Black Lives Matter Protester Tianna Arata Reportedly Facing 15 Years In Prison, #FreeTiannaNow Petition Garners Over 100K Signatures

Black Lives Matter Protester Tianna Arata Reportedly Facing 15 Years In Prison, #FreeTiannaNow Petition Garners Over 100K Signatures

Tianna Arata, 20, is one of the latest Black Lives Matter protesters to face legal troubles, but many of her supporters claim that she has been falsely arrested following her attempts to have a peaceful protest.

A video circulating on social media shows that on July 21, Tianna Arata was arrested by the San Luis Obispo Police Department following a protest that went awry.  Tianna Arata, the organizer for that particular BLM protest reportedly spoke to Police Chief Deanna Cantrell ahead of time and assured her that the protest would be peaceful.

However, at some point during the organized event, things took a turn for the worst among the 300+ activists who were involved.  It’s said that the protesters took to the highway and launched an assault on a passenger vehicle with a 4-year-old inside the car.

San Luis Obispo Police stated,

“The City supports peaceful protests and the expression of free speech, but actions that put the safety of the public at risk cannot be tolerated and detract from the ability for voices to be heard at this important time.”

Subsequently, Arata was arrested and social media users and supporters are not having it. #FreeTiannaNow is trending amid the arrest of the 20-year-old activist who is reportedly facing fifteen years in prison after being charged with four felony counts of false imprisonment and one count of felony conspiracy, plus three misdemeanors.

https://twitter.com/aksuall/status/1292871593660645378?s=20

#FREETIANNANOW (vid taken from @/nicole_huffman on Insta)
This is a song written by Tianna and one example of her always peaceful protests she has led. Her 8 charges are falsified and the city of SLO and SLO PD is RACIST pic.twitter.com/yWVyGJvR38

— Mo (@morganwilkie8) August 10, 2020

A petition on Change.org shows more than 100,000 people have signed in support of freeing Tianna Arata.

A woman identified on Twitter as Melissa Elizalde claims to be the best friend of Tianna Arata and says she was there that night.  Melissa alleges that the SLOPD is changing the narrative of what really happened.  Read her tweets below.

Melissa also stated that the police “kidnapped” her best friend as this, she feels, was an unjust arrest.  She alleges that the arrest happened in front of Tianna Arata’s mother and that it has been traumatizing.

Let us know your thoughts on the arrest of Tianna Arata’s charges below.