A student at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill was arrested for larceny last month after she was caught on video taking a sign belonging to pro-life activists. The arrest arrives just days after the arrest of a UNC-Chapel Hill student accused of physically assaulted a pro-life activist after allegedly getting angry over his sign.
A student at UNC-Chapel Hill was arrested after taking a sign from a pro-life activist. The sign read, “Warning: abortion victim photos ahead.” The sign belonged to the pro-life group, Created Equal, which describes itself as “a social action movement seeking to end the greatest human rights injustice of our time [abortion].”
The incident made for the second arrest related to confrontations over abortion views in recent weeks on campus. Days before, UNC-Chapel Hill student Jillian Ward was reportedly arrested and charged with “non-aggravated assault” after being caught on video attacking Created Equal intern Austin Beigel.
The second arrest involved a different student who appeared to take a sign out of a pro-life activist’s hand while a police officer was present. The officer then approached the student and informed her that she does not have the right to take someone’s property, even if she disagrees with what the sign says.
The conversation was caught on video, before the student was ultimately arrested and escorted to the police station.
Watch below:
“Look, sir, I’m not trying to get arrested,” said the student to the officer, after he had informed her that she was being detained for larceny.
“I cannot believe these are the people who you protect,” continued the student, referring to the pro-life activists.
“I’m not trying to protect anyone, but I do have to enforce the law,” responded the officer, “That’s just how it is.”
“Do you see us being subjected to this shit?” said the student, gesturing toward the pro-life signage.
“They have a right to be here,” said the officer, “If you don’t like their views, you can go away, you don’t have to watch it.”
“It doesn’t matter how much you ignore them, they’re gonna come back, and they’re gonna come back again, and this is why women have such a problem getting abortions in North Carolina, and y’all just let them get away with this shit,” said the student, “I cannot believe y’all let this happen.”
“Take your backpack off, turn around, and put your hands behind your back, you’re under arrest for larceny,” said the officer.
“I cannot believe this is happening,” said the student upon realizing that she was under arrest, “is there something else that I can do?”
“No, I just told you you’re under arrest,” replied the officer, “I cannot un-arrest you.”
The student then took her backpack off and proceeded to follow the officer’s directions. The rest of the video shows the officer escorting the student to the police station.
“During my twenty years of speaking at universities around the country, my educational materials are routinely stolen,” Created Equal president Mark Harrington told Breitbart News.
“My team of activists, who conduct themselves professionally and compassionately, are often threatened and sometimes assaulted,” added Harrington, “and I often battle university administrations for rights which are constitutionally protected.”
You can follow Alana Mastrangelo on Twitter at @ARmastrangelo and on Instagram.