Please go to source link to view Video and read the full printed copy of the student complaint.

Daily Tar Heel > News > University

Students protest police use of force at Tancredo speech

Call for independent investigation
By Andrew Dunn
Senior Writer
Published: Monday, May 4, 2009
Updated: Tuesday, May 5, 2009


UNC group protests police use of force from Andrew Dunn on Vimeo.

UPDATE: See videos of the protest here. For direct links, click here (Vimeo) and here (YouTube).

8 P.M. MONDAY, MAY 4 -- More than a dozen students, parents, staff and community members called for an independent investigation into police use of force at the April 14 protest of former U.S. Rep. Tom Tancredo's speech and into the arrest of student Haley Koch nine days after the event.

Many of them held signs reading "Stop police brutality" and spoke about their experiences at the protest at a public hearing held Monday by the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies at the Friday Center. The Department of Public Safety is currently under a regular review of its accreditation.

Students described being forcibly shoved by police officers and said that the police made the situation less safe. They said they did not trust the internal review that DPS does, and called on Chancellor Holden Thorp to convene an independent investigation.

"That's the only way we'll find out what actually happened," senior Charlie McGeehan siad. "Right now, it's our word as students versus the Department of Public Safety."

Tancredo, who was hosted by the new UNC chapter of Youth for Western Civilization, cancelled his speech after police used pepper spray and discharged a Taser to break up protestors who had gathered outside. Inside, two protestors held a sign in front of Tancredo to keep him from speaking.

Police said they were dispersing an unsafe crowd, and did not direct the pepper spray or Taser at anyone.

Koch was arrested April 23 for involvement in the protest.

DPS Chief Jeff McCracken said he wasn't sure how Monday's hearing would affect the department's accreditation.

"I don't know," he said. "This is just one small part of the process."

A group of students and faculty also submitted a formal complaint to DPS. Read that below.

Check back for video of Tuesday's event.

http://www.dailytarheel.com/news/univer ... -1.1743961