Dozens of people sat in the lobby of the Travis County Courthouse on Wednesday. Some of them learned that their criminal trespassing charges would be dropped,
Some of them learned that their criminal trespassing charges would be dropped, after getting arrested at pro-Palestine protests at the University of Texas at Austin in April. "That's kind of why we wanted to show up in person so that we could process it a little bit with each other," said Hannah Barakat.
In a press conference Wednesday afternoon, Travis County Attorney Delia Garza said, "We cannot meet our legal burden to prove these 79 criminal trespass cases beyond reasonable doubt." Barakat was arrested at a Palestine protest on UT's campus on April 29, and charged with criminal trespassing. She said she was hopeful of this outcome from the county attorney, after living in uncertainty for the past two months. " just did the right thing, because that's what the law says," said Barakat, "I wasn't expecting to feel a huge amount of relief, but I did.""I do have a hold on my registration-- I haven't been able to register for any of my classes since after I got out of jail," said Lenahan.Lenahan is still facing disciplinary actions from UT Austin for their involvement in the protests; they said having their charges dropped is just "one piece of the puzzle." "Legally, under the Court of Law, they have made the decision that it's not something that should be pursued, but it is UT's decision, and there's not really anything that I can do to change that," said Lenahan. Following Garza's announcement, UT released a statement that said in part: "The University has made clear that we strictly enforce our rules. Students who choose to violate them are held accountable." "UT might make the decision that it's something that stays on my academic record forever," said Lenahan.The disciplinary proceedings against UT are still underway. According to CBS Austin sources, some of the UT students arrested and now facing disciplinary actions will be addressing the public in a press conference Thursday morning.
UT Austin Charges Dropped Criminal Trespassing Travis County Disciplinary Actions Palestine Protest Students
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
West Nile virus found in mosquito pool in southern Travis CountyNearly 800,000 Americans have a stroke each year, according to the CDC. Now there is a simple blood test that could help predict the risk of having a stroke.
Read more »
Travis, Hays County Get More Than $800,000 in Park GrantsEmerald Crown Trail will get a quarter of a million dollars
Read more »
Dozens of residents displaced following high rise apartment fire in Montgomery CountyDozens of people are displaced after a fire Thursday morning at a high rise apartment building in Montgomery County.
Read more »
Bexar County Commissioners Court to up security after gun brought into courthouseBexar County Commissioner's Court is looking into the safety at the county courthouse.This comes after a judge for the second probate court, the Honorable Veron
Read more »
Travis Scott arrested for disorderly intoxication in Miami-Dade CountyTravis Scott was booked into a Miami-Dade jail early Thursday morning.
Read more »
BCSO searches for man who escaped custody from Bexar County Courthouse in handcuffsPedro Andres Escamilla, 27, was in handcuffs and had been arrested on charges of possession and criminal traspassing.
Read more »