Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

Justice sought for Robert Branch

"Bonnie Dumanis has continued to criminalize black and brown communities of color."

Shane Harris (on mic)
Shane Harris (on mic)

A small contingent of protesters assembled downtown on Thursday afternoon (March 10) in anticipation of preliminary hearings for the criminal trial of Robert Branch, a security-guard accused of assaulting a sheriff's deputy after an apparent road-rage incident that involved deputy Paul Ward. Ward, allegedly referred to by colleagues as a "loose cannon," followed Branch in an unmarked car and placed him in a chokehold before eventually drawing a firearm.

The incident occurred in May 2015, when Ward allegedly swerved to block Branch's car from passing on an El Cajon onramp onto Interstate 8, sending Branch's car onto the shoulder. Ward then followed Branch for nearly ten miles. When Branch exited near San Diego State University (in the city of San Diego), Ward pulled over Branch’s car.

Sponsored
Sponsored

Approached by Ward — who was allegedly off-duty and not in uniform — Branch began recording the encounter, documenting his dispute that Ward was either not a law officer or was not acting in his official duties.

Sheriff's deputies do not typically conduct law-enforcement operations within the city of San Diego or on its highways, which are left to the San Diego Police Department and the California Highway Patrol, respectively.

The incident eventually led to Ward attempting to restrain Branch — the altercation partially recorded by Branch's phone. Branch subsequently filed a civil suit for illegal detention. District attorney Bonnie Dumanis's office responded with criminal charges against Branch, who at one point aimed a can of pepper spray from his securityguard equipment at Ward.

On March 10, protesters led by Shane Harris, local chair for Al Sharpton's National Action Network, launched their press conference with 20 minutes of chanting anti-Dumanis slogans against a backdrop of funk music, invoking slogans including "No justice, no peace!" and "Shame on Bonnie!"

"'Shame on Bonnie' is the beginning of a movement — we're not done yet," Harris told assembled media outside the Hall of Justice. "We're going to do what we've got to do to drive this hammer in the wall of injustice that Bonnie Dumanis has continued to criminalize black and brown communities of color."

Harris accused Dumanis of selective prosecution intended to further her political ambitions beyond San Diego.

"The city needs a just, transparent community review board on police practices, because what we have now is not working," said Ann Baron, representing Women Occupy San Diego, a group that has a proposal submitted to the city council seeking such an overhaul. "It is appalling that we have to be here. What happened to Mr. Branch should never have happened."

Harris concluded by "guaranteeing" a win on behalf of Branch, and promising to "continue to push your buttons" and to "bring hundreds down here for months until we see justice."

The latest copy of the Reader

Please enjoy this clickable Reader flipbook. Linked text and ads are flash-highlighted in blue for your convenience. To enhance your viewing, please open full screen mode by clicking the icon on the far right of the black flipbook toolbar.

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Why Paul Mitchell the School San Diego is the Top Choice for Future Beauty Pros

Shane Harris (on mic)
Shane Harris (on mic)

A small contingent of protesters assembled downtown on Thursday afternoon (March 10) in anticipation of preliminary hearings for the criminal trial of Robert Branch, a security-guard accused of assaulting a sheriff's deputy after an apparent road-rage incident that involved deputy Paul Ward. Ward, allegedly referred to by colleagues as a "loose cannon," followed Branch in an unmarked car and placed him in a chokehold before eventually drawing a firearm.

The incident occurred in May 2015, when Ward allegedly swerved to block Branch's car from passing on an El Cajon onramp onto Interstate 8, sending Branch's car onto the shoulder. Ward then followed Branch for nearly ten miles. When Branch exited near San Diego State University (in the city of San Diego), Ward pulled over Branch’s car.

Sponsored
Sponsored

Approached by Ward — who was allegedly off-duty and not in uniform — Branch began recording the encounter, documenting his dispute that Ward was either not a law officer or was not acting in his official duties.

Sheriff's deputies do not typically conduct law-enforcement operations within the city of San Diego or on its highways, which are left to the San Diego Police Department and the California Highway Patrol, respectively.

The incident eventually led to Ward attempting to restrain Branch — the altercation partially recorded by Branch's phone. Branch subsequently filed a civil suit for illegal detention. District attorney Bonnie Dumanis's office responded with criminal charges against Branch, who at one point aimed a can of pepper spray from his securityguard equipment at Ward.

On March 10, protesters led by Shane Harris, local chair for Al Sharpton's National Action Network, launched their press conference with 20 minutes of chanting anti-Dumanis slogans against a backdrop of funk music, invoking slogans including "No justice, no peace!" and "Shame on Bonnie!"

"'Shame on Bonnie' is the beginning of a movement — we're not done yet," Harris told assembled media outside the Hall of Justice. "We're going to do what we've got to do to drive this hammer in the wall of injustice that Bonnie Dumanis has continued to criminalize black and brown communities of color."

Harris accused Dumanis of selective prosecution intended to further her political ambitions beyond San Diego.

"The city needs a just, transparent community review board on police practices, because what we have now is not working," said Ann Baron, representing Women Occupy San Diego, a group that has a proposal submitted to the city council seeking such an overhaul. "It is appalling that we have to be here. What happened to Mr. Branch should never have happened."

Harris concluded by "guaranteeing" a win on behalf of Branch, and promising to "continue to push your buttons" and to "bring hundreds down here for months until we see justice."

Comments
Sponsored

The latest copy of the Reader

Please enjoy this clickable Reader flipbook. Linked text and ads are flash-highlighted in blue for your convenience. To enhance your viewing, please open full screen mode by clicking the icon on the far right of the black flipbook toolbar.

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

San Diego pickleball fans growing, but who pays for their courts?

Todd Gloria seen as pro-tennis
Next Article

Three poems by Oso Guardiola

Conversation in the Cathedral, Schism, Runoff
Comments
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

This Week’s Reader This Week’s Reader