The University at Buffalo and nearly a dozen local police agencies are facing a civil rights lawsuit from 10 people arrested at a pro-Palestinian protest on the North Campus last year. What’s at the heart of the legal filing?
On May 1, 2024, several police agencies from as far as Evans and Orchard Park converged on UB’s North Campus to disperse pro-Palestinian demonstrators the university said were violating college curfew and rules about encampments. But a complaint filed this month in federal court from ten individuals arrested that night, alleges their constitutional rights were violated.
“The scene that broke out at UB with nearly 100 officers, or perhaps more, surging at and violently taking down 50, a group of only 50 protesters who are orderly and complying with any orders that are received from officers is just not appropriate.”
That’s Robert Corp, lawyer with Lipsitz Green Scime Cambria, who’s representing ten people arrested that night. He’s alleging a violation of First, Fourth and 14th Amendment rights by police. Corp believes the basis for police action — the curfew and encampment rules — isn’t justified.
“It was arbitrary, it was capricious, it was unnecessary," said Corp. "It [campus policy] wasn't properly publicized. And so the curfew itself, we think, is on poor legal footing, and there was no basis to enforce it," he said. "And so as such, any of the arrests that followed as a result of that curfew are both violations of the First Amendment.”
All 10 of his clients who were arrested, a mix of UB students and faculty plus area-residents, had their charges dismissed. He believes that underscores the lawsuit’s argument.
UB said the decision to arrest individuals occurred “after multiple discussions, communications and warnings to protesters.” The school also said they prioritized safety and security while following applicable laws, rules and policies.
But Corp said officers were overly physical and even arrested a client of his who he says wasn’t involved in the demonstrations.
“The officers targeted Muslims in their arrests, and some of the most shocking and brutal arrests were of Muslim folks, including that of a young woman who wasn't even participating in the protest, who was standing in one of the academic buildings of UB," said Corp. "[She] was thrown to the ground and her hijab knocked off and screamed at very aggressively by a number of officers while they piled on top of her.”
The lawsuit said police presence visibly ramped up around 7:30 p.m., and minutes before 8:30 p.m. while protestors were conducting a prayer circle, an announcement was made by authorities that they were to disperse or face police action. That’s when law enforcement moved in, and arrests and altercations began. A total of 15 people were arrested that night according to UB.
