Protesters Describe Experience In Jail After Being Arrested Saturday Night
CHICAGO (CBS) -- With a citywide curfew in place for the second night Sunday night, we've heard from protests describing the ordeal after being arrested the night before.
CBS 2's Steven Graves talked to some who spent more than 12 hours behind bars.
It was a moment of relief Sunday for Romelo Rosado, who hugged friends outside the Chicago Police station where he had been held.
It was a contrast to the hours of sitting in jail after being downtown Saturday night with friends.
"I was peacefully protesting," Rosado said.
He said he started protesting around 7 p.m. Saturday, but when the 9 p.m. curfew was handed down by Mayor Lori Lightfoot at the last minute, everything changed.
"I see police push somebody to the ground. I pull out my phone to record it," Rosado said. "As soon as that happened, I get tackled by somebody."
His sprained wrist was bandaged, which he said happened in the scuffle.
"We were sitting in a paddy wagon for two hours. We were in a bunch of cells in there. Single-man cells, but they actually had us in there with a bunch of people," Rosado said.
Some people in custody had numbers written in marker on their skin.
A group with drinks and food greeted people as they came out in a steady stream, and many described their experience.
"It was cold. It was uncomfortable. It was disrespectful," said Deja Johnson.
CBS 2 asked Chicago Police about the allegations, but did not hear back Sunday night. Some people coming out were slapped with disorderly conduct charges.
Anjenette Smith caught her daughter in her arms as she got released. Smith said her daughter was also peaceful, but out after curfew.
"I couldn't even console her," Smith said. "She was just crying."
