When is protest illegal?

[Chaynsaw]

^^

And under what circumstances (in practice) are the police inclined to stop it?

[Chaynsaw]

(I am totally ignorant of protest law)

Specifically, I am searching for simple allowed/disallowed rules governing protest... for example, can you can protest as long as you 1) have a permit, 2) aren't stopping traffic, 3) aren't inciting a riot...? (anything I might have missed)

Question stems from watching and reading archival media on the Seattle WTO Protests and Iraq war protests in Portland. At what point was the police authorized/obligated to use pain compliance? And why these protests, what made them riotous enough to be broken as opposed to other protests in other cities such as SF?

[K9 Police]

A question that I believe redetsgt can help you out with.

K9

[Legoate]

When protests start infringing on the rights of uninvolved citizens they tend to be stopped.

[retdetsgt]

Essentially when they start to break the law and/or violate the terms of their permit.

In Portland during one of the last big ones, an assistant chief who is scared of his own shadow was in charge and let it get way out of hand. I heard back from some people still working that other agencies who were there helping became disgusted and some actually left because he wouldn't make a decision. It wasn't until some officers got assaulted that any real action against the protesters took place. Even then the state police came in a cleared I-5 because this guy choked. It was pretty embarrassing, glad I wasn't there.

The next one the police here were more proactive and didn't let it go so far. Protesters see restraint as weakness and will take advantage in a heartbeat. This A/C was a loser when he was a patrol officer and he remained so as he climbed up the ranks.

[Piggy]

Much will depend on local / state laws or regulations. On property under the jurisdiction of the Dept of Veterans Affairs, all protests are illegal.

38CFR1.218(b)(9) Unauthorized demonstration or service ina national cemetery or on other VA property.

[Joeyd6]

Well said DC!