Cecily McMillan/Facebook
An Occupy Wall Street protester was sentenced to three months in prison, community service and five years of probation this morning for assaulting a police officer after he grabbed her breast while clearing out Zuccotti Park in March 2012, according to reports.
Ms. McMillan has become a figurehead for the Occupy movement and a social media rallying point for its supporters, even garnering a visit from Pussy Riot at Riker’s Island. Though she faced up to seven years in prison, Judge Ronald Zweibel said “the court finds that a lengthy sentence would not serve the interests of justice in this case,” at Manhattan criminal court.
After originally finding Ms. McMillan guilty earlier this month, nine of the 12 jurors wrote Mr. Zweibel requesting he show leniency in his sentencing and not prescribe jail time. In a pre-sentencing interview with Mashable, Ms. McMillan said she expected a sentence of two years — a sentence she deemed worth her “dignity.”
The Twitter campaign #Justice4Cecily is already abuzz following the sentence, with people taking to the site in outrage that she received any jail time at all, considering the claims of sexual assault that preceded the incident.
They think they can just lock us all up. They’re wrong. #Justice4Cecily #FightBack
— Occupy Wall Street (@OccupyWallStNYC) May 19, 2014
The campaign also published a statement calling for continued activism, saying “This ruling will not deter us, it will strengthen our resolve.” How they plan to “#FightBack,” however, is yet to be seen.
Occupy Wall Street protesters demonstrated in support of Cecily McMilan, who was sentenced to three months of jail time this morning. (Gerard Flynn/Flickr Creative Commons)
