Eighteen people arrested at the so-called Stud Alley party on the evening of June 27, during Pride weekend, have been charged with a range of misdemeanors, according to the San Francisco district attorney’s office.
The charges include unlawful assembly, failure to disperse at a riot, and resisting, obstructing, or delaying a peace officer. Defendants who appeared in court this morning waived time at the arraignment, extending the timeline for the case. They will appear next on Aug. 25.
For the past six years, Stud Alley, an unsanctioned block party, has been held in SoMa on the Saturday evening of Pride. Police this year arrived at the first gathering on Kissling Street at about 11 p.m. to disperse the crowd, and arrested two participants. The party then re-formed a few blocks over and, after issuing dispersal orders a second time, police arrested another 18 people.
Several party attendees have said that they did not hear the dispersal orders. Video footage appears to show the police issuing the orders around the corner from the primary epicenter of the party. Masses of officers clad in riot gear marched down SoMa streets to disperse the party, and supporters of those arrested have for weeks decried what they dub a violent response.
Trans March organizers met with Mayor Daniel Lurie on July 13 about Pride weekend arrests at the Trans March and the Stud Alley party, and presented a letter signed by more than 1,500 people blasting the police response at the march. They demanded the charges against Trans March defendants be dropped, though Lurie is not responsible for the DA’s charging decisions. District 9 Supervisor Jackie Fielder has sent two letters of inquiry to the San Francisco Police Department demanding drone footage of the arrests and other information about the police role at both the Stud Alley party and Trans March.
In the courtroom this morning, the line of defendants stretched nearly out the room. The judge and defense attorneys expressed surprise at the charges, which were announced around noon on Wednesday. “I just found out about this at 4:15 yesterday,” the judge told the courtroom.
Outside the courtroom, defense attorney Jeff Wozniak reassured the crowd of defendants. “We haven’t seen charges like this in 30 to 40 years,” he remarked.
“We will get through this,” he told the crowd, adding, “This is bullshit.”
