Thread by @UR_Ninja

NEW: Last week, a class action lawsuit was filed against @DCPoliceDept and @ChiefNewsham over the politically targeted mass arrest of the anti-fascist anti-capitalist march during Trump's inauguration on January 20, 2017 unicornriot.ninja/2018/dc-police… #J20

A similar lawsuit was filed by the same attorney, Jeffrey Light, on January 20th immediately after the mass arrest, but was later withdrawn on procedural grounds. unicornriot.ninja/2018/dc-police… Now, many #J20 defendants with their charges dismissed could potentially join on to the suit

.@DCPoliceDept officials named in class action suit:
-@ChiefNewsham
-Asst. Chiefs Lamar Greene & Jeffrey Carroll
-Former Asst. Chief Robert Alder
-Cmndr. Keith Deville
-Lt. @paulniepling
-Sgt. Anthony Alioto
-Officers Howden, Washington, Rock, & Thau
unicornriot.ninja/2018/dc-police…

Commander Keith Deville, who instructed officers to corral, detain, and arrest an entire protest march on inauguration day, has made statements indicating he thinks people w anarchist beliefs don't have the right to protest, according to the new complaint. unicornriot.ninja/2018/dc-police…

As we reported during the first #j20 trial last year, Commander Deville has a history of making disparaging comments about holocaust survivors, gay people, and transgender people while on the job at @DCPoliceDept unicornriot.ninja/2017/police-co…

The class action lawsuit demonstrates that by nature of the chain of command in place on #J20, both Assistant Chief Greene & @ChiefNewsham bear direct responsibility for Deville's orders to officers to conduct the mass arrest. unicornriot.ninja/2018/dc-police…

In fact, we reported on Commander Deville's trial testimony on November 30, 2017 in which he confirmed under oath that he had a phone call with Assistant Chief Lamar Greene right around the time he ordered the mass arrest of the entire protest march. unicornriot.ninja/2017/police-co… #J20

Commander Deville also admitted under oath that when ordering the mass arrest on #J20 he wasn't “differentiating who was demonstrating and who was rioting.” The lawsuit claims @ChiefNewsham made a similar call. unicornriot.ninja/2018/dc-police…

The complaint also uses sworn testimony by Deville to prove that @DCPoliceDept knew the group detained at 12th & L streets contained many journalists, and despite this knowledge, they decided to arrest the journalists along with everyone else present. unicornriot.ninja/2018/dc-police… #J20

The complaint details conditions when everyone mass arrested at #J20 anti-Trump protest was detained outside for up to 11hrs w/o food, water, restrooms, or medical care. @DCPoliceDept slow-walked arrests to "in order to maximize the detainees’ discomfort" unicornriot.ninja/2018/dc-police…

.@DCPoliceDept made statements to people mass arrested at #j20 inauguration protest such as “If you wanted to go to the bathroom, you shouldn’t have gotten arrested” & told one arrestee she should she should “shit [her] pants" to prove she needed a toilet. unicornriot.ninja/2018/dc-police…

.@DCPoliceDept officials named in #J20 class action face counts of Violation of 1st Amendment, Common Law False Arrest, 2 counts of Negligence Per Se/Violation of 1st Amendment Assemblies Act, Violation of 1st Amendment, & Violations of 4th/5th Amendments unicornriot.ninja/2018/dc-police…

Numerous statements given by @ChiefNewsham to the media after #J20 show his lack of remorse for the false mass arrest, and his belief that is was a correct thing for police to do. The class action suit cites these statements as evidence of his guilt. unicornriot.ninja/2018/dc-police…

The lawsuit demands a jury trial & seeks unspecified compensatory and punitive damages. The case also asks the court to officially declare that the mass arrest ordered by @ChiefNewsham & his @DCPoliceDept subordinates on #J20 was unlawful. unicornriot.ninja/2018/dc-police…

.@DCPoliceDept, @ChiefNewsham & other officials already face a separate @ACLU_DC suit over many of the same abuses named in the class action complaint. unicornriot.ninja/2018/aclu-trum… @ThePCJF is also suing Newsham for his refusal to release records of his ordering the #J20 mass arrest.

DC has already paid multi-million dollar settlements over lawsuits stemming from similar mass arrests involving @ChiefNewsham. The District paid $14 million settling a suit over 2002 mass arrest of IMF protesters. $3M went to defending Newsham personally unicornriot.ninja/2018/aclu-trum…