At Least 3 Journalists Arrested Covering DNC Protests in Chicago

Journalist Josh Pacheco recounted a chaotic situation after a group of Chicago police officers instructed a crowd of protesters and reporters to disperse from a march outside the Israeli Consulate on Tuesday.

“Nobody understood the dispersal order, nobody knew where to go,” Pacheco told The Intercept, mentioning that they were trying to leave the area along with other journalists. “That’s when I was arrested, pulled off the sidewalk.”

Pacheco, a freelance journalist with experience at the New York Times, PBS, and Forbes, was one of at least three accredited journalists arrested during protests on the second day of the Democratic National Convention.

While being arrested, Pacheco, who had their photography equipment and media credentials visible, identified themselves as a journalist to the officers. However, an officer took away their credentials despite this.

“I informed them that I was press,” Pacheco remembered. “It was clear that I had my press pass.”

Pacheco spent nine hours in police custody following the incident. Also arrested during the same march were photojournalists Sinna Nasseri and Olga Federova, who later shared on social media that they had been released by early Wednesday morning.

Nasseri, whose work has been featured in the New York Times and the New Yorker, wrote on Instagram that he was arrested while “documenting the protest tonight from a public sidewalk.” He posted a video of himself in handcuffs next to officers with his camera still around his neck.

The three journalists were charged with misdemeanor disorderly conduct, according to Steven Baron, the attorney representing them. Baron claimed that the city violated the journalists’ First Amendment rights by charging them for merely doing their jobs.

“The journalists were charged … for simply doing their jobs as reporters,” Baron stated in an email. “We are disappointed that the City of Chicago chose to disregard the First Amendment with its aggressive actions against working journalists.”

Chicago Police Superintendent Larry Snelling acknowledged the three arrests in a press conference on Wednesday morning and criticized the actions of journalists at the protest.

“If you’re not moving, if you’re not complying with our orders at that time, you may be breaking the law yourselves,” Snelling said, blaming journalists for being “so close” to protesters, which he claimed obstructed officers’ movements.

Snelling refused to classify Tuesday’s rally as a protest and accused participants of having the intention to fight with the police, destroy property, and burn flags. However, he did not provide evidence to support these claims.

Deputy Mayor of Community Safety Garien Gatewood, speaking at the press conference, stated, “Last night wasn’t a protest — to call last night a protest would be disrespectful to people who have actually protested for things that have moved societies forward across the country. What we had is people who came down to the city to cause harm, to wreak havoc.”

The Chicago Police Department did not respond to requests for comment.

Police reported around 50 arrests on Tuesday, while the National Lawyers Guild Chicago reported at least 70 protesters arrested. The lawyers guild mentioned that the actual number of arrests could be higher as attorneys faced difficulty locating arrested protesters in police custody.

During the protest in front of the consulate in downtown Chicago, a small group of demonstrators gathered as Democratic officials convened at the United Center. They carried signs criticizing the Democrats and advocating for Gaza.

After speeches expressing solidarity with Palestinians, the march moved towards Madison Street, where officers halted the group and pushed them back, as seen in videos and live broadcasts from the rally posted on social media.

The lawyers guild criticized the police for provoking confrontations, making indiscriminate arrests, and entrapping groups to carry out mass arrests.

Pacheco was released from police custody around 6 a.m. on Wednesday and quickly returned to work, covering a larger pro-Palestine demonstration in Union Park, featuring speakers like Jill Stein. Pacheco shared videos on social media showing a heavy law enforcement presence during the event.

Shortly after, Pacheco posted another video showing Chicago police officers detaining two women on a train platform during the march.