The overwhelming majority of protesters arrested over the weekend in Baton Rouge were hauled away in handcuffs simply for blocking roadways, according to public records from the East Baton Rouge Parish Sheriff's Office.
And although at the weekend's start, most of those arrested looked like Alton Sterling, the 37-year-old black Baton Rouge man they're seeking justice for, by the weekend's end, more white women from outside the city were arrested than black men from Baton Rouge.
Records show that 157 of the 180 protesters arrested from Friday to Sunday in Baton Rouge were cited for obstruction of a roadway, inciting to riot, interfering, or a combination of two of these charges.
The remaining 23 were arrested for additional reasons, such as illegal possession of a firearm, possession of marijuana, contributing to the delinquency of a juvenile, aggravated assault and resisting an officer.
The question remains: Why are people being arrested during protests?
In other parts of the country, people are protesting — and in some cases taking over roadways — without arrests and without police approaching protesters with military-style equipment.
Protesters in Memphis, Tennessee, blocked interstate traffic on a bridge for hours Sunday, but they made way for a car taking a child to the hospital. No one was arrested during that protest. In fact, the city's interim police chief even took off his protective gear and joined in.
"I took off my body armor. I have the armor of God," interim director chief Michael Rallings said Sunday. "I'm not scared of my people. My mother and father taught me to love. I'm going to let that love come and out, and that love is going to make some changes."
That's far from the reality in Baton Rouge.
Of the 180 arrested over the weekend in Louisiana's capital city, more than half were black, with 89 being identified as black males and 31 as black females.
About 25 percent of those arrested were white, with 30 being identified as white females and 16 as white males. Two of those arrested were identified as a race other than white or black, and the race was unavailable for 12 of those arrested over the weekend.
A total of 30 protesters were arrested on Friday, 100 on Saturday and 50 on Sunday.
When examining who was being arrested each day, the face of who is protesting — or at least who is getting arrested while protesting — changes.
Black men from Baton Rouge were the primary group arrested Friday and Saturday, but on Sunday, a student-led protest resulted in mostly white women — many from New Orleans — being arrested.
Nearly everybody arrested during Friday's protests was identified as living in Baton Rouge, and the handful who didn't live in Baton Rouge lived in neighboring cities. Just more than half of those arrested Friday were black men. Another 13 percent were identified as black women.
About 59 percent of those arrested during Saturday's protests were identified as living in Baton Rouge. Another 21 percent were from another Louisiana city. Some of the remaining protesters traveled from nearby places, such as Houston, but others traveled from states as far away as California, Pennsylvania, Virginia and Oklahoma. Still, 60 percent of those arrested Saturday were identified as black men, with another 22 percent being identified as black women.
Just 14 percent of those arrested Sunday were identified as living in Baton Rouge. About 44 percent were from New Orleans, and 24 percent were from out-of-state, some from New York City or Washington D.C. About half of those arrested Sunday were identified as white women, with only 26 percent identified as black men. About 12 percent were identified as white men and 10 percent as black women.
The majority of those arrested over the weekend have since been released from jail, and some may have had charges added or dropped after the initial arrests. The sheriff's office could only immediately provide records of those arrested Friday, Saturday and Sunday; nobody was arrested during public protesting Monday, according to sheriff's office spokeswoman Casey Hicks.
The (Memphis) Commercial Appeal in the USA Today Network contributed to this report.
Protesters arrested Friday in Baton Rouge
- Kennyth Bell, black, male, Baton Rouge area, obstruction of highway; resisting an officer
- Larry Bilton, Baton Rouge area, obstruction of highway
- Terrell Booker, black, male, Baton Rouge area, obstruction of highway; possession of marijuana
- Doremus Carter, black, male, Baton Rouge area, obstruction of highway
- Aerilya Clark, Baton Rouge area, aggravated assault; resisting an officer
- Deandriane Cormouche, Baton Rouge area, obstruction of highway
- Cedric Coston, black, male, Baton Rouge area, obstruction of highway
- Nancy Davis, black, female, Baton Rouge area, obstruction of highway; resisting an officer
- Tevin Dundy, black, male, Baton Rouge area, obstruction of highway; resisting an officer
- Darrell Early, black, male, Baton Rouge area, obstruction of highway
- Kemi Gilmore, black, female, Baton Rouge area, obstruction of highway; resisting an officer
- Christian Henslee, white, male, Baton Rouge area, obstruction of highway; resisting an officer; illegal carrying of a weapon
- Everette Johnson, black, male, Baton Rouge area, obstruction of highway
- Kiara Jones, black, female, Baton Rouge area, obstruction of highway
- Elcide Jones, black, male, Baton Rouge area, obstruction of highway
- Keosha Jones, Baton Rouge area, obstruction of highway
- Alayna Joyner, white, female, Baton Rouge area, resisting an officer; obstruction of highway; battery of an officer
- Derrick Mullens, black, male, Baton Rouge area, Inciting to riot
- Bosley Oneal, black, male, Baton Rouge area, obstruction of highway
- Daphne Patterson, white, female, Baton Rouge area, obstruction of highway
- Darius Scharnett, black, male, Baton Rouge area, obstruction of highway
- Paige Scott, black, female, Baton Rouge area, obstruction of highway
- Bassam Shalabi, Other, Male, Baton Rouge area, obstruction of highway
- James Simmons, white, male, Baton Rouge area, interfering
- Johnathen Smith, black, male, Baton Rouge area, inciting to riot
- Jeremy Spurlock, black, male, Baton Rouge area, obstruction of highway
- Christian Whitmore, black, male, Baton Rouge area, obstruction of highway
- Trikee Williams, black, male, Baton Rouge area, impeding roadway; resisting an officer
- Tylon Wilson, black, male, Baton Rouge area, inciting to riot
- Dylan Yesso, white, male, Baton Rouge area, obstruction of highway
Protesters arrested Saturday in Baton Rouge
- Matthew Banks, black, male, Baton Rouge, obstruction of highway
- Michael Banks, black, male, Baton Rouge, obstruction of highway
- Joshua Banks, black, male, Houston, Texas; obstruction of highway; inciting a riot
- Ariel Bates, black, female, Baton Rouge, obstruction of highway
- Dale Batiste, black, male, Sorrento, obstruction of highway
- Carvell Batiste, black, male, Sorrento, obstruction of road
- Sean Benjamin, black, male, New Orleans, obstruction of highway
- Devin Bessye, black, male, Baton Rouge, obstruction of road
- Daronshel Blackman, black, male, Mansura, obstruction of highway
- Keona Boyd, Baton Rouge, obstruction of highway
- Donald Browder, black, male, Greensburg, Virginia; obstruction of highway
- Charna Brown, black, female, Baton Rouge, disturbing the peace; three counts of contributing to the delinquency of a juvenile
- Orinto Brown, black, male, Baton Rouge, obstruction of road
- Christopher Brown, Baton Rouge, obstruction of highway
- Samuel Brushun, black, male, Humble, Texas; obstruction of highway; inciting a riot
- Tyler Butler, black, male, Baton Rouge, obstruction of road
- Marvis Cain, black, male, Baton Rouge, impeding roadway; public intoxication; open container
- Devon Carpenter, black, male, Patterson, obstruction of highway
- Justin Cassidy, white, male, Durant, Oklahoma; obstruction of highway
- Charles Causey, black, male, Baton Rouge, obstruction of highway
- William Chaffold, black, male, Franklin, obstruction of highway
- Kiley Clifton, black, male, Baker, obstruction of highway
- Larry Coleman, Baton Rouge, obstruction of road
- Andrew Cox, black, male, Maringouin, obstruction of highway
- Charlie Douglas, black, male, Baton Rouge, obstruction of road
- Kolby, Dummons, black, male, Baton Rouge, obstruction of highway
- Michael Dunn, black, male, Baton Rouge, obstruction of highway
- Javier Dunn, black, male, Baton Rouge, obstruction of highway; resisting an officer
- Brandon Erp, white, male, Baton Rouge, obstruction of highway
- Ieshia Evans, black, female, Dunmore, Pennsylvania; obstruction of highway
- Monisha Freeman, black, female, Baton Rouge, obstruction of highway
- Danny Hamilton, white, male, Slidell, obstruction of highway
- Walisha, Hamlin, black, female, Baton Rouge, obstruction of highway
- Kendrick Henderson, Houston, Texas; obstruction of highway
- Zachary Hill, black, male, Baton Rouge, obstruction of highway
- Bone Hollie-Riesing, Baton Rouge, inciting a riot
- Chris Hollins, black, female, Baton Rouge, obstruction of highway
- Yakeista Hughes, black, female, Baton Rouge, obstruction of highway
- Eddie Hughes, black, male, Gonzales, obstruction of highway
- Lauren Hull, white, female, Baton Rouge, obstruction of highway
- Thomas Hutcherson, black, male, Baton Rouge, obstruction of highway
- Laquechia Jackson, black, female, Baton Rouge, disturbing the peace; three counts of contributing to the delinquency of a juvenile
- Ain Johnson black, female, Masassas Park, Virginia; obstruction of highway
- Marcus Johnson, black, male, Baton Rouge, obstruction of highway
- Decorey Johnson, black, male, Baton Rouge, obstruction of highway
- Brandon Johnson, black, male, Manggag, Virginia; obstruction of highway
- Marcus Johnson, Bastrop, obstruction of highway
- Jonathan Jones, black, male, Baton Rouge, obstruction of highway
- Ryan Kailath, black, male, New Orleans, obstruction of highway
- Kendell King, black, male, Baker, obstruction of highway
- Kendall Knighten, black, male, Baton Rouge, obstruction of highway
- Gloria Larvis, white, female, San Francisco, California; obstruction of highway
- Reginald Leblanc, black, male, Baton Rouge, obstruction of road
- Frank Lee, black, male, Denham Springs, disturbing the peace; three counts of contributing to the delinquency of a juvenile
- Kira Marrero, black, female, New Orleans, obstruction of road
- Harold Maze, black, male, Baton Rouge, obstruction of highway
- John McCauley, white, male, homeless obstruction of highway
- Deray McKesson, black, male, Baton Rouge, obstruction of a highway
- Matthew Nicholas, black, male, Baton Rouge, obstruction of highway
- Jordan Nuerenberg, black, female, Denham Springs, obstruction of highway
- Lawrence Portier, black, male, Baton Rouge, obstruction of highway
- Jessica Provenzano, white, female, Slidell, obstruction of road; possession of marijuana
- Erica Raby, black, female, Baton Rouge, obstruction of highway
- Miguel Ramos, black, male, Baton Rouge, obstruction of road
- Keeya Rawls, black, female, Jackson, Mississippi; obstruction of highway
- Aurthur Reed, black, male, Baton Rouge, disturbing the peace; three counts of contributing to the delinquency of a juvenile
- Darrin Reed, black, male, Dallas, Texas; obstruction of roadway
- Kevin Rivers, black, male, Baton Rouge, obstruction of highway
- Latieisha Robinson, Baton Rouge, obstruction of highway
- Rufus Rusk, black, male, Houston, Texas; obstruction of highway
- Leticia Saddler, black, female, Houston, Texas; obstruction of highway
- Danielle Scott, black, female, Baton Rouge, disturbing the peace; three counts of contributing to the delinquency of a juvenile
- Christopher Slaughter, white, male, Metairie, obstruction of highway
- Khatara Smith, black, female, Baton Rouge, disturbing the peace; three counts of contributing to the delinquency of a juvenile
- Nikole Smith, black, female, Baton Rouge, inciting a riot
- Chelsey Smith, black, female, Baton Rouge, obstruction of highway
- John Smith, black, male, Baton Rouge, obstruction of highway; resisting an officcer
- Bryce Smith, black, male, Baton Rouge, obstruction of road
- John Smith, black, male, Baton Rouge, obstruction of road
- Krystal Sonia, black, female, Houston, Texas; obstruction of highway
- Michael Stanfield, black, male, Shreveport, possession of firearm in BREC Park; possession of a firearm with controlled dangerous substance
- Lee Stranahan, white, male, Dallas, Texas; obstruction of highway
- Kendell Tate, black, male, Baker, obstruction of highway; resisting an officer
- Deon Tennart, black, male, Baton Rouge, obstruction of highway
- Leroy Tennart, black, male, Baton Rouge, obstruction of highway
- Terrance Thomas, black, male, Baton Rouge, obstruction of highway
- Lorenzo Thompson, black, male, Dallas, Texas; obstruction of road
- Albernequa Walker, black, female, Baton Rouge, obstruction of highway
- Steven Watkins, white, male, Brandon, Mississippi; obstruction of highway
- Nefertiti Williams, black, female, Baton Rouge, disturbing the peace; three counts of contributing to the delinquency of a juvenile
- Kiandra Williams, black, female, homeless, obstruction of highway
- Derek Williams, black, male, Baton Rouge, disturbing the peace; three counts of contributing to the delinquency of a juvenile
- Timothy Williams, black, male, Baton Rouge, obstruction of highway
- Jason Williams, black, male, Baton Rouge, obstruction of road
- Maitreya Williams, black, male, Houston, Texas; obstruction of highway
- Charles Winborne, black, male, Baton Rouge, obstruction of highway
- Tyler Wooderss, black, male, Baton Rouge, obstruction of highway
- Adam Wright, black, male, Baton Rouge, obstruction of road
- Felix Wyrie, black, male, Baton Rouge, obstruction of highway
Protesters arrested Sunday in Baton Rouge
- Darryl Allen, 24, black, male, Baton Rouge, obstruction of highway
- Courtney Barnes, 17, black, female, Baton Rouge, obstruction of highway
- Telly Benoit, 22, black, male, Plaquemine, obstruction of highway
- Zoe Boekbinder, 31, white, female, New Orleans, obstruction of highway
- Blair Brown, 22, black, female, Washington, D.C.; obstruction of highway
- Julien Burns, 27, white, female, New Orleans, obstruction of highway
- James Campbell, 21, black, male, Baton Rouge, obstruction of highway
- Maira Carrera, 26, black, female, New Orleans, obstruction of highway
- Antonio Castanon, 26, white, male, Newran, Georgia; obstruction of highway
- Alexus Cheney, 17, white, female, Warrenton, North Carolina; obstruction of highway
- Tamy Cheney, 41, white, female, Warrenton, North Carolina; obstruction of highway
- Alayana Desselle, 21, white, female, Moreauville, obstruction of highway
- McKenzie Drexler, 22, black, female, New Ulm, Minnesota; obstruction of highway
- Taylor Ely, 22, white, female, New Orleans, obstruction of highway
- Alisha Feldman, 36, white, female, New Orleans, obstruction of highway
- Jenna Finkle, 24, white, female, New Orleans, obstruction of highway
- Leah Fishbein, 30, white, female, New Orleans, obstruction of highway
- Cherri Foytlin, 43, white, female, Rayne, obstruction of highway
- Caitlin Gaffney, 27, white, female, New Orleans, obstruction of highway
- Max Geller, 32, white, male, New Orleans, obstruction of highway
- Lubin Gilbert, 38, black, male, Baton Rouge, obstruction of highway
- Daiquiri Jones, 27, black, male, New Orleans, obstruction of highway
- Sophie Kosofsky, 32, white, female, New Orleans, obstruction of highway
- Evens, Lamour, 45, black, male, Brooklyn, New York; obstruction of highway
- Daniel Liebeskind, 30, white, male, Baton Rouge, obstruction of highway
- Natalie Livingston, 35, white, female, New Orleans, obstruction of highway
- Michael Martin, 25, white, male, Baton Rouge, obstruction of highway
- Andrew McDaniel, 25, white, male, Kenner, obstruction of highway
- Maurice Miller, 43, black, male, Springfield, Missouri; obstruction of highway
- Akeem Muhammad, 24, black, male, Washington, D.C.; obstruction of highway
- Samantha Nichols, 24, white, female, New Orleans, obstruction of highway
- Julie Norman, 32, white, female, Elbridge, New York; obstruction of highway
- Victor Onuoha, 31, black, male, Gretna, obstruction of highway
- Edward Osborn, 27, white, male, New Orleans, obstruction of highway
- Zoe Palmer, 20, white, female, Port Allen, obstruction of highway
- Anthony Patin, 24, black, male, Denham Springs, obstruction of highway
- Jessica Pinkham, 30, white, female, New Orleans, obstruction of highway
- Raae Pollard, 26, white, female, New Orleans, obstruction of highway
- Laura Pyorackerman, 33, white, female, New Orleans, obstruction of highway
- Taress Ripple, 27, white, female, Atlanta, Georgia; obstruction of highway
- Madie Salvar, 24, other, female, New Orleans, obstruction of highway
- Karen Savage, 50, white, female, New York, New York; obstruction of highway
- Lynn Smith, 24, black, male, Lafayette, obstruction of highway
- Marina Sparagana, 26, white, female, New Orleans, obstruction of highway
- Sandra Stibitz, 24, white, female, New Orleans, obstruction of highway
- Kristin Swanson, 28, white, female, New Orleans, obstruction of highway
- Kristen Tardani, 25, white, female, New Orleans, obstruction of highway
- Dakota Tuggle, 25, black, female, Madison, North Carolina; obstruction of highway
- Joshua Williams, 26, black, male, Baton Rouge, obstruction of highway
- Antrell Williams, 24, black, male, Prairieville, obstruction of highway