Not one of the 228 arrested at Columbia, NYU anti-Israel protests will get a criminal record
All of the 228 protesters busted during anti-Israel rallies at Columbia and New York universities over the past week have walked free and won’t face criminal records — despite reports that their actions are making others feel unsafe on campus, The Post has learned.
A total of 120 people were nabbed at NYU Monday — 116 received summonses for trespassing and four got desk appearance tickets for charges that included resisting arrest.
About a week earlier, 108 individuals — including US Rep. Ilhan Omar’s daughter, Isra Hirsi — were busted at the Gaza Solidarity Encampment at Columbia and soon let out. Of them, 100 got summonses for trespassing and eight got DATs.
Charges stemming from summonses and DATs do not end up on criminal records.
The lack of serous permanent consequences left some observers dismayed.
“They’ll keep getting arrested and go back out and keep doing the same thing because this is all a performative game for them,” said one law enforcement source. “It’s a game because the system doesn’t hold them accountable for their nightly temper tantrums.”
The majority of those arrested at the Morningside Heights campus were let off with summonses, while a few others were given desk appearance tickets for charges including resisting arrest and assault on a police officer, among others.
The university also suspended dozens of students who participated in the encampment, according to the Columbia Daily Spectator.
Die-hard activists on both campuses were undeterred by the police intervention.
“What if I want to set up a tent?” one NYU graduate student scoffed to The Post during a walkout in Washington Square Park.
“NYU called the cops on their own students. Just like Columbia and Yale,” she added.
Another protester was overheard bragging about being at the Monday night demonstration for hours — and brandished a freshly dented purple Stanley cup as proof.
“Bro, look at my cup. I was banging that cup so hard on the barricade for Palestine,” they gushed.
One protester toted a bag of pastries from the upscale Lafayette bakery and insisted they would demand a refund if NYU followed Columbia’s lead and moved to hybrid classes.
“I saw children being treated very poorly by the police,” said Gabriella, an NYU student and refugee.
“They were only chanting and singing,” she added. “I wish there was more I could do.”
But the demonstrations also left Jewish students feeling increasingly unsafe.
Jewish NYU student Natalie Manocherian, 21, told The Post that she is considering leaving the school after enduring antisemitic harassment.
“I was called a dirty Jew yesterday,” Manocherian said. “I don’t feel comfortable as a Jew right now. I go to my class and I go straight home.”
“I know people in my family who died in the Intifada, you know, like, that’s not something that should be taken lightly. And these people really have no idea,” she added.
“I think I had a false sense of security as a Jew growing up in New York my whole life and I’ve actually realized that a lot,” the Upper West Side native added.
At Columbia, the tent encampment was still going strong after nearly a full week in the rain, wind, and cold. Access to the campus remained restricted to university ID holders.
Jewish students at the Ivy League school reported increased feelings of unrest in the face of alleged taunts and threats of physical violence.
On Monday, Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) denounced the encampments as “nascent pogroms” and called on President Biden to send in the National Guard to break up the groups.
Additional reporting by Joe Marino
