Judge Lowers $1 Million Bail for Lancaster Protesters Following Pressure

DETROIT, MI - MAY 30: Demonstrators protest against police brutality for a second day foll
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A judge has lowered the bail for several protesters arrested in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, following criticism from Black Lives Matter activists and progressive leaders.

Thirteen individuals, including one juvenile, were arrested as a result of the unrest in Lancaster on Sunday night into early Monday morning. Charges included “Criminal Conspiracy for Arson, Riot, Institutional Vandalism, Failure to Disperse, Obstructing Highways and Other Public Passages, and Disorderly Conduct and Defiant Trespass,” according to the Lancaster Bureau of Police.

Arrestees included Talia Gessner, 18; Taylor Enterline, 20; Kathryn Patterson, 20; Yoshua Dwayne Montague, 23; Jamal Shariff Newman, 24; T-Jay Fry, 28; Dylan Davis, 28; Lee Alexander Wise, 29; Barry Jones, 30; Matthew Modderman, 31; Jessica Marie Lopez, 32; Frank Gaston, 43; and one juvenile, 16.

Magisterial District Judge Bruce A. Roth originally set bail for nine of the defendants at $1 million but reversed course days later, revising the amount down after criticism. At the tine, Lt. Gov. John Fetterman (D) called the bail amount “blatantly unconstitutional.”

According to Lancaster Online, Roth revisited the bail for the following defendants:

-Barry Jones M/30 – $1 million to  $100,000 unsecured, he is on house arrest

– Jamal Shariff Newman M/24 – $1 million to $100,000 straight

– Talia Gessner F/18 – $1 million to $50,000 cash, if released, house arrest

– T-Jay Fry M/28 – $1 million to $25,000 straight

Additionally, Judge Dennis Reinaker reset the bail for five defendants:

– Yoshua Dwayne Montague M/23 – From $1 million to $100,000 cash or 10 %

– Kathryn Patterson F/20 – From $1 million to $50,0000 unsecured

– Taylor Enterline F/20 – From $1 million to $50,000 unsecured

– Dylan Davis M/28 – From $1 million to $50,000 unsecured; is on house arrest

– Alexa Wise F/29 – From $100,000 to $50,000 unsecured; is on house arrest

Organizers set up GoFundMe campaigns for some of the protesters, including Patterson, a student at Franklin & Marshall College, and Lee Alexander Wise, a transgender woman who organizers say is being held in the male section of a prison.

The Lancaster Patriot, a forthcoming “weekly conservative print newspaper covering Lancaster County,” shared a video on Twitter of what it said was a crowd “marching toward what they thought was Judge Roth’s address to intimidate him”:

The Lancaster protest saw several acts of lawlessness, including protesters smashing county vehicles, attacking the police station, and hurling projectiles at officers, calling them the “real KKK”:

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