ROCHESTER, N.Y. (WROC) — Protesters were arrested at the Public Safety Building in downtown Rochester Wednesday after Black Lives Matter activists were barred from attending Mayor Lovely Warren and Police Chief La’Ron Singletary’s press conference about the death of a Black man in March after an encounter with police.
A total of nine protesters were arrested, including local Black Lives Matter organizers Stanley Martin and Ashley Gantt, after police only allowed media inside the building for the press conference. Barriers were then put up outside the Public Safety Building.
MORE | WATCH: Footage of encounter between Daniel Prude and Rochester police officers before his death
The following is list of the names, ages and charges of all those involved, according to the Rochester Police Department:
- 20-year-old India Maring, Criminal Trespass 3rd, Resisting Arrest
- 28-year-old Tarik Grandoit, Criminal Trespass 3rd
- 21-year-old Sofi Wolfanger, Criminal Trespass 3rd
- 28-year-old Iman Abid, Criminal Trespass 3rd
- 34-year-old Ashley Gantt, Criminal Trespass 3rd
- 25-year-old Taylor Howauth, Criminal Trespass 3rd, Resisting Arrest
- 21-year-old Breyana Clark, Criminal Trespass 3rd
- 27-year-old Stanley Martin, Criminal Trespass 3rd, Resisting Arrest
- 27-year-old Ryan Howe, Inciting a Riot, Resisting Arrest
This is the only information made available to media at this time. It isn’t clear if all of the people have been released as of Thursday morning.
This followed a Black Lives Matter press conference Wednesday morning outside City Hall where activists said Rochester police officers murdered Daniel Prude in “cold blood.”
Body camera footage from March, that surfaced Wednesday, shows an altercation between Prude, a Black man, and Rochester police before his death — an incident that the New York State Attorney General’s office is investigating.
MORE | Autopsy report: Daniel Prude death ruled a homicide, died from asphyxia due to ‘physical restraint’
Activists say Prude was lying on his back, naked, handcuffed, and unarmed when police killed him. They say police put a bag over his Prude’s head and pushed it into the ground. They say less than 10 minutes later, Prude was dead. According to the autopsy report, he was officially pronounced dead seven days later.
Rochester Police Chief La’Ron Singletary said the New York State Attorney General’s office is investigating the incident while an internal investigation was ordered the day of. Family members say what happened was “cold blooded murder.”
“I placed the phone call for my brother to get help, not for my brother to get lynched,” said Joe Prude, the brother of Daniel Prude. “When I say get lynched, that was full fledged, murder, cold blooded — nothing other than cold blooded murder. The man is defenseless, naked on the ground, cuffed up already. I mean come on, how many brothers got to die for society to understand that this needs to stop? You killed a defenseless black man, a father’s son, a brother’s brother, a nephews uncle,” Joe Prude said.
Activists are calling for the immediate firing and prosecution of the officers involved in the altercation.
MORE | NY AG investigating Black man’s death after altercation with Rochester police officers
“Our biggest concern is that murderers are out on the loose,” Martin said. “They killed someone and they are still patrolling our communities and that is our biggest concern. They need to be arrested, fired, and prosecuted immediately.”
As a result of an executive order from Gov. Andrew Cuomo in July, New York State Attorney General Letitia James’ office will investigate all cases where law enforcement officers are involved in the deaths of civilians.
At this time, the officers involved have not been suspended.
Black Lives Matter press conference:
Mayor Warren, Chief Singletary Press conference:
Check back with News 8 WROC as we will continue to update this developing story.
