Details of UNH students' alleged assault of police at pro-Palestine rally emerge

DURHAM — Two University of New Hampshire students are charged with assaulting the school’s police chief and other officers who dispersed a crowd attempting to set up an encampment following a pro-Palestinian rally Wednesday night.

They were two of 12 people arrested following the incident on the Thompson Hall lawn. Ten of those arrested are UNH students, according to university spokesperson Tania deLuzuriaga. She said the school had not immediately decided on disciplinary action.

Court documents show details of alleged assault of police

Sebastian Rowan, 29, was holding a banner as part of a group that did not leave the lawn after being asked by UNH Police Chief Paul Dean to disperse, according to allegations in a police affidavit filed in court. Rowan is alleged to have struck two officers before being taken into custody after UNH and state police moved into the crowd.

Rowan faces a simple assault charge, which was brought forward as an enhanced misdemeanor. The crime carries a potential sentence of 2 1/2 to 5 years in New Hampshire State Prison if he is found guilty, according to Judge Scott Murray of Dover District Court. The judge said he could not accept a plea in Rowan's case because it will have to move to Strafford County Superior Court.

Rowan was also charged with disorderly conduct and criminal trespass, both Class A misdemeanors.

Aidan Turner, 21, pleaded not guilty to the simple assault charge filed against him for allegedly assaulting Chief Dean. He also pleaded not guilty to charges of disorderly conduct and criminal trespass. All three charges against Turner are Class A misdemeanors, The maximum punishment for Class A misdemeanors include up to a year in jail and a maximum $2,000 fine with maximum punishment of up to a year in jail and a $2,000 fine for each count, according to Murray.

A police affidavit filed in Turner’s case details the alleged assault.

“At about 6 p.m. (Wednesday), the people at the event formed into a ring formation looking outwards. They were also chanting slogans. There were individuals within the ring setting up a tent. Chief Dean attempted to go through the people in the formation to address the tent being set up because it was in violation of the event permit,” the document reads. “One person, later identified as Aidan Turner, grabbed Chief Dean to prevent him from getting through the formation. Chief Dean pushed Aidan Turner to get by him to remove the tent. Aidan Turner grabbed him again, preventing his forward movement. Chief Dean then was repeatedly struck by nearby people to prevent him from removing the tent.”

Chief Dean then gave a description of Turner to another UNH police officer, Capt. Francis Weeks, according to the affidavit. Weeks then identified Turner in the crowd, “took him to the ground,” and arrested him.

Turner agreed to a Sept. 10 trial date. A probable cause hearing on Rowan’s enhanced simple assault charge was scheduled for May 21.

Turner and Rowan were released on personal recognizance bail with conditions not to consume alcohol, use narcotic drugs or other controlled substances, and not to possess a firearm, weapon or ammunition.

New Hampshire public defender Erica Tracewell represented both suspects. An attempt to reach her for comment was not immediately successful. Rowan did not immediately respond to a request for comment. An attempt to reach Turner was not immediately successful.

It was unclear Thursday when other demonstrators arrested a day earlier would make their initial court appearances.

Palestine Solidarity Coalition: 'Blatant police brutality and injustice' against demonstrators

Demonstrators at UNH rushed to set up an encampment Wednesday night following what had been a peaceful rally to that point. The scene in Durham, with law enforcement swarming the crowd and physically restraining some demonstrators, paralleled protests on campuses throughout the United States as students call for cease-fire in Gaza amid the deadly Israel-Hamas conflict. They are also calling for schools to divest from companies affiliated with Israel and weapons makers.

The Palestine Solidarity Coalition, a student group at the University of New Hampshire, is imploring the school’s administration and the state to drop the charges against the 12 people arrested Wednesday night. Supporters of the group and UNH alumni are questioning the tactics used by law enforcement, calling authorities’ advance on the crowd excessive force. The coalition on Friday posted in social media a list of demands, calling for Chief Dean and UNH President James Dean, among others, to resign.

The Palestine Solidarity Coalition posted footage to social media Thursday of police pushing back against demonstrators on Thompson Hall lawn Wednesday night. One video appears to show a demonstrator being forcefully brought to the ground by their neck and arms by a uniformed officer.

“This is what academic institutions like the University of New Hampshire (UNH) do when you utilize your First Amendment rights,” the coalition’s post states.

It goes on to characterize as "genocide" Israel's ongoing military response to Hamas's Oct. 7 attack in which Israeli officials report approximately 1,200 were killed and 200 taken hostage. An IDF spokesman in April told Newsweek more than 100 hostages remain in Gaza, including Americans and foreign nationals.

The Israeli retaliatory assault, with support of United States dollars and weapons, has killed nearly 35,000 Palestinians in Gaza, according to the Gaza Health Ministry. The humanitarian crisis has fueled outrage on some U.S. campuses and spurred demands for an end to investment in Israeli companies and amnesty for student protesters. There have also been reports nationally of outside groups getting involved with the campus protests.

Previous story: Police at UNH arrest pro-Palestine protesters setting up encampment

The Palestine Solidarity Coalition at UNH posted it "will not be silenced" and called on UNH administrators and the state to "support dropping charges against students and community members who were brutally arrested for taking a stand."

UNH officials have pointed to repeated warnings about encampments not being allowed prior to the protest. Forty-plus minutes passed between when tents went up and police moved in to remove them and protesters, according to deLuzuriga. During that time, she said, Dean gave warnings on a loudspeaker and Kenneth Holmes, UNH senior vice president for student life, walked around talking to students.

UNH professors union backs student protesters, criticizes response

A UNH faculty union has announced support for the student protesters. American Association of University Professors-UNH's Cliff Brown and Paula Salvio issued a statement that "condemns in the strongest possible terms the use of police to forcibly remove peaceful protesters" from the May 1 event on the Thompson Hall lawn. The union leaders called the response "heavy-handed and out of proportion to any threat represented by those who gathered to exercise their First Amendment rights."

ACLU-NH files right-to-know request with UNH regarding rally permit, written communications

A graduate student applied for and was granted a permit to hold an event Wednesday at 5 p.m., according to UNH officials. The permit was for a “May Day” event, advertised on social media as a “labor solidarity with Palestine” on International Workers Day, that was put together with other university and non-school-affiliated organizations, including the Jewish Voice for Peace Vermont/New Hampshire.

“It explicitly said that they're not permitted to have any tents with signs,” deLuzuriaga said Wednesday of the issued permit. “That’s standard for all the UNH permits that are issued.”

Chief Dean revoked the permit and declared the crowd an unlawful assembly after ordering the crowd to disperse multiple times.

A spokesperson for the American Civil Liberties Union of New Hampshire said the organization sent a Right-to-Know request to the University of New Hampshire Thursday morning seeking information about the granting and revocation of the rally permit. ACLU-NH seeks all written communications between law enforcement officials and the university that occurred on Wednesday.

Devon Chaffee, executive director of the state ACLU, opposed the actions of law enforcement in Durham and at Dartmouth College in Hanover in a Wednesday night statement.

“We are highly concerned that police, many in riot gear, appear to have moved quickly and forcefully into protests at the University of New Hampshire and Dartmouth College campuses. Use of police force against protestors should never be a first resort,” Chaffee said in part.

UNH president speaks out against demonstrators breaking law

Retiring University of New Hampshire president James Dean shared a message to the community Thursday rebuking the prior night's events, expressing he was “extremely disappointed” in what unfolded on campus.

“Over the past six months, students supporting Palestine have peacefully protested on campus at least seven times, and the university has supported their First Amendment rights to do so,” he said. “Moreover, university administrators have repeatedly met with organizers to discuss their concerns and share information. Unfortunately, last night was different. Despite clear communication with organizers regarding the university’s expectations for conduct when exercising their free speech rights, those guidelines, as well as repeated requests and warnings from university staff and police, were blatantly ignored. Protesters erected tents in a stated attempt to create an encampment on UNH property.

“I have repeatedly made clear my steadfast support for free speech on campus," Dean said. "In the last year we have facilitated events from across the political spectrum, and I am proud of our record protecting First Amendment rights. However, UNH is an institution of teaching and learning that belongs to every citizen of New Hampshire. We are home to students from a variety of backgrounds and viewpoints, and as president, it is my responsibility to ensure that all students are safe and have access to a full educational experience. We will not allow our campus to be co-opted by a small group of protesters, including those from outside the university community whose agenda is antithetical to student success and well-being,” he added.

Commencement ceremonies at UNH are scheduled for Friday, May 17 through Sunday, May 19.

State police: Pepper spray deployed on some 'showing acts of aggression toward law enforcement'

New Hampshire State Police spokesperson Tyler Dumont said the agency was present at both the University of New Hampshire and Dartmouth College campuses Wednesday.

“Throughout the evening, Troopers worked collaboratively to ensure the safety of those participating in First Amendment gatherings and to stop unlawful actions,” he said. “Numerous de-escalation techniques were used at both campuses, including the use of time and repeated public address announcements. Announcements warned individuals who chose not to disperse that they were subject to arrest for trespassing.”

No tear gas was used on demonstrators at either campus Wednesday, though Dumont acknowledged state police utilized pepper spray against some protesters.

"There were some instances in which OC (pepper) spray was used against individuals showing acts of aggression toward law enforcement," he wrote in an email.

Administrative personnel and state leadership were briefed throughout the duration of the events, Dumont said.

No state police personnel were injured on either campus, he added.

Demonstrators arrested in Durham Wednesday night were transported to the Strafford County Department of Corrections in Dover. Many supporters waiting for the demonstrators to be released from custody declined to speak to a reporter on the record Wednesday night at the jail.

Gov. Chris Sununu calls protests antisemitism, praises 'law, order and safety'

Gov. Chris Sununu’s office responded to Seacoastonline's request to answer questions by referring to an interview Sununu gave Thursday morning on the podcast "New Hampshire Today with Chris Ryan."

Sununu praised law enforcement and administrators in Durham and Hanover Wednesday. He criticized other universities nationally that did not employ law enforcement as quickly to shut down encampments.

Sununu said the state had been communicating with local and state law enforcement and college leaders in New Hampshire for several weeks.

"Because of the very smart actions of the administrations, local law enforcement and state police, I think if anything we can help prevent it,” he said of potential further protests. “But we will be ready. It’s a very fluid situation. ... We’ll keep communicating, keep being very transparent and provide whatever those communities need to keep not only things open and available, but their students safe, they’re communities safe. That’s what this is about: law, order and safety.”

The governor feels the college campus protests are rooted entirely in antisemitism.

“Make no mistake. Look at what they’re asking for,” he said on the podcast. “They want us to divest out of Israel. There are chants across this country saying, ‘death to America, death to Israel.’ That is for the destruction of the Jews. That is what this is all based in. There are folks that are out there that now say, ‘Hamas isn’t a terrorist organization. They’re just freedom fighters.’ Not even close. The lack of education, the lack of understanding I think is just astounding."

“Now, this is where I have to give Dartmouth and UNH and a lot of our institutions credit. I think they’re making sure that these conversations happen in an educational way and as constructive a way as possible, allowing both sides to have a voice. Not just in protesters, but in the classroom. When there’s no education in the classroom, the students turn to social media and propaganda,” he added.

Durham Town Administrator Todd Selig praised the town's police officers for responding to the call for backup on the university campus.

"Durham officers ensured the downtown and our core Durham neighborhoods remained peaceful, that traffic could flow along our local roadways, and that the public sidewalks remained clear for pedestrians," he said in a prepared statement. "It is this unselfish attitude that sets the people within our department apart and why the Town of Durham can be very proud of the staff members that serve our community."

This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: UNH students charged with assaulting police at pro-Palestine rally