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FBI and Police raid Infoshop and Community Centers
Aug 30, 2008
UPDATES:
Donate to help RNC arrestees here: Cold Snap Legal Collective
Donate to help the Long Haul here: Long Haul Infoshop
Long Haul Infoshop Raid
From Indybay
On August 27th at around 10:30am, 5-6 police officers from three agencies made their way into the Long Haul Infoshop in Berkeley, broke down every door, and confiscated all computers on the property. Computers taken included those used by the Slingshot Collective and East Bay Prisoner Support. Police also broke into cabinets, cut locks, and went through mail.
People arrived after being informed of the situation, and demanded that the police show a warrant. The police said they would show one once they were done, and they did. Both CopWatch and The Berkeley Daily Planet were there to cover the incident. The raid was conducted by the UC Berkeley Police, Alameda County Sheriff, and the FBI. The police stated that the computer equipment "may have been used to commit a felony." This is the first time there has been a raid since the infoshop opened 15 years ago.
More Info:
http://thelonghaul.org/
http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2008/08/27/18530407.php
Twin Cities Raid
At 9:15 Friday night, the Saint Paul Police entered all doors of the RNC Convergence Space in St. Paul, MN with guns drawn. The Space serves as a community center and organizing space for the upcoming protests against the Republican National Convention. At the time of the raid, people were sitting down to dinner and watching a movie.
The police presented no warrant at the time of the raid, but claim that they have a warrant to search the space for "bomb-making" materials. No "bomb-making" materials were found. Rather, the police barked orders for everyone, including a 5 year old child, to get on the floor with their faces to the ground. Everyone inside was put in handcuffs.
In the hours following, the police photographed everyone inside the space and recorded information from their Identification cards. The police took all personal laptops and hard drives. One female activist was sexually harassed by a cop who groped her crotch.
At around 11pm, after a crowd had gathered outside the space, the police began releasing detainees one by one. Corporate media showed up eventually. By midnight, the last detainees were being released. As of the most recent reports, there have been NO ARRESTS. The police are claiming that the space must be closed down due to "fire code" violations. According to City Council member Dave Thune, the police do not have the authority to enforce fire code. Only the Fire Department has the power to enforce this code.
More Info:
http://twincities.indymedia.org/
Long Haul Info:
http://thelonghaul.org/
http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2008/08/27/18530407.php
Twin Cities Info:
http://twincities.indymedia.org/