Matt Fecher of Indianapolis Music Net reports:
Suddenly, officers from the Indianapolis Police Department confronted all the patrons waiting around the venue. The officers, who had been gathering quietly, demanded that everyone stand up against the wall to receive a $50 fine for loitering.
Josh Russell, manager of the Emerson, pleaded with the police. Apparently the officers had been looking for one specific runaway. Once they handled that situation, they turned their attention to the others gathered around the Emerson. Russell asked the officers to please leave the non-delinquent kids alone. He claimed that it was okay for the kids to be gathering on the private property, but his pleas fell on deaf ears.
The entire block of people, including those across the street at McDonalds and myself, were ticketed by the police. We received citations even though every person was clean of drugs, alcohol, and weapons. (full story)
Discussion of the “raid” going on here.
I don’t know all the details just yet, but it’s safe to say this was an unnecessary shitty situation for these kids. I’ll keep you posted with more info as we find it.