Protesters await judge's decision on whether they can camp out at Zuccotti
Protesters await judge's decision on whether they can camp out at Zuccotti - Occupy Wall Street demonstrators surrounded a now-closed Zuccotti Park near Wall Street today as they waited for a judge to decide whether they could go back inside. Hours after the city forcibly evicted protestors, scrubbed down the park and closed it, Occupy Wall Street protests scattered across downtown Manhattan awaiting a judge's decision on whether they could return.
The city's plan to evict protesters after nearly two months early today resulted in the arrest of 200 protesters. Occupy protesters had gone to a judge after the closure, getting a judge to issue a temporary restraining order.
Another judge will hear both sides this afternoon and render a decision.
In the meantime, a new sign was posted in Zuccotti Park the read that the park was only open from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. and that there was no lying down and no tents or sleeping bags allowed inside.
"Unfortunately, the park was becoming a place where people came not to protest, but rather to break laws, and in some cases, to harm others," Mayor Bloomberg said this morning.
Several hundred ousted protesters marched north up Centre Street after the cleanup, clashing with police who in at least one case were seen using batons on a group crossing the street in a crosswalk and with a green light.
By 5:30 a.m., the newly-scrubbed Zuccotti was a far cry from the filthy mass of tents and blankets that had fouled the park for two months. All the tents were cleared and a heavy smell of disinfectant lingered in the air.
By 7 a.m. all the streets surrounding the park were open to the public. After 50 protesters returned to the park, minus their gear, they were allowed inside. A short time later, the city closed the park after learning about the injunction. That decision spurred another fracas between cops and demonstrators.
In court papers, the city said, "While the plaza must generally be open and accessible to the public, the owner can impose conditions on that invitation which can take the form of reasonable rules. Brookfield's rules of conduct for members of the public using Zuccotti Park prohibit, among other things ... camping, the erection of tents and other structures; the placement of tarps, sleeping bags and other coverings on the property; and 4) the storage of personal property on the ground, benches and sitting areas."
Brookfield Properties, which owns and operates the park, thanked the city for clearing out Zuccotti.
"Brookfield appreciates the peaceful and professional response of the NYPD, the FDNY, and the Department of Sanitation, and thanks Mayor Bloomberg for his leadership. As had been widely reported, conditions in Zuccotti Park had become dangerous, unhealthy and unsafe," the company said in a statement. "In our view, these risks were unacceptable and it would have been irresponsible to not request that the city take action. Further, we have a legal obligation to the city and to this neighborhood to keep the Park accessible to all who wish to enjoy it, which had become impossible."
via: nypost