Federal judge tells police not to ticket Occupy protesters

A federal judge on Tuesday told police temporarily to stop issuing tickets to Occupy Cincinnati demonstrators camping out in a city park, while the protesters’ lawyers and city leaders try to hammer out an agreement on issues in the protesters’ federal lawsuit against the city.

On Tuesday night, the group’s General Assembly met for two hours in the Main Library, overlooking their demonstration site, Piatt Park, as a thunderstorm rolled through. The group turned down a “settlement offer” from the city and agreed to submit a counter-proposal, said Geoffrey M. Miller, an attorney representing the protesters.

• Photos: Occupy Cincinnati protests

Details of the offer and counter-offer were not released. An Enquirer reporter was told to leave the meeting during the discussion.

The group also voted to march to City Hall Wednesday to voice concerns over some City Council members’ apparent opposition to the continued occupation of Piatt Park.

On Monday, the group filed for a court order blocking the city from enforcing rules that ban people from the park after it closes at 10 p.m. On Tuesday, U.S. District Judge Susan Dlott issued an order calling for a “standstill” on enforcing that rule in the park. The 28-hour stay expires at 8 p.m. Wednesday. Citations may then resume unless an out-of-court settlement is reached.

Protesters say the park rules violate their free speech rights, but the city’s lawyers say the rules are constitutional and that police should have the ability to regulate after-hours activities in the park, either through citations or, possibly, arrests. Since Oct. 9, city police have issued 239 citations to 91 people for violating park rules, racking up roughly $25,000 in fines. One protester was arrested Monday, Miller said, after refusing to sign his citation.

City Solicitor John Curp said city officials agreed Tuesday to hold off on issuing more citations or arresting anyone until Dlott’s deadline. “We will abide by the judge’s orders,” he said.

The protesters are part of the Occupy Wall Street movement that has inspired encampments in public places throughout the country. The Cincinnati protest began Oct. 8 with a march and rally of a few hundred people Downtown. Ten individuals camped that night on Fountain Square and moved the next day to Piatt Park.

Police began issuing citations Oct. 9 and have done so every night, except Thursday, when Cincinnati Police Chief James Craig said he used his discretion to not have his officers cite protesters. Citations resumed the following night.

Craig heads to Chicago Wednesday until early next week to attend the Major Cities Chiefs Association fall conference, scheduled back-to-back with the annual International Association of Chiefs of Police conference, leaving one of his assistant police chiefs to monitor the Occupy Cincinnati protest in Piatt Park. He expects the Occupy protests to be a topic of discussion and hopes to return with ideas for dealing with the situation here.

“Admittedly, it’s very complex,” Craig said of Cincinnati’s protest, “because there are park board rules and the question of what’s enforceable. I guess the courts will have to tell us, because we have all these tickets pending.”

He’ll remain “very much plugged into” the situation while he’s away and ready to return if needed.

In a one-on-one meeting with an Enquirer reporter Tuesday, Craig called the protesters “reasonable.”

“This is one of the more peaceful groups I’ve had an opportunity to meet with in a protest,” Craig said.

The city supports individuals’ First Amendment rights, he said, but must also consider those who work and live in the area. He’s particularly concerned about businesses around the park.

Cincinnati City Council members Leslie Ghiz and Wayne Lippert also expressed their concern in a memo to their seven council colleagues Tuesday morning, saying they want City Manager Milton Dohoney to stop allowing the Occupy Cincinnati protesters to stay in the park – or they’ll take a no-confidence vote in the manager.

They say the city should not ignore the rules about staying in the park after 10 p.m. because doing so opens the city to future liability when another group tries to do the same.

If they don’t hear from the rest of council members by Wednesday's council meeting, they said they would call a special meeting of council to discuss the issue.

A no-confidence vote in Dohoney would be a symbolic move. It would not fire Dohoney or start any process that could lead to his losing his job.

Later Tuesday, Ghiz said a no-confidence vote may not happen Wednesday because City Council can hardly ask Dohoney to act in violation of Dlott’s 28-hour order. Even so, protesters likely will go forward with their plan to attend City Council’s meeting en masse, said Sonnet Gabbard, a member of the protesters’ communication committee.

Whether or not such a vote happens Wednesday, Gabbard said, “the real issue is we’re still under attack from Council members, and we’re still fighting for our right to assemble and free speech.”

Staff writer Jane Prendergast contributed.