The daughter of U.S. Rep. Katherine Clark of Massachusetts appeared in court Monday after she was arrested Saturday during a protest on Boston Common and later charged with assault after a police officer was injured.Riley Dowell, 23, was arraigned Monday in the Central Division of Boston Municipal Court on charges of assault and battery on a police officer, vandalizing property, tagging property, vandalizing a historic marker/monument and resisting arrest. Clark, the House Democratic whip, said in a tweet that her daughter had been arrested. “I love Riley, and this is a very difficult time in the cycle of joy and pain in parenting,” Clark wrote. “This will be evaluated by the legal system, and I am confident in that process.”Clark has spoken publicly about the fears of her own nonbinary child amid bigotry targeting transgender people.Police said officers responded Saturday night to a report at the Parkman Bandstand Monument located within the Boston Common. They found a person, identified as Dowell, a resident of Melrose, defacing the monument with spray paint and anti-police phrases, according to police.During the arrest, “a group of about 20 protesters began to surround officers while screaming profanities though megaphones on the public street causing traffic to come to a standstill,” police said, adding that “an officer was hit in the face and could be seen bleeding from the nose and mouth.”Assistant District Attorney Daniel Nucci said Dowell resisted arrest by flailing her arms, striking one of the arresting officers.Dowell was held on $500 bail and ordered to stay away from Boston Common. Dowell will is scheduled to return to court on April 19 for a pre-trial hearing. A fatal police shooting earlier this month in nearby Cambridge sparked protests over the use of force. A 20-year-old student at the University of Massachusetts Boston, Sayed Faisal, was shot and killed by Cambridge police. He had advanced on officers with what police described as a kukri, a type of sword, and a less-than-lethal “sponge round” had failed to stop him, police said.Clark is in her sixth term in the House and represents the state’s 5th Congressional District.
The daughter of U.S. Rep. Katherine Clark of Massachusetts appeared in court Monday after she was arrested Saturday during a protest on Boston Common and later charged with assault after a police officer was injured.
Riley Dowell, 23, was arraigned Monday in the Central Division of Boston Municipal Court on charges of assault and battery on a police officer, vandalizing property, tagging property, vandalizing a historic marker/monument and resisting arrest.
Clark, the House Democratic whip, said in a tweet that her daughter had been arrested. “I love Riley, and this is a very difficult time in the cycle of joy and pain in parenting,” Clark wrote. “This will be evaluated by the legal system, and I am confident in that process.”
Clark has spoken publicly about the fears of her own nonbinary child amid bigotry targeting transgender people.
Police said officers responded Saturday night to a report at the Parkman Bandstand Monument located within the Boston Common. They found a person, identified as Dowell, a resident of Melrose, defacing the monument with spray paint and anti-police phrases, according to police.
During the arrest, “a group of about 20 protesters began to surround officers while screaming profanities though megaphones on the public street causing traffic to come to a standstill,” police said, adding that “an officer was hit in the face and could be seen bleeding from the nose and mouth.”
Assistant District Attorney Daniel Nucci said Dowell resisted arrest by flailing her arms, striking one of the arresting officers.
Dowell was held on $500 bail and ordered to stay away from Boston Common. Dowell will is scheduled to return to court on April 19 for a pre-trial hearing.
A fatal police shooting earlier this month in nearby Cambridge sparked protests over the use of force. A 20-year-old student at the University of Massachusetts Boston, Sayed Faisal, was shot and killed by Cambridge police. He had advanced on officers with what police described as a kukri, a type of sword, and a less-than-lethal “sponge round” had failed to stop him, police said.
Clark is in her sixth term in the House and represents the state’s 5th Congressional District.
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