[Artwork by LARRY WEST]
INQUIRER: Police swarmed around City Hall overnight and rousted Occupy Philadelphia protesters from their encampment more than two days after a deadline passed for them to leave. The occupiers responded by roaming around Center City, scattering and regrouping with police following their every move in a chaotic night of cat-and-mouse that threatened to drag into the morning rush hour. The attempt to disperse the occupiers began about 1 a.m. – 56 hours after the city-imposed deadline to leave came and went. Shortly before 5 a.m., as protesters confronted police in a standoff on 15th Street between Callowhill and Spring Garden Streets, behind the Inquirer and School District Buildings, police began arresting protesters en masse. MORE
NEW YORK TIMES: When the police moved in, protesters scrambled out of the park and gathered in large groups in the surrounding streets. Police said that there were between 15 and 20 arrests and more were expected. Although the atmosphere was tense, there were no reports of major scuffles with officers. The Los Angeles Police Department has long battled a reputation for excessive force but has received mostly praise for the way it has handled the Occupy protest. An estimated 1,200 officers were called in for the operation late Tuesday. Police appeared to start dismantling from inside the camp and then proceeded to try to clear the remaining streets. By 2 a.m., there were few protesters left in the park, but officers were still trying to disperse a large crowd just a block away. MORE
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