball," Cress directs, referring to the gun that fires rubber balls filled with pepper spray. "We're going to disperse this one with pepperball." Jackson looks around for a moment then tells Cress, "Nobody has it with them." Increasingly urgent screams seem to come from the front line of officers pushing the gathered crowd back, and Jackson reports an officer is responding to the scene with a pepperball gun. A woman in a Palestinian keffiyeh scarf seems to be holding her ground against pushing officers, yelling, "You're hurting me," as they attempt to force her backward. "This one needs to go," Cress says, pointing at her. Deputies quickly pull her from the crowd and force her to the ground, cuffing her arms behind her. "Shoulders, shoulders, shoulders," Cress tells them as they lift her, before telling her, "Your phone is in your back pocket, ma'am."
7:34 p.m. — Jackson doubles back from the front line and tells Cress, "We need to start arresting these people, too." "Yeah," Cress replies, as police engage in a violent shoving match with protesters in front of him. "APD, KKK, IDF, they're all the same!" the crowd shouts.
7:36 p.m. — A man crosses the police line and approaches Cress. "I'm faculty here," he says. "I think the best thing you should probably do is just back off." "No," Cress replies. "It's going to get worse," the man responds. "It's not going to happen," Cress says. "They have their list of demands," the man continues. "They want to talk to [inaudible]." Cress replies, "Not going to happen right now." The man responds that "this is not a good pissing contest." Cress says, "Thanks for voicing your opinion but I'm not in a position to have a conversation about it right now, all right? Thank you." The man says, "You're just going to escalate the situation and make it worse. We have one student who's bleeding, We're going to have lawsuits." Cress counters that there are cops bleeding, too. "Really? In comparison to someone with a head injury?" the man responds. Cress tells him to get on the other side of the line but he continues: "This is really bad, Cress. This is really bad. ... You have no idea how bad you're fucking this up, Cress." Cress then asks officers to let the man through, back to the other side of the police line. "You don't even care," the man says as he leaves.
7:37 p.m. — The truck from facilities management begins backing into position and officers are directed to form a line alongside it to prevent the gathered crowd from grabbing items from it as they're put in by officers clearing the blockade. Cress then notices the driver has exited the vehicle and urgently directs officer Delmar Tompkins not to let anyone from the crowd take it before telling the driver to get back in. "Stay in the truck so they don't take it," he says. A protester jumps on the back of the truck and is quickly removed. Officers begin loading trash cans and other items from the barricade into the truck.
7:51 p.m. — EPD Chief Brian Stephens arrives on scene, checks on his officers and then connects with Jackson and asks what the goal is. "She said something to the effect of, 'We need to clear all these people off the quad,'" Stephens told the Journal. "I was like, 'You can't and that's not going to work. They're lawfully assembled.' I shut it down because we didn't have the authority and it wasn't going to work."
8:30 p.m. — Stephens and someone from CHP express concern about having to take arrestees 100 yards through the crowd to awaiting vehicles. "Are we in a hurry?" one asks. "I'd say, slow this thing down. If we're not in a hurry, I'd rather have more equipment here ... if they're not attacking us right now, let's let them get tired," he says, adding they can put together an operations plan and define goals.
8:31 p.m. — The crowd begins loudly chanting, "Let in water, Let in water." "Let in water?" one of the officers asks. "They have water fountains in there."
8:46 p.m. — Along the line, protesters and officers engage in conversation. "Bro, it's a fucking school building," one protester tells UPD officer Chance Carpenter. "It's your choice to escalate. If you just left them [in the building], nobody would be here right now."
9:19 p.m. — Cress tells UPD officer Joseph Conlon there are a group of deans who are going to enter the building to have a conversation with the group inside. "That's on them, but the order came down that they get entry," Cress says. Conlon returns a few minutes later to tell Cress the deans are in. "They got in before I got down there," he says.
9:42 p.m. — "What's that?" a protesters asks Carpenter, pointing at the less-than-lethal weapon he's carrying. "It's a pepperball," he answers. "So it's like a gun that shoots pepper spray?" she asks. "I feel safe."
9:43 p.m. — "Why is the library closed?" another protester asks. "Because campus is closing," Carpenter answers. "Why?" she asks. "Because these types of things don't just attract nice people like you, they attract people from the outside who will do damage to things." Another protester then chimes in: "It's because someone higher up decided to escalate."
10:13 p.m. — Cress directs CHP officers on scene on the exit strategy, saying the plan is to walk down the stairs south from the quad and "go to cars," saying officers at the other doors can "just fall in line." The crowd, now several hundred people deep, continues chanting. Cress touches base with other UPD officers to make sure they're not leaving any equipment behind as other officers spread word of the exit plan.
10:14 p.m. — Stephens tells his EPD officers, "We're leaving." Stephens later told the Journal the sheriff's office was the first agency that decided to pull its officers out, and that he and CHP were discussing following suit, while school administration "wanted to send people into the building one more time."
10:15 p.m. — Jackson directs officers with shields to form a line on the left side of the group as they leave to protect officers from any aggressive protesters. Cress tells Jackson they're waiting on "negotiations inside" the building, saying Johnson will call her with the final order for officers to leave.
10:16 p.m. — Cress tells Jackson that CHP officers are going to circle the building and tell other officers the departure plan. "Are there still crowds ... at the other doors?" Jackson asks. "Yeah," Cress answers. Not anywhere near this, but there are groups." Jackson responds she can "guarantee" the crowds will be inside the building once police leave. "Do you know if they broke into the president's office? My guess is yes," she says. "I don't know," Cress responds. "Well," Jackson continues, "the alarms haven't gone off."
10:18 p.m. — Cress checks with CHP officers to make sure they've spread the word and they say they have. "So we're ready on the signal?" Cress asks. "Yep," a CHP officer responds. Cress also confesses he "just remembered" his truck is parked on the quad, in the thick of the protest.
10:18 p.m. — "Everyone knows," Stephens tells Cress. "So, whenever you're ready." Cress responds that he's waiting on word from inside on "how that conversation goes." "Assuming it goes the way it's going to go, I'll have a quick conversation with bullhorn girl," Cress says, referring to a woman in the crowd who's been leading chants with a megaphone. Stephens tells Cress that EPD will bring up the rear in the exit line to make sure all officers get out safely. Cress asks if officers want to gather somewhere to debrief after exiting. "I think the better plan, Pete, would probably be to find something in the morning," Stephens responds. "I mean, if someone was getting a shit sandwich thrown at them, then obviously. ... But if we're going to give it up, then just give it up and leave, unless it sets on fire. But I don't see it going there. ... I think you need [the sheriff's office's] leadership here, like decision makers for the future ... we need people to make decisions." Cress then responds that the protesters might occupy the building "for a couple of days."
10:20 p.m. — UPD officer Delmar Tompkins approaches and Cress tells him they're formulating an exit strategy. "Good," Tompkins replies, saying he just spoke with the emergency operations center. "The president, the provost and, um, a couple of faculty members, they're conspiring. I don't know what else to tell you. They were giving conflicting information, they were backchanneling with the protesters. I asked them, 'What are you talking about?' ... And, as soon it sounds, the president told me to stand down, not that he has that authority, but I didn't want to make a scene. I broke aside with Sherie. They're lost. They want to get us all down there. I recommend you or Janelle get down there." Cress then cuts Tompkins off, saying they are just waiting for Johnson to call. "I think we have a plan in place," Cress says. "They're not being honest," Tompkins says. "In what way?" Cress asks. "What I'm saying is, I don't think you're getting good information. So, either get down there and get an ear we trust in there, or let's get out of here ... because there's, there's, there's no supply line coming in. ... Our radios are down. We're, we're too far apart over here." Cress tells Tompkins to "grab a spot on the line," saying that when the dispersal order comes they'll all walk "as a unit" to the library. Reached by the Journal, Tompkins said departmental policy "prohibited" him from commenting.
10:24 p.m. — Cress asks Jackson if there's been any word from Johnson and she says there hasn't. Cress then calls Koczera, who answers and hands the phone to Johnson. "Hey, any update on the conversation inside the building?" Cress asks. "OK. ... Alright. ... Sounds good. ... Sounds good. ... We're ready on our end."
10:25 p.m. — "Alright," Jackson asks, "what are we doing?" Cress responds: "Mark's going to call back. They're still having conversation." Cress is then told the group of protesters inside the western entrance of Siemens Hall has now gone downstairs, apparently talking to someone from administration.
10:29 p.m. — As officers mill about in front of the building, awaiting the order to depart, Cress approaches Stephens, whose department has been overseeing peaceful weekly pro-Palestinian demonstrations in front of the Humboldt County Courthouse for months. "This is liable to have ramifications for you guys," Cress says, signaling that police standing down may embolden future protests. "I mean, nothing we can do about it now." Stephens seems to consider for a moment before responding, "It would have ramifications if we ended up using force, too," he says. "Oh, I know," Cress responds. "I just feel for you."
10:30 p.m. — "So, units disperse is the signal," Cress tells Jackson, explaining that when it's given, officers will line up and leave the quad, regrouping in front of the library, after which they will disperse in groups to return to their cars.
10:33 p.m. — Cress answers Johnson's call, retreating to a quieter spot on the hill southwest of Siemens Hall for the conversation. "Alright, go ahead," he says. He listens quietly for about a minute, then responds, "Sounds like a plan." When he gets off the phone, Jackson informs him that a large crowd has gathered in front of the library. "Did you see the huge crowd?" she asks. "We can't walk past them." They decide to walk down through the art quad in front of the Van Duzen Theater to Laurel Street and disperse from there.
10:37 p.m. — Cress passes the new exit strategy on to a CHP officer, who says he'll spread the word to others.
10:38 p.m. — Cress asks the woman with the megaphone for her assistance. "We're going to take off," he says. "What I need you to do is ask the crowd — we're going to walk that way and down the stairs. We don't want any hassle. ... What I need you to do is ask the group to open a corridor so we can walk out. OK?" She then takes up the megaphone, "Everyone, listen to me," she says, repeating herself a couple of times until the crowd quiets. "They are going to leave. Let them leave. They are going to walk down the stairs to our left. Open a corridor and let them leave." "Don't touch them," someone yells, followed by another yell of, "Keep it peaceful." As the officers begin to file out, the crowd erupts in a loud chant, repeating, "Cops go home!" As the officers walk by, a young man in the crowd offers an exaggerated wave, saying, "Bye-bye!" The officers then file out and return to their cars without incident. Siemens Hall, meanwhile, would remain occupied for another eight days.
Freelance journalist Ryan Hutson of Humboldt Freelance contributed video to this report. Find more of Hutson's work, including additional video of this protest, at @HumboldtFreelance on Youtube.
Thadeus Greenson (he/him) is the Journal's news editor. Reach him at (707) 442-1400, extension 321, or thad@northcoastjournal.com.