SLO police want to teach Tianna Arata a lesson. But overblown charges put the city at risk
The controversial arrest of protest leader Tianna Arata has put the city of San Luis Obispo on the map — but not in a good way.
The case against a young, charismatic Black woman who’s been at the forefront of local civil rights marches has blown up into a cause celebre that’s been covered by ABC News, Newsweek, the New York Post, Teen Vogue and Cosmopolitan.
The attention has been overwhelmingly negative. Our community — once rated the happiest city in the country — is now characterized as a place where authorities trample on citizens’ First Amendment right to protest.
As of Friday afternoon, there were more than 400,000 signatures on a change.org petition asking District Attorney Dan Dow to drop all charges. By now, that number’s probably grown to more than half a million.
On the flip side, local conservatives are telling Dow to stand his ground. The SLO County Republican Party circulated this call to action via email: “Let him know you support full prosecution of the criminal charges if the facts warrant.”
All of this has left Dow in a tight spot.
If he dismisses the charges, he’ll infuriate his conservative base.
If he moves ahead with the case, protests will only get bigger, louder, angrier.
As civil rights attorney Lee Merritt posted on Instagram, “You (Dow) have a very small window of time to drop these charges before your county, city and home are bombarded by activist (sic) from all over the country.”
If the case against Arata were somehow righteous and warranted, we would say, “So what? Let them come. Let protesters march in the streets. We won’t be bullied into caving in to their demands.”
But this not such a case.
It has been blown out of proportion from day one. A 20-year-old activist was arrested off the street. First, the threat of five charges were levied at her. Then five became eight, and five of eight are felonies. This, all for leading a civil rights march?
Yes, the protesters blocked the freeway. The rear window of a car was broken, under circumstances that remain in dispute. Protesters said the car drove into them; the Police Department said the people in the car were victims.
But no lasting damage was done to any of those people whose lives were momentarily disrupted by a national movement.
The same can’t be said for Arata, who’s now living in fear outside her own home.
Police Chief Deanna Cantrell has publicly said she doesn’t want Arata’s life ruined over this incident, which is an admirable sentiment if not for the fact that SLOPD’s actions speak louder than the chief’s words.
“Do I want her to have criminal convictions and a record that’s going to impact her life later? No. What I do want is I want her to realize that she cannot engage in that kind of behavior,” Cantrell said at an online forum Wednesday night.
That sounds as if Cantrell wants charges filed primarily to teach Arata a lesson, which is frightening.
The purpose of our criminal justice system should be to prosecute people suspected of committing actual crimes worthy of punishment — not to threaten citizens with outrageous charges in order to bend them to your will.
And if the police chief doesn’t want Arata to have a criminal record that will impact her life later, why in the world would she recommend the DA file five felonies?
Frankly, Cantrell can’t have it both ways, and the Police Department has more than made its point by running Arata through weeks of distress. That punishment already doesn’t fit the crime.
Yet, on we go with this charade. We know police departments often recommend overcharging, but this is ludicrous, especially in the context of a civil rights protest.
Why doesn’t the Police Department in SLO — and District Attorney Dan Dow in turn — get that?
Because other communities do.
In Oregon’s Multnomah County, which includes the city of Portland, the district attorney recently announced that he’ll press charges only against protesters arrested for assault, theft or property damage.
“If we leverage the full force of the criminal justice system on individuals who are peacefully protesting and demanding to be heard, we will cause irreparable harm to them individually and to our society,” he said. “The prosecution of people exercising their rights to free speech and assembly in a nonviolent manner takes away from the limited resources that we have to prosecute serious crimes and to assist crime victims.”
Keep in mind, this is the city of Portland, where protesters have used aggressive tactics that have included setting fires, and throwing rocks, water bottles and fireworks at officers.
In San Luis Obispo County, protests have been overwhelmingly peaceful — the mayor and police chief have marched; parents have brought their kids; police officers have taken a knee in solidarity.
Do our leaders want to jeopardize that relative peace? Do our leaders want to escalate this? Do they want this fight on this hill?
How far are Cantrell and Dow willing to go to make an example of Tianna Arata?
Actual felony charges? Prosecution? A trial?
If so, we’d better brace ourselves, because the Black Lives Matter movement has found a hero in Arata, and we shouldn’t expect her growing circle of high-powered advisers to plea bargain this moment away.
Quite the contrary, they know an opportunity when they see one, and they’re looking to make an example of us. Rightfully so, based on what’s happened to date.
For her part, Arata seems equally motivated, willing and eager to be her own champion and see this through without capitulation.
That leaves everything up to Dow, who has said outside pressure won’t influence his decision whether to file charges, or what charges to file. We’d expect him to say that.
But if he goes ahead with a criminal case, especially any felonies that would affect Arata’s permanent record, the battle lines will be drawn.
Then what?
You think a few hundred people marching on the highway was a riot? Better brace yourself for what could be coming next.
Dan Dow has the power to end that fight before it begins. Here’s hoping he makes the wise choice — for Arata’s sake and the sake of our community.
This story was originally published August 16, 2020 at 5:05 AM.