CHP arrests journalist to stop news of protest

Source: San Jose Mercury News

There's a battle of wills taking place in Willits, where Caltrans has begun construction on a highway bypass around this small Mendocino County town. The bypass diverting Highway 101 has its supporters and its detractors, including a small group of protesters who have made it their mission to disrupt the construction at every opportunity.

On Tuesday, the protesters snuck onto the construction site early in the morning once again -- but the only person arrested was the photographer for The Willits News, the twice-weekly local newspaper, who was there to document the latest protest.

... Steve Eberhard, a longtime freelance photographer for the Willits News, was arrested early Tuesday as he approached the area where some protesters had chained themselves to construction equipment and others stood nearby. None of the protesters had been arrested, but as soon as Eberhard showed up he was cuffed and led away, his camera equipment taken from him.

The media has been told that unless members have a Caltrans escort, they are trespassing on the site. But Caltrans only provides escorts during "regular business hours" and sometimes not even then -- especially if there's something worth photographing. The CHP, meanwhile, has told protesters that when a journalist shows up, the first arrest will be the media, presumably so that the protests will go undocumented -- as if anyone with a smart phone isn't a photographer these days. The CHP has harassed journalists even when they have a Caltrans escort and even when they're in in a public right of way near the site.

Read more: http://www.mercurynews.com/opinion/ci_23725417/mercury-news-editorial-chp-arrests-journalist-stop-news