On Monday, Actress Shailene Woodley was arrested protesting the Dakota Access Pipeline. She is the best known as the star of The Fault in Our Stars and Divergent. That protest was part of an ongoing series of actions meant to stop construction of the pipeline that would, among other things, disrupt sacred sites of the Standing Rock Sioux tribe. Jill Stein who is the Presidential candidate, also protested the pipeline last month and destroyed construction equipment on site, leading to a warrant being put out for her arrest.
Morton County Sheriff Kyle Kirchmeier in a press conference said that 27 people were arrested at the protest. Shailene Woodley was one of the 27 arrested people. Cass County Sherif Paul Laney said police were notified about three people on private property of the construction site. He said that two of those three people strapped themselves to construction equipment and were later freed by officers.
Laney said that when you have that many people engaged in that kind of behavior, cheering others on as they do break the law, refusing to leave whey they are asked to leave and inciting others to break the law. Asked about Woodley, Laney said that she was charged for engaging in a riot and criminal trespass.
Woodely said that we can’t talk right here, but you’re going to be placed under arrest for criminal trespassing. Woodley asked why she was being arrested and not anyone else, also asking if it was because she was famous. Woodley said that she was being arrested because I have 40,000 people watching. In a video, Woodley told viewers that I hope you’re watching, mainstream media.
Woodley has since been released. Her publicist told E! News that she appreciates the outpouring of support, not only for her, but for the continued fight against the construction of the Dakota Access Pipeline.
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