Free Them All Demonstration at Richmond City Jail

What started as a “sit-in protest” ended with nearly a dozen arrests on the street outside the Richmond City jail after participants clashed with law enforcement.

Early in the afternoon on Tuesday September 1 a flyer was circulated via social media advertising an evening event outside the Richmond City Justice Center on Fairfield Way. The flyer demanded that Richmond authorities “Free Them All” in reference to the jail’s population of inmates and that conditions inside the facility are inhumane during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Further the flyer claims that “Our comrades on the inside are facing retaliation from officers for simply requesting adequate medical attention.” Additional the flyer states “We stand in solidarity with those who have been kidnapped, convicted and caged. Show up to support our incarcerated comrades.”

At 5:30 PM demonstrators began gathering on Oliver Hill Way outside the facility and simultaneously Richmond City Sheriff’s deputies formed a perimeter along the parking lot of the property.

Around 6 PM protestors demonstrated in a grassy area on the Richmond City Justice Center property which drew the attention of sheriff’s department employees. Deputies along with Richmond Police led demonstrators off the property and onto the public sidewalk. Inside the jail inmates could be heard rattling the windows in response to the demonstrations on the outside.

During the demonstration cars were illegally parked along Oliver Hill Way outside of the facility and police requested tow trucks to remove the vehicles. Shortly before 7 PM an arriving tow truck was blocked by a demonstrator on a bicycle. According to a police statement this demonstrator was obstructing the tow truck driver’s ability to engage in services prescribed by law enforcement.

The tow truck driver requested assistance and a Richmond Police Officer traveled into the median to investigate and create access for the tow truck to proceed.

At a Wednesday afternoon press conference police stated the demonstrator was asked repeatedly to move and failed to follow the order.

“As officers approached this protester, he then rode off on his bicycle to elude capture from the officers. As he was riding away, another officer in the area in an unmarked vehicle pulled up and he tried to elude him by going around him, and the officer got out of the vehicle and tackled the individual on the bicycle to arrest him,” said Deputy Police Chief Sydney Collier.

At this point the demonstrator on the bicycle fled northbound in the southbound lanes on Oliver Hill Way before being intercepted by a second Richmond Police Officer in a vehicle. After hopping the median and traveling into the northbound lanes the cyclist was forcibly dismounted from his bicycle and arrested.

The confrontation between the cyclist and the Richmond law enforcement officer drew angry attention from the other demonstrators who then swarmed around the apprehended suspect. During this conflict multiple protestors attempted to interfere with the arrest and consequently drew more attention from Richmond police who then detained and arrested demonstrators that impeded the apprehension.

According to Richmond police a total of eleven individuals were arrested during the incident. One person was charged with obstructing a tow truck as it attempted to remove an illegally parked vehicle. Ten others were arrested for obstruction of justice, impeding the flow of traffic and Disorderly conduct. Late on Tuesday a nurse employed at the Richmond Justice Center claimed that during the protest she was subjected to harassment as she drove by demonstrators and the frightening nature of the situation led her to resign.