Jonathan Hale and more than a dozen activists were in the middle of painting a third street at the Westerwood intersection on Sunday, when two police cars were pulled over.
The Los Angeles Police Department told the group to stop painting and hale acofment, a video posted on social media shows.
“Leave him alone, he’s not doing anything wrong,” said the woman outside.
“You are trespassing on city property without permission like that [I’ll] Ask nicely. YA will be able to record everything you want, but back or I will take everyone to jail, “said the officer Chaffing Hale.
Hale was cited for misdemeanor vandalism. He has a court date on Jan. 5.
The arrest marks the latest clash between the city of Los Angeles and traffic safety advocates who are frustrated by delays in getting streetcars painted and doing work they can’t wait for. The tension comes as the City struggles to reduce pedestrian deaths.
The Mayor’s Office said in a statement Monday that it pledged to work with Hale, noting that it is “willing to work with any of our safe streets” requirements to meet legal and accessibility requirements. “
“Despite contacting city, state, and convention laws, Jonathan chose to continue pursuing his course of action,” the Mayor’s office said. “Mayor Bass says he ensures the safety and accessibility of Angelos’ streets and sidewalks, no matter how they bike, roll, walk or ride.”
Hale said he met with representatives from the mayor’s office and the Department of Tourism in September but there was little follow-up. Since the meeting, he said he takes care to warn the Mayor’s office when planning the action, he sees it as a way to protest “the protest of a very safe government.”
Hale’s group attacked People’s WINY Zero, a reference to the city’s 10-year-old “Vision Zero” plan to end road-related deaths by 2025. But a recent report found a failure in this plan.
Hale said he wrote to the mayor’s office on Dec. 1, before Sunday’s action in Westerwood, explaining that a pedestrian had been killed several years before the encounter. He posted fliers around the block and talked to neighbors to give them a heads up.
Hale said he requested crosswalks on Midvale Avenue in early October but no progress has been made. There were too many holes on that side of his team to paint the road crossing so he chose the close encounter of Wilkins and Kelton Avenes for the time done on Sunday instead.
When the police reopened the road in the afternoon, allowing cars to pass, some of the wet paint was followed by car tires. It was a big disappointment for Hale, who said he tried to explain to the officials that in another 20 minutes the paint would dry up.
“It was very frustrating. Our crossings are cracks. We pride ourselves on sharp, well-defined corners,” Hale said. “People are sharing their experiences or being close to being hit by cars while walking with their dogs, or with their dogs. Those people we can do this.”
