Two members of the Denver City Council have asked the city attorney to drop the charges against the roughly 40 pro-Palestinian protesters arrested for erecting an encampment on the Auraria Campus. 

And on Monday, activists confronted the council during the latter’s public comment session and also demanded that the city decide against pursuing charges.    

The protesters have abandoned the encampment, though officials expect the protesters to be back. During the encampment, officials had described escalating health and safety conditions at the campus, noting the presence of feces, drug paraphernalia, graffiti and vandalism in the area.

At least two councilmembers are sympathetic to the activists’ request.

But the council has little authority to order the city attorney to drop charges, as the two entities represent the legislative and judicial branches — two of the three parts of the American government that serve as a check against each other, Council President Jamie Torres and Councilwoman Sarah Parady, an attorney, both noted.

“We don’t have the authority to drop the charges, though I have asked the city attorney to do so,” Parady said.

Torres said she did the same.

Ultimately, the decision lies with City Attorney Kerry C. Tipper.

Johnny Truant, a former Metropolitan State University student, and others claimed the Denver Police Department violated their First Amendment rights by arresting 44 people on April 26. He also implored the council to “consider the consequences” of more “infractions of free speech.”

“Our students and community assembled in a peaceful and historically unprecedented manner to protest our university’s financial complicity in genocide,” he said. “In response, police arrested and detained protesters … As leaders of the City of Denver, it is incumbent on you to protect the free speech rights of your citizens.”

Another student, Hannah Sims, asked the councilmembers how they are using their power to guarantee a healthy future for kids in Denver.

Auraria Campus officials earlier told The Denver Gazette that damages to the campus involved destroying the sod in the quad, graffiti tagging and vandalism, as well as the cost of cleaning up the quad, including paying for a hazmat team that handled a spill from an illegal toilet.

During the encampment, the protesters had occupied and trashed an office at University of Colorado Denver. They also occupied the Tivoli Student Union and set up tents inside the building. The damages, which also included event cancellations due to the encampment, have cost the Auraria Campus $290,000, officials said.