Three UNC, pro-Palestinian protesters take plea bargain. Trials set for others

RALEIGH, N.C. — Three protesters charged at a pro-Palestinian demonstration at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill in April accepted plea bargains Monday in a court hearing in Hillsborough.

The deferred-prosecution agreements require them to perform 24 hours of community service and pay court costs. The district attorney’s office has agreed to dismiss their second-degree trespassing charges if they meet those requirements and stay out of trouble for six months.

All 40 people charged with misdemeanors stemming from April 30 and May 8 campus protests, including UNC students and area residents, have been offered deferred prosecution or a conditional discharge requiring them to perform community service.

More than half have decided to take their cases to trial before an Orange County District Court judge in December or at a future, undetermined date, their attorneys have said. Others have not decided yet whether to accept plea bargains, defense attorney Gina Balamucki said.

Any who are found guilty can appeal their cases to Superior Court for a jury trial, she said.

Most of the protesters were charged with trespassing after refusing police orders to end a four-day “Gaza solidarity encampment” on April 30 at Polk Place, outside UNC’s South Building. Six were taken to jail to face additional charges, including resist, delay and obstruct and assault on a law enforcement officer.

On May 8, three more protesters were arrested at a demonstration and charged with assault on a government official, impeding traffic, disorderly conduct and resisting a public officer.

South Building was defaced with red paint and graffiti during May 11 commencement protests, prompting UNC police to obtain a search warrant for private account information of the UNC Students for Justice for Palestine Instagram account.

More protests after summer break

Demonstrations resumed after students returned in August for fall-semester classes, resulting in damage to town and UNC buildings.

The Chapel Hill Courthouse on East Franklin Street was spray painted with anti-police and anti-prison graffiti during an Aug. 24 march through downtown organized by the group Triangle Stop Cop City.

On Sept. 19, roughly 150 protesters entered buildings and disrupted classes on UNC’s campus, resulting in more vandalism and spraypainted graffiti, including at the NROTC Naval Armory building.

The demonstrators are protesting the war in Gaza, which has killed over 40,000 Palestinians and displaced nearly 2 million others since Oct. 7, 2023, when Hamas militants attacked Israel, killing about 1,200 Israelis and taking another 250 people hostage.

The war expanded to Lebanon in September, with thousands more killed or injured by exploding communications devices and rocket strikes traded between Israel and the terrorist group Hezbollah. On Saturday, Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah became the latest casualty. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has rejected a 21-day cease-fire plan.

The pro-Palestinian protesters have asked UNC to disclose and divest from investments in companies that support Israel and end study-abroad programs to Israel, in addition to other demands.