HAGENS BERMAN

Date Filed: October 3, 2000
Court: U.S. District Court
Location: Washington

On October 3, 2000, Hagens Berman, on behalf of the Trial Lawyers for Public Justice and several plaintiffs, filed a class action against the City of Seattle and its top officials for arresting those who were peacefully protesting the WTO convention in Seattle.

In a decision handed down on Dec. 29, 2003, U.S. District Judge Marsha Pechman found that police had no probable cause when arresting 157 protesters at First Avenue and Broad Street on Dec. 1, 1999.

Pechman's ruling called police record keeping of the arrests 'atrocious' and noted that photocopied arrest warrants were used to round up protesters. The police lieutenant who signed the arrest forms later acknowledged he had not made any of the arrests.

On January 16, 2004, the City of Seattle settled the lawsuit for $250,000, just before the case was scheduled to go to trial.

Steve Berman, lead attorney for the plaintiffs, said he considered the settlement a victory and that protesters filing the suit "wanted to teach the city of Seattle a lesson, given that the city was unapologetic and given that (police) kept them in jail for three to five days," according to the Seattle Post-Intelligencer.

If you have questions on the settlement, or if you'd like more information about the suit, contact Hagens Berman at info@hbsslaw.com.

More information can also be found in the Seattle Post-Intelligencer article.