Judge Says Occupiers Need Warning Before They Can Be Evicted

DC Mayor Vincent Gray

US District Judge James Boasberg said on Tuesday that the US government is not allowed to evict the protestors from one of the last major Occupy Wall Street encampments without first notifying the people there that it is evicting them. The government wants to clear one of Washington’s downtown parks of the protestors, and would prefer to do it without an eviction notice. An eviction notice gives the protestors a chance to appeal the eviction ahead of time.

The protestors defied the efforts of the National Park Service to enforce an already existing law which forbids camping on federal park grounds at McPherson Square, Washington, DC’s main Occupy site.

Government officials have not yet announced when or even if they will force the protestors to leave. A lawyer for the government stated in court on Tuesday that she had no knowledge of any forthcoming plans to evict them.

The US Park Police maintain that they do have the right to move the protestors out if they believed there was an urgent health concern or other emergency requiring the evacuation of the park immediately for safety reasons.

Mayor Vincent Gray and DC health agents have said there is a worry about an infestation of rats in McPherson Square as a result of the encampment.

The protestors are camping on high alert, expecting an imminent forcible removal ever since the park service announced last Friday that they would begin enforcing the ban on camping on federal park land, which would come into effect as of Monday. Despite the fact that a sign announced the coming “High Noon” confrontation, nothing happened.

Alyssa Anderson

Alyssa Anderson has been involved in the world of business on several levels for many years. She was the CEO of a start-up high-tech company until its purchase by a global on-line e-business. Alyssa helped formulate marketing strategies for several other companies as an independent consultant, and she has advised local government on methods to achieve appropriate fiscal responsibility. Her opinions are well known through her many editorials which have been published throughout her career in a variety of local and national print media. She has been heard on radio discussing current issues affecting the business community and Alyssa hopes to bring her special brand of commonsense coupled with uncanny insight into her editorial responsibilities as the Business Page editor for Left Justified. Contact Alyssa at alyssa(at)leftjustified.com.

View all posts by Alyssa Anderson →