April 2000 IMF Mass False Arrests

Becker, et al. v. District of Columbia, et al.

U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia , Case No. 01-CV-811 (Class Action)

This case has been settled!

The plaintiffs and the District of Columbia have reached a settlement of the case. Click here for the Joint Motion for Preliminary Approval. Click here for the Court's Order granting Preliminary Approval.

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Free Speech Police Misconduct

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The Partnership for Civil Justice has advanced a class action complaint against the Government for violations of protestors' rights at the April, 2000 Spring joint meetings of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank.

This lawsuit challenges the disruption efforts of law enforcement against constitutionally protected First Amendment activities and mass political protest, and the unconstitutional trap and arrest tactics of law enforcement in the District of Columbia against mass assembly. The class portion of the Complaint was filed on behalf of nearly 700 protesters, journalists, tourists and bystanders who were trapped on all sides by police and then falsely arrested in an unconstitutional sweep of the streets during a demonstration against the Prison-Industrial Complex on Saturday April 15, 2000. The arrests were made in advance of days of anticipated protests, and were calculated to disrupt First Amendment protected activity. Many arrestees were put in preventive detention overnight, hogtied ankle to wrist, in harsh conditions as described in further detail in the Complaint.

Other claims in this litigation relate to the unconstitutional raid and closure of activists’ meeting hall (the Convergence Center), as well as brutal beatings.

Updates & Commentary

U.S. Federal Judge Lauds "Historic" Settlement

Court Approval Given for Protest Arrest Class Action Resolution
Issuing final approval to a class action settlement, U.S. Federal Judge Paul Friedman described the terms of settlement of a nearly decade-long protest arrest lawsuit in Washington, D.C., as "historic" and an achievement for "future generations. more >>

Ramsey, Gainer Should Not Sit on Any Independent Review of Gates Arrest

Chiefs Responsible for More Than 1,000 False Arrests
The arrest of Harvard history professor Henry Louis Gates in his home in Cambridge sparked a nationwide discussion about police misconduct. more >>

Multimedia Re-Creation of April 15, 2000 Sidewalk March

Challenging the police department's false portrayal of a "riot"
The Partnership for Civil Justice has undertaken a massive review and compilation of the multi-media footage of the march more >>

Calling the Police Version of Events "Fanciful," Magistrate Judge Recommends the Court Find Mass Arrests Were False

Judge John M. Facciola recommends summary judgment
U.S. District Court Magistrate Judge John M. Facciola has issued a report and recommendation to presiding Judge Paul L. Friedman that summary judgment issue in favor of the Becker class declaring the mass arrest to be a mass false arrest. Magistrate Judge Facciola also recommended that Judge Friedman reject in entirety the District of Columbia's motion to dismiss the claims of all plaintiffs, including those who were beaten by police or suffered injuries when the MPD raided protestors' Convergence Center. more >>