SIMI VALLEY : Group Protests Use of Force by Police

Leaders of Neighbors Against Nazis, the coalition that organized a protest Saturday against the Simi Valley appearance of white supremacist Richard Barrett, complained Monday that police used unnecessary force against the demonstrators.

More than 300 people gathered Saturday in the parking lot outside the East County Courthouse, where Barrett and a supporter staged a rally in support of the Rodney G. King beating trial verdict.

Four people were arrested for throwing rocks at Barrett and police and for using sticks to strike the horses that Ventura County sheriff’s deputies used for crowd control, Simi Valley police said.

Arrested were Joseph Woodrow Jordan, 20; Frederick Damien Thomas, 18; and two 17-year-old boys whose names were withheld because of their ages. All are residents of Simi Valley, police said.

The adults remained in Ventura County Jail on Monday, authorities said. One of the boys had been released to his parents, and the other was being held in Juvenile Hall.

About two dozen counterdemonstrators attended the council meeting Monday to complain about the actions of the police officers.

Paige Moser, one of the organizers of Neighbors Against Nazis, said police were too aggressive in their use of horses and batons to control the crowd and make arrests. “With a Police Department like that for a friend, who needs enemies?” she said.

Moser and other demonstrators demanded that all criminal charges be dropped and that a full investigation of the police tactics be conducted.

City Council members defended the actions of the police.

“I was very proud of our Police Department; I was very proud of their professionalism,” said Councilwoman Judy Mikels.

While Mayor Greg Stratton also supported the conduct of the Police Department, he told protesters that the city would conduct an in-house investigation of police conduct during the demonstration.