The Pima County Attorney’s Office is reaffirming the right to peaceful demonstrations after the indictment of two men who protested at an immigration facility over the summer.
Last week, a Pima County Grand Jury indicted Michael Quarnberg and Kevin Silary with felony charges stemming from a protest this summer at the ICE office on Tucson’s east side.
Although the protest happened in June, the two men were not arrested until September, on charges of rioting, intentional vandalism, and terrorism.
After their arrest, the Tucson Police Department said in a statement the two men provided riot shields, rocks, and balloons filled with unidentified substances to other protestors, caused $31,000 in property damage, and assaulted private security staff.
In a written statement, Pima County Attorney Laura Conover said she can’t comment on specific facts, but said she will always fight for the community’s right to free speech, and emphasized other peaceful protests in the last several months.
Conover closed her statement with “our best response to federal overreach is organized, peaceful solidarity.”
The full statement is below:
“As always, the rules prevent me from commenting on the specific facts of a pending case. The two men in question are presumed innocent unless proven guilty, and they have a right to contest the grand jury’s indictment. Generally speaking, as your County Attorney, I will always fight for the community’s rights to peaceful protest and free speech. Pima County has held dozens of respectful and powerful demonstrations in the last several months. Many of those large rallies had not a single reported act of violence, despite the presence of thousands of community members raising their voices in defense of American Democracy and the US Constitution itself.
I will always stay focused on community safety. Going forward, any evidence of unlawful excessive force, disturbing the peace of the community, or endangering peaceful protestors presented to us will be carefully reviewed for potential accountability.
Our best response to federal overreach is organized, peaceful solidarity. This is what makes us Pima County.”
