4 Facing Felony Charges After Earth Day Protest At Universal Studios – Update
Updated at 7:45 p.m. with details on arrests:
Four people were arrested Monday following an Earth Day protest at Universal Studios in Universal City, California, the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department told Deadline.
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During the demonstration, two protesters were shown on local television scaling the iconic Universal Studios globe and waving green flags that read “climate emergency.”
A group of climate change activists called Extinction Rebellion Los Angeles streamed the protest live on Facebook. The stream, which was posted around 2:30 p.m. PT, included a message saying: “One arrest already… clearly more to come…. maybe 100 cops.”
They were right about more arrests to come. Hours later, the sheriff’s department issued a statement saying four men ranging in age from 22 to 51 years old were taken into custody.
The four male suspects each face felony vandalism and criminal conspiracy charges. Two of the men were additionally charged with misdemeanor trespassing. All four are being held at the sheriff’s department’s West Hollywood Station on $20,000 bail.
Several people posted pictures of the protesters on social media. They were shown handing out green flyers calling for “proportional obligation” — saying wealthier individuals have a greater “responsibility to society.” The flyers posed the question: “Hollywood are you listening?”
SJW protests st Universal Studios Hollywood right now. pic.twitter.com/bagvC3XU0I
— 🏰💜🖤ᏞYᎠᏆᎪ ᎡᎪᎬ🖤💜🏰 (@Secretkat3) April 22, 2019
The globe serves as a backdrop for syndicated entertainment news program Extra, and host Mario Lopez took to Instagram to post video of the protesters. He captioned the footage: “Beautiful day for a protest. One dude super glued himself to the rail. Ouch… #EarthDay.”
A Universal Studios Hollywood spokesperson said the protesters did not have permission to be on the lot.
“Earth Day demonstrators came to the property unannounced and we are working with law enforcement to have them peacefully removed,” the spokesperson said earlier in the day.
According to local television reports, the protest was shut down about an hour after it started.
Earth Day events were held around the globe today in support of environmental protection.
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