OCCUPY WALL STREET

OCCUPY WALL STREET

Across the U.S.

Some of the latest developments in the Occupy protests:

MISSOURI

St. Louis officials have told Occupy St. Louis protesters to move out of a downtown park, but many protesters say they plan to be arrested when police action begins.

The city’s original deadline of 3 p.m. Friday passed without any action — Keiner Plaza was filled with around 200 demonstrators but police did not show up to force anyone to remove the 50 or so tents at the park. Eddie Roth of Mayor Francis Slay’s staff declined to say specifically when police and parks officials would step in.

NEW YORK

Lawyers for more than 700 Occupy Wall Street demonstrators arrested on the Brooklyn Bridge are pressing prosecutors to drop the charges.

The Partnership for Civil Justice Fund sent the Manhattan district attorney a letter Friday calling the Oct. 1 arrests unconstitutional and “indefensible.” The Washington-based civil rights legal group has sued the city on behalf of those arrested. The DA’s office says it’s evaluating all the cases.

A dozen tents sprung up overnight in Washington Square Park after the mayor shifted direction to allow Occupy Rochester to protest round the clock in a city park where 48 people had been charged with violating a nighttime curfew.

OREGON

Police say they believe some people inside the Occupy Portland encampments are preparing for a confrontation when officers attempt to clear the parks.

Occupy Portland organizers say the movement is nonviolent and have appealed to people in the camp to resist peacefully when the midnight Saturday deadline arrives.

But authorities say that a call for reinforcements has gone out to other cities, and as many as 150 anarchists may come to Portland. Police also say some elements may be building shields and looking for gas masks.

PENNSYLVANIA

Protesters with Occupy Philadelphia are proposing to stay at their City Hall encampment and also expand to a site across the street, frustrating city officials who have asked that they move their camp entirely to make way for a long-planned renovation project.

Philadelphia Managing Director Richard Negrin said he was disappointed by the group’s proposal Friday, but said the city hasn’t even begun the conversation about when and how it might possibly remove protesters from the current location.

WASHINGTON

Officials at Seattle Central Community College say they’re getting fed up with Occupy Seattle.

The protesters moved their encampment to the school late last month after city officials told them they couldn’t pitch overnight tents in a downtown park. The college estimates the demonstration is costing it $20,000 a week. There have been reports of vandalism and the school says it has to pay for extra security and additional cleaning crews.

College administrators have contacted state lawyers to find a legal way to remove protesters from campus grounds.

Source: Associated Press