Local political and GLBT activist Carly Delso-Saavedra was arrested while attending the “Counter-Inauguration Reclaim The Streets” rally downtown on the evening of Jan. 20. Delso-Saavedra was arrested for obstructing a police officer in the performance of the officer’s duties, according to a San Diego Police Department arrest report. Delso-Saavedra was covering the protest as a volunteer journalist and photographer for the San Diego Independent Media Center (SDIMC) and radioActive San Diego.

According to the SDIMC there were four total arrests made that evening and all arrestees were released from jail the following afternoon with trials pending.

Janice Jordan, a local activist and member of the San Diego Peace and Freedom Party, was also arrested on the charge of obstruction of justice for asking a member of the SDPD a question, according to witnesses and the SDIMC.

The protest began on Third Avenue and Broadway adjacent to the NBC building, and was organized by the Clandestine Insugrent Rebel Clown Army. It was further promoted by the SDIMC, radioActive San Diego and Queer Activists of San Diego.

The San Diego Coalition for Peace and Justice and the Ground Zero Players Cacelorazo held two earlier rallies that evening boasting several hundred people, including bikers, musicians, jugglers and dancers, who moved up and down Fourth Avenue.

David Cohen, media services manager for the SDPD, read Delso-Saavedra’s arrest report to the Gay & Lesbian Times. Cohen said she was arrested for “obstructing a police officer in the performance of his or her duties.” The officer, George Maglaras, stated Delso-Saavedra punched him in the left arm and claimed she was trying to force him back to the ground. Maglaras said he developed a large bruise on his left arm where he was struck, but did not require medical attention.

The arrest report also stated Delso-Saavedra tried to turn back into the crowd and hide, but Officer Maglaras grabbed her shirt from behind and pulled her back. Another officer assisted and she was placed in a neck restraint.

According to witnesses and the SDIMC, the charges against Delso-Saavedra and the others arrested have been fabricated.

The SDIMC held a press conference on Jan. 21 at the Hall of Justice downtown to discuss the incident. Juliana Grant, a legal observer with the National Lawyers Guild, said she was at the protest and witnessed Delso-Saavedra’s arrest.

“I did not see the original interaction between her and the police, however I did see the police put her in a chokehold and drag her away from the protesters. She was not resisting arrest at any point,” said Grant. “They then pulled her behind the police line and I was not able to see her at that point … All the violence I saw was on the part of the police.”

Delso-Saavedra was jailed over night in the Las Colinas Detention Facility in Santee with a bail set at $5,000. She said friends and family members gathered the bail money to release her on cash bond the following day around 2:30 p.m.

Delso-Saavedra, who has worked and volunteered for various organizations within the San Diego GLBT community for the past 11 years, spoke to the Gay & Lesbian Times following the press conference.

“I am very grateful to know such an incredible group of people,” she said. “I know that the moment I was arrested they mobilized together the money to bail me out – to get everybody in the loop about what was going on and just to be there for support.”

Members of the San Diego chapter of the National Lawyer’s Guild said the bail amount was set unusually high and might be part of a pattern of intimidation involving arresting a few protesters at random on charges with high bail.

Michael Cardenas, a volunteer organizer at the SDIMC, echoed the National Lawyer’s Guild’s comments at the Jan. 21 press conference. “We are going to stand up and prevent this from happening and we are going to hold the police and its attorney accountable for what occurred last night.”

Cardenas contends this is not the first time the SDPD has arrested a protester on false charges. He said at a May 1 demonstration last year, when President George Bush was in San Diego, another protester had been arrested, had a high bail posted and spent the night in jail. The charges against the protester were later dropped.

“The violent arrest of the reporter on completely false and unsupported charges is clearly an attempt to intimidate the citizens of San Diego from exercising their first amendment rights,” said Cardenas.

Delso-Saavedra is currently working with her lawyer concerning the charges against her and cannot comment specifically about the arrest details until legally advised to do so. Delso-Saavendra is scheduled to appear in court on Feb. 11 at 12:30 p.m.