Seattle Police make 21 arrests while clearing out homeless encampment

Seattle police made 21 arrests Friday while clearing out a homeless encampment inside a park after a federal judge declined to block authorities from doing so. 

The Seattle Police Department said the offenses at Cal Anderson Park included misdemeanor trespassing, failure to disperse and obstructing an arrest. Crews dismantled tents, barricades and other barriers erected during a months-long occupation of the park. 

The city tried to clear the area Wednesday, but postponed the action after protesters arrived and one person who lived at the park, Ada Yeager, filed a federal lawsuit to halt the sweep.

She claimed it violated her civil rights, including the First Amendment, among other grievances. On Thursday, a federal judge ruled against her.

The park is near where protesters took over several blocks over the summer and declared an autonomous zone dubbed the Capital Hill Organized Protest, or CHOP. 

In a previous statement to Fox News, the city said homeless people “should be in safer spaces like shelters and hotels especially during the winter.”

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“And our parks should not be places with illegal and unsafe conduct like fires, makeshift barricades blocking access to residents and first responders, or individuals who are threatening city workers conducting routine maintenance and breaking into city facilities, the statement continued.