Demonstrators from the UW chapter of Justice Works, a justice system reform group, will not pursue legal action against Washington State Trooper Douglas Power.

The group filed a complaint against the trooper when he acted aggressively toward them during a demonstration Feb. 24. The pre-law students were holding a banner that read, “Education not Incarceration” on an I-5 overpass at the Northeast 45th Street exit.

“We have decided not to pursue legal recourse as the Washington State Patrol has admitted fault and taken action to correct Officer Power,” said Jamie Brown, one of the Justice Works demonstrators and a pre-law student at the UW.

The students were bannering lawfully, however, Power had safety concerns for cars on the freeway below.

“In fairness to Power, he saw the big sign and he said if that falls over [it could hurt someone],” said Sgt. Bill Gardiner of the Washington State Patrol. “He asked them to take it down and they didn’t and he took it upon himself to take it down.”

In his effort to take it down, Power pulled the sign on top of the protestors.

“I think Trooper Power overreacted,” Gardiner said.

However, in a situation such as this, even though the demonstration was lawful, pubic safety must be considered, he said.

“If you think it’s a safety issue, we can’t just drive off,” he said. “[Trooper Power] was between a rock and a hard place.”

An appropriate action would have been to call the leaders aside and voice those concerns. If Power had done that, the situation might not have escalated as it did, Gardiner said.

“Those people [the demonstrators] were very law-abiding and reasonable,” he said.

In response to this incident, Gardiner sent e-mails to sergeants, reminding the troopers of the laws about bannering.

He also wants sergeants, who rank above regular troopers, to respond to demonstration scenes.

“Sergeants are more mature and see more of the other people’s side of the coin,” he said. “In most cases [sergeants] don’t need to do anything … as far as demonstrating goes you’re totally within your rights.”

Most often troopers are at protests on controversial issues. The students with Justice Works were advocating justice system reform, which is, in Gardiner’s opinion, not the most controversial issue.

“Many times we’re there to protect the people protesting,” he said.

Brown and other members of the group felt that little good could come out of further action.

“I feel that pursuing legal recourse would serve no valid purpose,” Brown said. “Officer Power has been held accountable for his actions, both internally [within the Washington State Patrol] and publicly.”

She said though the incident was unfortunate, she hopes that, in the end, the publicity had a positive effect.

“We hope the media coverage generated not only healthy debate, but interest in our organization, Justice Works,” she said.

[Reach reporter Erinn Unger at news@thedaily.washington.edu.]