The San Francisco district attorney has charged 26 people in connection to an April anti-Israel protest that shut down the Golden Gate Bridge for nearly five hours, trapping hundreds of drivers including a mother with her baby and a surgeon who had to reschedule an operation.
District Attorney Brooke Jenkins announced the charges on Saturday, saying eight of the suspects were charged with felony conspiracy, 38 counts of false imprisonment, trespassing to interfere with business, obstruction of a thoroughfare, unlawful assembly, refusal to disperse at a riot, and failure to obey the lawful order of a uniformed officer.
Eighteen of the suspects were charged with misdemeanor conspiracy instead of felony conspiracy, along with the same additional charges the other eight individuals face.
Jenkins said arrest warrants have been issued for the suspects and that they must surrender to the California Highway Patrol (CHP) no later than Monday.
“While we must protect avenues for free speech, the exercise of free speech cannot compromise public safety,” Jenkins said. “The demonstration on the Golden Gate Bridge caused a level of safety risk, including extreme threats to the health and welfare of those trapped, that we as a society cannot ignore or allow.”
An affidavit filed with the court shows that hundreds of motorists were trapped on the Golden Gate Bridge and US-101 for hours because of the coordinated protest.
Just before 8 a.m. on April 15, 2024, protesters gathered on US-101 southbound near the middle span of the bridge and blocked traffic using vehicles and pedestrians who were holding signs in the roadway.
The bridge captain identified himself to the protesters and notified them they were breaking the law and blocking traffic. If they did not move their vehicles, the captain warned, the protesters would be arrested.
One person wearing a neon pink safety vest with the words “Police Liaison,” later identified as Sara Cantor, allegedly told the captain she understood, but because the drivers were chained together, they would not be moving and that the fire department would have to cut them free.
The affidavit alleges that the dialogue between law enforcement did not produce a solution.
Three vehicles parked at the front of the protests had people inside who were locked to a metal tube, later referred to as “Sleeping Dragons.”
CHP personnel cut into one of the metal tubes, then warned the remaining protesters their vehicles would be cut to remove them from their vehicles.
Cantor allegedly asked to speak with the protesters, and after doing so, they chose to climb out of their vehicles and surrender to police. All six of the protesters were arrested, as was Cantor.
The bridge ultimately reopened at 12:20 p.m.
While the bridge was closed, 35 victims told police they were trapped. The affidavit notes numerous reports of victims who missed work, important medical appointments, school and flights.
One victim in the affidavit was said to have missed a pre-op appointment to have a tumor removed from their temporal lobe.
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Another victim, who is a mother, reported not having water for infant formula and missing a pre-surgery appointment for her baby.
Additional victims included a surgeon who had to cancel and reschedule their entire surgery schedule for the day, as well as a mother’s report of her disabled child being stuck on a school bus for four hours on the bridge.
Officials said the bridge lost more than $162,000 because of the ordeal, that 12,000 vehicles typically use the southbound lanes between 8 a.m. and noon and that 8,000 vehicles use the northbound lanes during the same period.
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