ORRECTION: Information in this article, originally published January 10, 2007, was corrected January 14, 2007. A previous version of this story incorrectly stated the name of the attorney representing the city as Fred Buck. His name is Ted Buck.
Jan. 10--Did Seattle police arrest 200 people in Westlake Park one December morning in 1999 because they were protesting the World Trade Organization?
Or did officers arrest people that they believed were violating an emergency order, issued that morning by then-Mayor Paul Schell, that declared parts of downtown off-limits to all but a few exempt individuals?
Those questions are at the heart of a federal civil trial under way in U.S. District Court in Seattle. The trial is bringing an ugly chapter of Seattle history vividly back to life, as videos of gas-masked protesters, boarded-up storefronts and heavily armored police fill the courtroom.
The case is a class-action lawsuit against the city of Seattle brought on behalf of anyone detained during mass arrests at Westlake Park between 6 a.m. and noon on Dec. 1, 1999. Eight people arrested that day are serving as lead plaintiffs.
The plaintiffs contend that the city violated their First Amendment right to free speech by arresting them because they were espousing anti-World Trade Organization (WTO) sentiments. They also say the city violated their Fourth Amendment protections against unreasonable search and seizure.
To prevail, the plaintiffs must demonstrate that such unconstitutional acts were made in accordance with official city policy, or that city leaders were aware of and authorized the improper behavior.
Judge Marsha Pechman ruled prior to the trial that Seattle police lacked probable cause to make the mass arrests at Westlake Park because they did not attempt to make individual determinations whether any of the protesters were allowed to be in the restricted area of the city.
Twelve jurors were selected Monday. Opening statements were delivered Tuesday, and lawyers for the plaintiffs began calling witnesses. The trial is expected to last eight days.
The city last summer agreed to pay more than $800,000 to settle multiple claims involving police misconduct during the WTO protests. The city could owe millions more if it loses this case. But even if the city is found liable, another trial will be held to determine the full extent of the damages.
On Nov. 30, 1999, Seattle erupted in chaos as some 50,000 people arrived to protest the policies of the World Trade Organization, which opened ministerial meetings in the city that day.
Hoping to avoid a second day of unrest, Mayor Schell in the early hours of Dec. 1 issued "Emergency Order No. 3," which declared parts of downtown Seattle off-limits to all but a handful of people. Among the exempt groups: WTO delegates and workers; residents of the area; business owners and employees; and safety personnel.
The order said nothing about banning protesters from the area.
"This group was arrested because they violated the law," said Ted Buck, an attorney representing the city.
Schell issued the order, and Seattle police implemented it, to protect the people and property of downtown Seattle, Buck argued.
Plaintiffs' lawyers strongly disagreed.
"[This case] is about an official public policy that singled out my clients because they were opposed to the World Trade Organization," contended Mike Withey, an attorney for the protesters.
Withey said in his opening statement that despite the wording of Schell's emergency order, former Police Chief Norm Stamper and former Assistant Chief Ed Joiner instructed their troops to squelch anti-WTO dissent and arrest protesters.
"This was official policy," Withey said.
A key witness in the case will be current Assistant Police Chief James Pugel, who was a captain at the time of the WTO protests. Pugel gave the order to arrest the protesters at Westlake Park.
Buck said that Pugel will testify that protesters were advocating so many different causes that it was not apparent to him what the group was protesting.
Ken Hankin, a fuel-systems engineer at Boeing, was the first witness called on behalf of the plaintiffs.
Hankin said he joined the protests at the urging of a close friend who opposed many WTO policies, particularly environmental policies that Hankin and his friend believed would endanger sea turtles.
Hankin helped his friend construct some of the roughly 200 sea-turtle costumes worn by some protesters throughout the anti-WTO demonstrations.
"The vast majority, if not everyone, was protesting policies of the WTO," Hankin said.
David Bowermaster: 206-464-2724 or [email protected]Seattle Times
