During the 2012 Mayday protests in Oakland, the OPD switched up it’s normal crowd control tactics and sent in ‘snatch squads’ to remove people who they perceived to be planning unlawful actions. Without any warning, groups of officers marched in formation directly through the crowd in search of their targets. Prince was one of the activists to be targeted and arrested early in the day. More than three officers assaulted Prince, before one used their tazer to bring him down. It’s more than clear that there was no reason for any of these arrests to be made, as no illegal activity (on the part of the protesters) was taking place. Prince was held for 72 hours, brutalized, and released with no charges. The DA quietly filed charges later, and issued a warrant for his arrest.
Two of the officers involved in Prince’s brutal arrest on MayDay have been identified as Officer Fukuda and Officer W. Burke. Officer Burke was seen on Mayday, multiple times, pointing his rifle at people in the crowd, and waving it around carelessly. Officer Burke was also fired at one point, for falsifying search warrants, but was rehired in arbitration.
Lets show support for our comrade in the face of outrageous charges.