June 30--A judge denied a request by the Los Angeles City Attorney's office for a protective order that would have prohibited two activists from coming within 50 feet of Mayor Eric Garcetti and LAPD Chief Charlie Beck.
The activists still face misdemeanor charges related to Wednesday's fracas at a city recreation center in South Los Angeles.
Garcetti and Beck were meeting at the Mount Carmel Recreation Center with "financial backers" of the Summer Night Lights youth program Wednesday evening when Evan Bunch, 28, went into the room, said Officer Jack Richter.
Security tried to escort Bunch out, but he resisted, police said. A scuffle broke out between security and Bunch, and "one of the officers got scraped up," Richter said.
Then Luz Maria Flores, 23, tried to interfere and pulled Bunch away from the police, Richter said. She was arrested on suspicion of lynching, which Richter said means "trying to extricate someone from the police when the person is in custody."
Bunch is charged with trespassing, three counts of resisting arrest and battery on a police officer, as well as causing an injury to the officer, according to the city attorney's office. Flores has been charged with three counts of resisting arrest and battery on a police officer.
They pleaded not guilty at the Friday afternoon hearing.
Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Mark Hanasono ordered police to release Bunch and Flores immediately without bail.
"I wish you had a picture of what this great injury is," said their attorney, Nana Gyamfi. "It is not an injury. It's what people call a boo-boo. Like a scrape. It is literally a boo-boo between the man's shoulder and elbow, probably the size of a dime."
She says the bigger picture is that activists from Black Lives Matter have persisted in asking for a meeting with Garcetti and have been continually rebuffed, although not explicitly. Instead, when they try to speak to Garcetti or his aides--and are recognized--police immediately block their access and ask them to leave. And, if they don't, they risk arrest.
Black Lives Matter has four central demands or goals, Gyamfi said.
They are: a meeting with the mayor; the dismissal of Beck; the firing of two officers who fatally shot Ezell Ford, an unarmed black man; and the prosecution of these officers.
Beck has defended the officers as acting properly within the scope of their duties.
Times staff writer Veronica Rocha contributed to this report.
