More pro-Palestinian demonstrators arrested at UT-Austin

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Texas Tribune / Julius Shieh

A protester is arrested on the UT-Austin campus on Tuesday, April 29, 2024.

Arrests resumed Monday at the University of Texas at Austin amid ongoing demonstrations in support of Palestinians.

Dozens of protesters gathered on campus where there was a sizable police presence, including officers from the Texas Department of Public Safety and the University of Texas police department.

The University of Texas Police department could not immediately confirm how many protesters had been arrested. A spokesperson said the university, not the police department, would be handling communications regarding the protests.

The Tribune observed a student being dragged away by a law enforcement officer, while observers recorded videos and yelled.

The University of Texas police department issued a dispersal order Monday afternoon, telling protestors that their conduct on the South Mall violated multiple sections of Texas’ Penal Code and that they would be arrested if they did not disperse.

“Your conduct is in violation of Penal Code Sections 42.01 Disorderly Conduct, 42.02 Riot, 42.03 Obstructing a Highway or other passageway, 30.05 Criminal Trespass,” the order from assistant chief Shane Streepy reads. “I command you in the name of the University of Texas Police Department to disperse.”

Monday’s arrests come after a student walkout last Wednesday turned chaotic, with at least 57 people, including one journalist, arrested for criminal trespassing. All of those charges were dropped.

This article originally appeared in the Texas Tribune.

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