A little over two years ago, a group of protesters shut down traffic on one side of the Golden Gate Bridge. This was connected to the pro-Palestinian protests which were then taking over campuses around the country.
Chaotic video shows the moment a driver stuck on the Golden Gate Bridge clashed with a group of Pro-Palestinian protesters in San Francisco Monday. Organizers say these protests are a part of A15, a worldwide economic blockade in solidarity with Palestine. pic.twitter.com/8qrBxtZCGg
— ABC7 News (@abc7newsbayarea) April 15, 2024
The bridge was shut down for more than four hours, largely because the police took three hours to start making arrests. Then the vehicles had to be towed. It was a giant mess that impacted thousands of people and 26 protesters were arrested.
Something surprising happened next. San Francisco DA Brooke Jenkins actually charged all 26 of the protesters with crimes. That almost never happens in liberal enclaves after protesters are arrested.
Today, San Francisco District Attorney Brooke Jenkins announced that twenty-six individuals have been charged in connection with an unlawful public assembly on the Golden Gate Bridge on April 15, 2024…
“I would like to thank the California Highway Patrol for their work to peacefully resolve this incident and their subsequent thorough investigation,” said District Attorney Brooke Jenkins. “While we must protect avenues for free speech, the exercise of free speech can not compromise public safety. The demonstration on the Golden Gate Bridge caused a level of safety risk, including extreme threats to the health and welfare of those trapped, that we as a society cannot ignore or allow. We will continue to ensure that appropriate avenues for the expression of free speech and social advocacy exist and are protected in San Francisco. I truly believe that there can be free expression while maintaining the safety of our communities.”
But over the past year, charges against 19 of them have been dropped in favor of some kind of diversion program.
Attorneys asked a judge last year to downgrade the felonies to misdemeanors, arguing that the protesters had been overcharged and targeted for their political beliefs, but the judge allowed the charges to stand.
Charges against another 19 protesters, who rounded out the group that refers to itself as the “Golden Gate 26,” have been dropped or thrown out over the last year and a half. Sixteen defendants’ cases were dismissed after they agreed to a diversion program, which included paying restitution.
However, the remaining seven continued to face felony charges. Here they are.
I fully support San Francisco DA @BrookeJenkinsSF’s call for jail time for the “Globalize the Intifada” protesters who dangerously and destructively blocked the Golden Gate Bridge on April 15. Fifteen years may be a bit excessive, but meaningful prison sentences very much do not.… pic.twitter.com/xkgFxXlXck
— Jamie Metzl (@JamieMetzl) June 5, 2026
That trial has been underway since last month. The defense argument is that they were taking necessary action to stop a greater evil.
“The evidence is clear, they broke the law and while you may agree with their message, it does not allow them to break the law,” Assistant District Attorney Angela Roze, who is prosecuting the case, at one point told the jurors…
The seven defendants’ attorneys took turns addressing the jury, with many saying the protesters felt a moral imperative to speak out against the war, what they called atrocities in Gaza, and US support for Israel.
“(They) never wanted to cause harm to anyone, never had any intent to break the law because there was a real, ongoing emergency they wanted to address,” Nuha Abusamra, of the Public Defenders Office said of the protesters.
Closing arguments in the case were made last Friday.
Defense attorneys urged jurors to acquit the demonstrators, arguing that the district attorney had sought draconian punishment against residents exercising their constitutional rights to free speech and assembly. But the prosecution contended that, unlike previous protests on the iconic bridge, this cohort overstepped its rights and conspired to worsen the havoc for thousands of commuters and law enforcement who got mired in the mess.
[Prosecutor Angela] Roze laid out pieces of circumstantial evidence she said demonstrated that the defendants knew their conduct was illegal: they researched legal justifications, did not seek a permit, did not contact the California Highway Patrol or bridge authorities, and brought “sleeping dragon” lock boxes to make protesters’ removals more difficult. She argued that their motive, however sympathetic, did not excuse the crime.
“Our laws protect all of us,” Roze said, citing a witness who testified that she had a right to leave the bridge but could not.
My take is that these protesters were basically taking a cue from Hamas. They essentially took a bridge full of people hostage for four hours (and would have done so for longer if the police had let them) and then complain in court that no one was harmed by the brief hostage taking. Except people were harmed.
…the CHP was contacted by more than 200 people, either by phone or email, expressing how they were affected by this unlawful protest. Thirty-five victims initially contacted the CHP stating they were trapped on the Golden Gate Bridge and expressed how they were affected by the actions of these protestors. The affidavit recounts the reports of numerous victims who missed work, important medical appointments school, and flights. One victim’s experience cited in the affidavit notes missing a pre-op appointment for brain surgery to remove a tumor in their temporal lobe. A mother, a victim cited in the affidavit, reported not having water for infant formula and missing a pre-surgery appointment for her baby. A surgeon, another victim cited in the affidavit, also had to cancel and reschedule their entire surgery schedule for the day. The affidavit also includes another mother’s report of her disabled child being stuck on a school bus for four hours on the bridge. The affidavit notes that at least two victims trapped reported having to relieve themselves in the car because they were trapped. Several hundred other victims were trapped on the Golden Gate Bridge without the ability to drive off the bridge. They were held against their will at the mercy of the 26 people involved in this event.
They were hostage takers and the fact that the hostage taking was brief and that no one died as a result is a matter of luck. Again, just my opinion, but I think 14 years is too long a sentence for these goons. However I think 3-5 years sounds about right. Let them serve at least two years in prison each and come out as felons who will struggle to get a real job for the rest of their lives. That seems fair for playing stupid games with lives of 10,000 people. And it will serve as a warning to others.
Do I think a jury in San Francisco will deliver a guilty verdict in this case? I’m not confident even though it’s absolutely clear they’re guilty I think some kind of jury nullification is a possibility.
For what it’s worth, the NY Times had a story about this last week and even their reliably liberal readership was against the protesters. Here’s the top comment:
The protest was an exercise in privileged self-indulgence. It accomplished nothing and harmed everybody. There could have been tragic consequences as well as the economic hardships the affected drivers certainly suffered.
And the #3 comment:
Getting tired of cosplaying kids pretending to impact world events by disrupting life for the rest of us. This is not a legitimate free speech issue. It is a public safety issue.
Hopefully some of these people are on the jury.
There is a difference between the exercise of free speech and endangering public safety. Sadly, harsh punishment is the only way to put the brakes on the freak show.
Make them pay dearly and we’ll have fewer illegal protests like this in the future.
Editor’s Note: The American people overwhelmingly support President Trump’s law and order agenda.
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