9 Arrested After Protest Blocks Interstate 5 In Seattle

SEATTLE, WA — Nine people were arrested by Washington State Patrol after a protest blocked southbound lanes of Interstate 5 near the Ship Canal Bridge on Friday.

Friday's demonstration was organized by Morning March Seattle, a youth-led protest group that calls for police abolition, reinvestment in Black communities, freeing all protesters, recalling Mayor Jenny Durkan and ending youth detention in King County.

Last week, protesters blocked the Ballard Bridge in Seattle, calling on District 6 Councilmember Dan Strauss to uphold his commitment to defund the police.

The latest demonstration blocked the freeway shortly before 10:30 a.m. Nathalie Graham, a reporter for the Stranger, posted video updates from the ground showing a caravan of vehicles blocking all four southbound lanes, protesters playing music and giving short speeches in front of the stopped traffic.

Within 30 minutes, a large Washington State Patrol response arrived. One video showed troopers forcefully pulling a driver from one of the blocking vehicles; others showed them arguing with protesters.

(The video below contains profanity)

Trooper Rick Johnson, a WSP spokesman, tweeted that nine drivers were arrested for illegally blocking the road, and their vehicles were impounded. Johnson told Patch the decision to clear the road was made by command staff in King County, shortly after they learned of the protest, and that such decisions are made on a case-by-case basis.