Minnesota lawmaker wants protesters to pay for police time
A Minnesota lawmaker this week proposed a bill that would force protesters convicted of unlawful assembly or disturbing the peace to pay for police costs.
Republican State Rep. Nick Zerwas said it's unfair for taxpayers to pay the cost of deploying police to monitor protests.
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Zerwas doesn't believe his bill would discourage lawful protests.
"There's a line between saying 'I'm advocating for this' to saying 'I'm shutting down this freeway,'" Zerwas told local TV station KARE. "Those are not the same thing."
The proposal comes months after Black Lives Matter protesters held protests throughout Minneapolis following the death of a 24-year-old black man named Jamar Clark, who was fatally shot by police.
Protesters marched in downtown Minneapolis as well as at the Mall of America. They also camped outside a police station just down the street from where Clark was killed, though police forced protesters out after several days.
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Colin is Mashable's US & World Reporter. He previously interned at Foreign Policy magazine and The American Prospect. Colin is a graduate from Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism. When he's not at Mashable, you can most likely find him eating or playing some kind of sport.
