SAN JOSE — The Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office plans to reveal its decision on the legal fates of a dozen pro-Gaza protesters arrested at Stanford University in June after barricading themselves inside the president’s office, the agency announced.
A Thursday morning press conference has been scheduled by the office to address “the results of an investigation into an incident involving a dozen protesters on the Stanford University campus last summer,” according to a news release issued Wednesday.
The protesters have had the cloud of criminal charges looming over them since their arrests June 5, which occurred amid larger campus demonstrations demanding that the university divest from companies and other entities supporting Israel’s military actions in Gaza. They have referred to themselves as an “autonomous group of Stanford University students” and are accused of causing as much as $700,000 in damage to the university’s executive offices.
Last month, the DA’s office announced its decision not to charge a Stanford Daily journalist who was arrested along with the protesters, following a lengthy investigation that concluded that the student was only present to chronicle the actions, and was not a participant.
That decision came after months of pressure from free-speech organizations who argued that he should have been swiftly cleared of criminal liability instead of being kept in a limbo state. Student groups similarly rallied behind the June protesters.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.