WASHINGTON -- Arkansans arrested on Capitol Hill began returning home Thursday after resolving their cases.
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Rather than having them stand trial, law enforcement officials allowed protesters to "post and forfeit collateral."
In layman's terms, they paid a fine, a Capitol Police spokesman explained.
Forty demonstrators, including four current or former Arkansas residents, were detained Wednesday after noisily protesting against Republican-backed health care legislation.
The Congressional Budget Office said this week that 22 million more Americans would be uninsured if the Senate version of the American Health Care Act becomes law.
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The Arkansans were arrested outside the office of U.S. Sen. Tom Cotton, a Dardanelle Republican who has promised to replace and repeal the 2010 Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.
They were charged with violating D.C. Code 22-1307, which makes it illegal to persistently "crowd, obstruct, or incommode" roads, parks or public buildings. Those who are told to disperse and refuse are guilty of a misdemeanor.
Caitlynn Moses, a member of Ozark Indivisible and an Obamacare supporter, said friends paid $50 so she could be released.
She was held for about six hours.
The Fayetteville woman said she had no regrets after being arrested for the first time.
"I think it's important to stand up for what you believe in," she said in a text message. "I had the opportunity to come out, and felt compelled to stand up for all of the people who would be affected if this bill was passed. The ACA isn't perfect, we all know that, but the bill that Sen. Cotton helped write, would be absolutely detrimental to the people he represents."
"I hope we made him realize that we're still watching and I hope he starts advocating for his constituents," she said.
By posting and forfeiting the $50, the charges have been resolved.
Under the District of Columbia Code, "The resolution of a criminal charge using the post-and-forfeit procedure is not a conviction of a crime and shall not be equated to a criminal conviction. The fact that a person resolved a charge using the post-and-forfeit procedure may not be relied upon by any District of Columbia court or agency in a subsequent criminal, civil, or administrative proceeding or administrative action to impose any sanction, penalty, enhanced sentence, or civil disability."
Charges against the other Arkansans also were resolved, Moses said. They are Dr. Richard Bruno, a Baltimore physician originally from Little Rock; Kati McFarland, a University of Arkansas student with multiple health issues; and Sarah Bryan of Fayetteville.
The legislation, in both the House and Senate versions, "will essentially remove access for people," Bruno said. "It will make it harder for people to get coverage and, unfortunately, that's a death sentence for people."
In an interview Wednesday, Cotton said things are in flux.
"It's hard to opine on a specific proposal because we don't have an active proposal right now," he said.
Now that the initial Senate version has been jettisoned, Cotton said he said he would be working with his Republican colleagues "to see if we can get a bill that repeals as much of Obamacare as possible and makes health care a little better and a little more affordable for most Arkansans."
Moses said Arkansans are watching and will remember how Cotton and other members of the delegation vote on the issue.
Metro on 06/30/2017