AUSTIN, Texas — Prosecutors and magistrate judges found those arrested at the University of Texas at Austin on April 24 did not meet the lowest standard to be charged. The Travis County Sheriff's Office confirmed to KVUE that all of those demonstrators have been released from jail as of Thursday afternoon.
"It was a dehumanizing experience," Ammer Qaddumi, a UT Austin student who was arrested, said.
The information comes after the law experts looked over probable cause affidavits for those arrested Wednesday during the pro-Palestine protest on UT Austin's campus. Police can still investigate the incident and resubmit new charges.
Eleven affidavits obtained by KVUE showed the reasons for probable cause listed as variations of "was given notice to disperse but failed to do so." All 57 cases for criminal trespass were dropped.
"I asked them when they arrested me, 'What are you arresting me for? What are you arresting me for?' They said, 'I don't have to tell you.' I said, 'Yes, you do.' They said, 'here did you get your law degree?' It's like OK, whatever. I got to the jail – they said it was for criminal trespassing," Kayden Casper said. "They can't hold us for too long because we didn't do nothing."
Meanwhile, UT officials said there have been 13 pro-Palestine free speech events on campus since October that have taken place without issue. Officials also said 26 of the more than 50 people arrested Wednesday were not affiliated with UT and intended to disrupt the campus.
Hundreds of students participated in the pro-Palestine walkout across campus on Wednesday amid the Israel-Hamas War. By the end of the rally, more than 50 people had been arrested and were held overnight in the Travis County Jail. On Thursday morning, many of those individuals were released from behind bars.
"I turned around to make sure the people behind me were OK and I wasn't stepping on them," Casper said. "That's when they grabbed me by the back of the hair, with a fistful of my hair to the scalp, and dragged me to the ground. After that, I did not resist arrest."
The rally was organized by the student organization Palestine Solidarity Committee, which was inspired by protestors at college campuses and universities across the country.
"We weren't planning on destructing," a Palestine Solidarity Committee member said Wednesday. "We were planning on chanting solely during passing periods, which is the university rules."
"We're going to continue advocating no matter what attempts to suppress us," Qaddumi said.
On Thursday, protests continued for a second day on campus, as more students gathered after noon at the Main Mall near the UT Tower.