PEORIA — Some Peoria community members are directly refuting an account put forward by the Peoria Police Department and City Council regarding a shooting and subsequent altercation between police and a crowd of people in Downtown Peoria last month.
Four people spoke in front of the Peoria City Council on Tuesday night to voice disagreement with the narrative presented by police on what happened the night of a shooting that led to the arrests of six people, some of whom are accused of preventing police from reaching the shooting victim to render aid.
Police content that officers responding to the scene were met with a unruly mob that made physical contact with officers, which led Peoria Mayor Rita Ali to request an ordinance be drawn up to prevent future large gatherings like that one in the city.
The ordinance, which passed unanimously by the council, defined a “nuisance gathering” that would make it illegal to congregate in a group of 10 or more people and behave in a manner that violates two of 15 listed violations of state or local laws.
People who are found to be participating in a nuisance gathering and do not disperse when ordered by police can be fined between $250 and $1,000. Parents can face monetary charges as well if their child is found to be a participant at a nuisance gathering.
In order for a gathering to qualify as a “nuisance gathering,” two of the following 15 violations of state law or city code must be present:
Concerns raised about Peoria police account of downtown altercation
The narrative that sparked the ordinance was challenged strongly on Tuesday night, however. One woman who spoke to the council, Tian Garcia, said her partner was arrested and harmed by police that night even though he had broken no laws.
Her partner, a crane operator, she said tapped an officer on the shoulder to move past him during the chaos that unfolded during the shooting and was instead physically handled by the officer in a manner that led to bruising on his chest. She said her partner is still being held in Peoria County Jail and has not been allowed to speak with a public defender.
Garcia said her partner is not a criminal but is being treated as such because he was downtown at the time of the chaotic incident.
Larry Smith, the founder of Stand up for Your Rights, an advocacy group in Peoria, said when he reviewed the police footage of that incident, what he saw was not criminal conduct by the people gathered but rather a lack of coordination and leadership on the part of police.
Smith called on the City Council to launch an investigation into police conduct that night and asked that police be required to go through more training on how to handle incidents such as that one. He said none of the footage he reviewed showed anyone attacking officers and said at most the people arrested should have been charged with obstruction.
Another man who spoke about the incident, Warith Muhammad, accused the police department and council of putting out a “false narrative” about what transpired that night. He said that the people surrounding the shooting victim were not obstructing police but rather were rendering aid to the man and applying pressure to his wounds.
Muhammad said some of the people who were arrested have never been criminals in their lives and added that one of them had “their teeth knocked out” by Peoria police during the incident.
The ACLU has also called for an investigation into the incident and the police use of force.
In a statement put out following the shooting, Police Chief Eric Echevarria said: “Let me be clear: under no circumstances will I allow anyone to surround my officers aggressively, put their hands on them, or interfere as they are working to protect this community and save lives.”
While four people raised questions about police conduct during the incident to the City Council, members of the council were resoundingly supportive of both the ordinance and the actions of police that night.
Ali has called the actions by those gathered that night “unacceptable” and on Tuesday night while presenting her ordinance said the city “cannot allow it to continue.” She also called the actions of the crowd that night “unbelievable” and “embarrassing.”
She added that the people gathered that night were on the sidewalks and streets drinking alcohol, smoking illegal drugs, being disorderly and interfering with police as they tried to administer aid.
City Councilmember Tim Riggenbach said the ordinance was “common sense” and said he appreciated how police responded to the crowd that night. At-large Councilmember Bernice Gordon-Young said the crowd gathered that night were “people who are intoxicated and out of order.” She also said it was “sad” that Peoria needed such an ordinance in the first place.
At-large councilmember Zach Oyler said the ordinance showed Peoria was no longer going to accept that kind of behavior downtown, which he added has become “commonplace.”
Fourth District councilmember Andre Allen said the ordinance would provide “accountability” to what he called “pop-up” parties. First District councilmember Denise Jackson said she thought the ordinance would provide police with a tool and direction on what they need to do in these kinds of situations.
First Amendment issues raised over Peoria ordinance
The City Council unanimously approved the oridnance but not after some councilmembers raised concerns that the ordinance could violate a First Amendment right to assemble and protest, thus setting the city up for a potential lawsuit.
At-large councilmember Mike Vespa, who is an attorney by trade, wondered if this ordinance could be used to unconstitutionally violate the First Amendment’s given right to protest if it was improperly used by police.
City Attorney Patrick Hayes told Vespa that the ordinance was narrowly tailored enough and would be content neutral in a way that would not infringe on any rights. He said the ordinance was been specifically crafted to be constitutional.
Vespa still raised concerns that the ordinance could lead to a lawsuit or someone using it to shut down a constitutionally protected protest.
This article originally appeared on Journal Star: Peoria approves ordinance against ‘nuisance gatherings’ after downtown shooting
Reporting by JJ Bullock, Peoria Journal Star / Journal Star
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