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Four arrested on trespassing charges during Black Lives Matter protest at state fair

 
Published Feb. 8, 2016

TAMPA — Four people affiliated with a Black Lives Matter demonstration at the Florida State Fair were arrested on trespassing charges over the weekend after they refused to leave when authorities asked, according to the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office.

At 11:45 a.m. Sunday, four demonstrators chained themselves together by their necks and sat in the middle of an inner access road at the fair grounds, which runs parallel to U.S. 301, the Sheriff's Office said in a news release. After asking the group several times to leave, sheriff's deputies cut the chains and arrested each on trespassing charges.

Those transported to the Orient Road Jail were: Reginald Glover, 19; Crystal Wilson, 26; Pamela Gomez, 26; and Rebecca Killik, 27.

Other demonstrators stood outside the fairgrounds, according to the news release, "peacefully protesting" on the sidewalk.

The demonstration coincided with the second anniversary of the death of 14-year-old Andrew Joseph III, who was hit by a vehicle after being ejected from the Florida State Fair in 2014 on Student Day.

His parents, Deanna and Andrew Joseph, spent the week honoring his memory, though they were not at Sunday's demonstration.

On Friday, they held their own protest to demand more safety measures at the fair, and on Saturday night they hosted a ball and fundraiser at the University of South Florida.

The families of Michael Brown and Tamir Rice, two African-Americans' whose shootings at the hands of police have drawn nationwise attention to race and equality issues, also attended.

Contact Katie Mettler at kmettler@tampabay.com or (813) 226-3446. Follow @kemettler.