HPD 's report on the May 18 Halliburton protest : Houston Indymedia

Halliburton Protest -- Response Overview

June 8, 2005 -- The Halliburton Corporation held its annual shareholders’ meeting at the Four Seasons Hotel on Wednesday, May 18, 2005. Due to this company’s role with the current war in the Middle East, and the fact that a civil protest occurred last year at this event, anti-war and anti-Halliburton protesters were expected. Last year, approximately 300 demonstrators protested the meeting and some were civilly disobedient and clashed with police. This year, approximately 200 demonstrators were expected for the shareholders’ meeting. The planned police response for the 2005 protest was based on an approach designed to minimize the issues encountered last year.

In 2004, the Houston Police Department’s response to the planned demonstration centered on information that there would be less than 25 protesters. The Special Operations Division provided a police presence adequate for the anticipated number of protesters. Unfortunately, the protesters numbered nearly 300 and quickly became civilly disobedient. At one point, the protesters sat down in the Four Season’s driveway and conducted a “die in” in the middle of McKinney Street. Traffic control quickly became an issue and McKinney Street had to be closed. As those events were occurring, six protesters handcuffed themselves to the stair railing inside the hotel. Additional units were called to the scene and officers began trying to secure the area with barricades. During the 2004 protest, one protester struck a bike officer, however, the hostile crowd prevented the suspect’s arrest. Ultimately, approximately 30 officers were required to restore order and bring the 2004 protest under control. Problems identified after the 2004 incident included a lack of police personnel, no Mounted Patrol officers, insufficient intelligence regarding the protest and no pre-designated protest area.

Based on the 2004 experience, the Special Operations Division developed a plan of action for this year’s event that was designed to provide a more coordinated police response and to minimize the problems previously encountered. The objectives of this plan of action included:

Protection of life and minimization of injuries;

Protection of property from damage, especially those associated with the company being protested against;

Isolation of any disturbances;

Extinguishing any fires set by demonstrators; and

Ensuring public access to businesses and buildings in the protest area.

Operationally, protest areas were designated along Lamar Street, in front of the Four Season’s Hotel, and included one northbound lane; the northeast corner of Lamar and Austin and the southwest corner of Lamar and Austin. Crowd control and interior staffing for the 2005 event consisted of all Special Operations Division – Special Response Group (SRG) trained personnel from all ranks, inclusive of Captain and Assistant Chief. Also assisting in the management of this event were personnel from the Criminal Intelligence Division, Ted Wilson from the Harris County District Attorney’s office, and a City Municipal Prosecutor from the City of Houston Municipal Courts Prosecutor’s office.

Based on the intelligence gathered for the 2005 protest, crowd control and Mounted Patrol officers were positioned inside and outside the Four Season’s Hotel and at 5 Houston Center, which houses Halliburton’s main offices. Police personnel inside the meeting were aware that several protesters inside the hotel would attempt to disrupt the meeting once it was in progress. Criminal Intelligence Division (CID) personnel met with some of the external protest organizers prior to the start of the march and informed them of the local laws governing protests. The HPD operational plan was to be visible, monitor crowd activities and ensure the public safety of both the protesters and citizens. If disturbances or any type of criminal activity occurred, officers would be directed to respond and restore order, including making arrests if necessary.

As the outdoor protesters marched toward the hotel from the George R. Brown Convention Center, they remained orderly and compliant by walking on the sidewalks and obeying the pedestrian control signals. However, as they arrived at the Four Season’s Hotel, some of the protesters began moving and throwing the barricades into the roadway. Officers responded by moving the barricades back into position. After a large majority of the crowd collectively gathered behind the barricades in front of the hotel, portions of the crowd once again began moving the barricades further into Lamar Street. Crowd control and Mounted Patrol officers moved forward to prevent the crowd from forcefully moving the barricades any further. Once this occurred, the attempts to move the barricades in this area ceased.

During the protest, several splinter groups of protesters moved away from the crowd and marched around the adjoining city blocks. Mounted Patrol officers and one of the SRG React Squads were directed to shadow each “march” as it occurred to ensure that if any destructive activity took place, a police response would be immediately available. Several of the “marches” turned violent, as protesters either assaulted or attempted to assault our police horses and officers. During one such “march,” a bicycle was thrown at a Mounted Patrol officer, knocking him off his horse and injuring the horse. Another “march” had a group of protesters attempting to move the Mounted Patrol officers back with a banner attached to some type of PVC or metal piping.

The “publicized” incident in which Mounted Patrol officers went into the crowd stemmed from one of the “marches.” Protesters intentionally stopped in front of the garage exit gate at the Houston Center located on Austin Street and refused to move. When Houston Center security personnel requested assistance in order to allow vehicles to exit, officers directed protesters to move away from the exit. When the protesters refused to move away from the exit, crowd control and Mounted Patrol officers moved in and protesters responded by striking the horses and the officers. Several protesters were arrested during this incident.

During the protest, additional SRG officers were requested from the department’s Central and South Central Divisions. These officers were utilized to assist with protesters inside the hotel attempting to disrupt the shareholders’ meeting, as well as outside on the perimeter due to the increasingly disruptive behavior and marching activities of some of the protesters.

A total of 16 protesters were arrested and the charges included criminal trespass (8), felony assault on a peace officer (3), evading arrest (2), interfering with a police service animal (2) and failure to obey a peace officer (1). While most of the individuals arrested were cooperative, some refused to walk and had to be carried to the arrest processing area.

It should be noted that Houston Police officers working this disruptive and sometimes violent protest showed remarkable restraint and professionalism in handling the crowd control duties. Officers were courteous and allowed the protesters to exercise their constitutional rights. While the majority of the protesters complied with all laws and police directions, others attended the event with the intent of disrupting the meeting, gaining media attention by performing acts of civil disobedience and assaulting police officers and police horses. When disruptive behavior by protesters was met with a stiffened police response, some protesters turned to violence and were arrested.

All Mounted Patrol officers and crowd control officers at this protest have received a minimum of 40 hours Special Response Group training. Additionally, most of the SRG officers that were responsible for crowd control were members of the SRG Crowd Disbursement Team (CDT). These officers have not only received basic SRG training, but have also attended an additional 16-hour CDT training class and an additional 8-hour training session each year with their required 24-hours of annual SRG training. During each training session, officers participate in formation, arrest and baton training in addition to handling crowds and chemical munitions. During each quarter, SRG members and Mounted Patrol officers work together in each SRG basic class and CDT class.