Nathaniel Rodwell-Simon
From the October 11 UCUP protest: The student in the orange skirt was arrested on December 11 and charged with “aggravated battery of a peace officer” and “causing an injury while resisting or obstructing a peace officer.” They were allegedly attempting to prevent the arrest of the student in khaki shorts, who was charged with “aggravated battery of a peace officer.”
Update, January 8, 2025, 9:35 p.m.: The Maroon has confirmed that the student arrested on December 11 on two felony charges, Mamayan Jabateh, is the individual identified by UCUP as “Student B.”
A second UChicago undergraduate was arrested by the Chicago Police Department (CPD) in connection with the October 11 UChicago United for Palestine (UCUP) protest. According to a University of Chicago spokesperson and CPD documents obtained by the Maroon, they have been charged with two felonies, including “aggravated battery of a peace officer.”
In an incident log dated December 11, UCPD reported that a “UCPD officer assisted CPD officers in the arrest of a wanted person” at Renee Granville-Grossman Residential Commons.
A University spokesperson confirmed the arrest, stating: “At approximately 5:00 pm on Tuesday, December 11, officers from the Chicago Police Department (CPD) informed the University that they intended to arrest a student at the Renee Granville-Grossman Residential Commons, following an investigation conducted by CPD. Officers from the University of Chicago Police Department (UCPD) were present at the residence hall when CPD officers made the arrest. The individual was charged with aggravated battery of a peace officer and resisting/obstructing a peace officer. The charges stem from the individual’s alleged actions during a protest on October 11 near 57th Street and Ellis Avenue.”
The student allegedly struck a CPD officer’s face and body while attempting to prevent the arrest of the University undergraduate arrested on a felony charge in October, according to CPD documents obtained by the Maroon through a Freedom of Information Act request. CPD documents also allege that the officer “was struck again by the Offender about the body when she was attempting to place the Offender in custody.”
Photographs captured by the Maroon during the protest show the student grabbing an officer’s hand and pushing an officer in the face.
CPD was unable to arrest the student at the time of the protest because a protester intervened and pulled the student away.
The student was released from the CPD detention facility at 7:24 a.m. on December 12, 14 hours after they were arrested, according to CPD records.
Prosecutors have charged the student with “aggravated battery of a peace officer” and “causing an injury while resisting or obstructing a peace officer” under Illinois statutes 720 ILCS 5.0/12-3.05-D-4 and 720 ILCS 5.0/31-1-A-7, respectively. The student arrested during the October protest was only charged with “aggravated battery of a peace officer.”
The first charge is a Class two felony, punishable by between three and seven years in prison, up to four years of probation, and/or fines up to $25,000. The second charge is a Class four felony punishable by between one and three years in prison or up to thirty months of probation. Under Illinois state law, felonies are categorized X, one, two, three, or four based on a crime’s severity, with Class X felonies carrying the longest sentence and Class four carrying the shortest.
Per CPD documents, CPD identified the student with assistance from a UCPD investigator, who observed the student on University cameras entering her residence hall. After the Circuit Court of Cook County approved a subpoena request from CPD to UCPD, UCPD provided CPD with the student’s photo identification, date of birth, current address, and name. The involved CPD officer independently identified the student based on their outfit in videos taken before and after the incident.
While in custody, the student confirmed to investigators that they were the individual seen entering Granville-Grossman in photographs taken after the October protest. The student declined to speak further without their lawyer present.
The Maroon independently verified the arrested student’s identity and affiliation with the University by cross-referencing their CPD arrest log, photos captured by the Maroon at the protest, and documents obtained through FOIA requests, as well as details and photographs from the student’s public social media profiles.
A December 16 post on UCUP’s Instagram announced the arrest of an undergraduate on December 11 in relation to the October 11 protest and identified the arrested individual as “student B.”
“On Dec. 11, CPD and UChicago police (UCPD) showed up at student B.’s dorm. The cops arrested, interrogated, and detained them for 30 hours. They are pursuing serious charges,” the post reads.
“This arrest, months after the protest, is a deliberate, premeditated targeting of a Black student in a university building,” the post continues.
A January 7 post from UCUP and an organization called Fight Back UChicago shared additional information on “student B.’s” situation: “Over break, admin evicted [student B.] from their dorm and placed them on involuntary leave. They are the second student of color to be targeted in this exact way,” the post reads.
An individual UCUP refers to as “student A” was also evicted from housing and placed on involuntary leave in October. According to student A’s lawyer, who spoke to the Maroon in October, CPD arrested “student A” during the October 11 protest. While UCUP has posted publicly about the “student A’s” eviction on multiple occasions and held a rally on October 29 demanding that the University administration reverse the student’s eviction, the January 7 post was the first time UCUP has stated that “student A” was arrested.
“Months ago, an Arab student going by Student A also was arrested and evicted for attending a pro-Palestine protest,” the post’s caption reads. “Months later, he is still waiting for his disciplinary proceedings.”
The University declined to comment on any ongoing student disciplinary matters, citing federal privacy laws.
The Maroon was unable to confirm whether “student A” is the student arrested by CPD on October 11 and charged with felony battery.
During the October 11 protest, demonstrators locked Cobb Gate and vandalized University property before UCPD detained an unknown protester, sparking physical confrontations between police and protesters. Officers used pepper spray and batons on the crowd, while protesters physically engaged with police to prevent them from making arrests.
UCUP and Faculty and Staff for Justice in Palestine (FSJP) did not respond to multiple requests for comment.
This is a developing story. Zachary Leiter and Oliver Buntin contributed reporting.
Editor’s note: The pronouns of the student arrested on December 11 on two felony charges have been updated to reflect new information on the student’s identity.
Correction, January 14, 2025, 10 p.m.: A previous version of this article incorrectly reported the sentencing guidelines for class 4 causing an injury while resisting or obstructing a peace officer as “at least 48 hours of consecutive imprisonment and/or no fewer than 100 hours of court-ordered community service.” The correct guideline is “between one and three years in prison or up to thirty months of probation.”