SFPD has kenneled several dozen seemingly young kids & skaters at Dolores Park after an hours-long slow-moving chase to shut down the annual “hill bomb”
Cops have trapped the group between rows of officers
The group is being forced to sit, it is unclear if they are under arrest
SFPD was earlier in the evening moving from corner to corner, clearing intersections
Skaters moved from block to block evading the police, tagging up some Muni cars & buildings
The crowd eventually dwindled, the kids who are remaining were caught between two groups of police
A sergeant on scene said they are all being arrested, 50-60 people
A high schooler who was with the group earlier said the group is almost entirely teenagers
He got away but an officer swung at him with a baton, he said
It’s unclear what the charges are
A crowd of bystanders is shouting “Let them go!”
SFPD have brought out boxes of zip ties & officers have begun loosening then, seemingly in preparation for a mass arrest
The kids are still on the ground
It’s the second time in less than a week that a mainstay Mission event has been forcibly shut down by SFPD
Officers chased crowds on July 4 who had gathered to set off fireworks at corners used for festivities every year
missionlocal.org/2023/07/breaki…
The vans have arrived to cart people off
They’re taking photos of the zip-tied teens one by one and putting them in the back of their vans
There is a large pile of zip ties on the ground, the majority of the group is still awaiting processing
There are at least four vans here to cart them off
Parents have for last hour been angrily arguing with police, demanding to see their children
SFPD says parents can pick up their kids at Mission Station, 2 blocks away
Parents are livid their kids can’t be immediately released to them
2 Muni buses are being used for transport
One of the buses has driven off, barely filled with kids, two blocks away to Mission Station
The kids shout as they’re being driven off
Their parents and friends are laughing that SFPD is using a bus to move kids down the street
kettled***
From midnight till 3:45 a.m. & counting, parents have been waiting as kids are put onto buses & driven a block away to Mission Station
They’re processed there for hours
Kids are then let out one by one, all with charges for inciting rioting, failure to disperse, & conspiracy
It’s 4 a.m. & there are still 4 children left, in a room with a dozen officers, presumably waiting for their parents or other family
One woman just fetched her grandson, saying she was asleep & had to drive in from Millbrae
Parents have come from Daly City, San Mateo, Richmond
The last kid has been picked up by his parents, who said they live an hour away
An unknown number of others over the age of 18 were taken to 850 Bryant, the Hall of Justice
Police said they would likely be held overnight
Several kids had siblings or friends there
One kid, who stayed around Mission Station waiting for his 18-year-old brother, was not told that his brother wouldn’t be released
He left, walking alone at 4 in the morning through the Mission to get home
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