AUSTIN, Texas — Some city leaders in Austin are raising questions about the Austin Police Department's (APD) involvement in the response to pro-Palestinian protests on the University of Texas campus last month.
They are now worried APD officers were used to violate protesters' First Amendment rights. Campus protests led to dozens of arrests.
In April, some pro-Palestinian protesters were taken into custody after what they said were peaceful demonstrations. That sparked concern for Austin City Council members like Chito Vela.
"I thought it was mostly unnecessary. I thought a lot of the law enforcement response was disproportionate to the protests that were happening," Vela said.
He said he feels law enforcement agencies responded too harshly.
"Maybe they weren't going to camp. But at 3 in the afternoon, when they've only been there for a couple of hours, I don't think that it's fair to say that," Vela said.
The UT Police Department called in other agencies to help, including the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) and Austin police.
While city council members are raising questions about enforcement during the protests at UT Austin last month, UT system leaders have said they'll continue to call for help from other police agencies if they feel it necessary during future demonstrations.
"We also want to thank the Texas Department of Public Safety, whose officers provided invaluable support to ours when we needed them the most. We will not hesitate to call upon them again if necessary," UT System Chairman Kevin Eltife said.
In a UT Board of Regents meeting on May 8, officials defended the decision to call in help. At the Texas State Capitol on Tuesday, some state leaders agreed.
On Tuesday, APD leaders said they were simply responding to UTPD's request for help.
"We wanted to provide a quick way to de-escalate the situation," APD Assistant Chief Lee Rogers said.
But Vela feels the overall response went against protesters' First Amendment rights.
"We just want to make sure that we're respectful of people's civil liberties," Vela said.
He said now, the city is in talks with APD about how that agency handles protests in the future.