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Protesters in Scranton Cited on Inauguration Day

SCRANTON — A protest in Scranton during the presidential inauguration on Friday ended with the police stepping in. Three people are being cited after an i...
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SCRANTON -- A protest in Scranton during the presidential inauguration on Friday ended with the police stepping in.

Three people are being cited after an incident outside Senator Bob Casey's office.

Newswatch 16 was at that rally in Scranton Friday and there were no problems until the crowd showed up later outside the private building where Senator Casey's office is located.

While Donald Trump was being sworn in as the 45th President of the United States, a group rallied against him on Courthouse Square in Scranton.

Pretty soon, they showed up outside the Cait Center where Senator Bob Casey's office is located and were not allowed inside.

A video posted on Facebook shows the altercation and police getting involved resulting in three people cited for disorderly conduct and harassment.

"I didn’t put my hands on anyone. There was a woman who put her hands on me," said Margaret Fletcher of Moosic.

Fletcher sat down with Newswatch 16 and shared what happened when the group tried to deliver its petition to Senator Casey Friday. Fletcher said there was no problem at Senator Pat Toomey's office, but she was one of the ones taken into custody at the entrance to the Cait Center.

"I really wasn’t trying to go forward. If they choose to rent space to a public official, anybody should be able to go in there," she said.

Senator Casey’s office has had a long-standing open policy at the building in downtown Scranton, a spokesperson said. The owner, Jerry Donahue, didn’t return our request for comment and does appear to have control of who can enter the building.

Jonathan Christiansen led the group Friday and was also cited along with 72-year-old Marion Beddoe-Iobst.

Christiansen told Newswatch 16 by phone he was glad protesters held their ground but preferred no one ended up in trouble with the law.

As for Margaret Fletcher, she also wishes the protest didn't come to this but plans to fight the citations.

"I’m going to say not guilty. I didn’t touch anybody, didn’t yell at anybody,"

Eventually, members of that rally were able to meet with someone in Senator Casey's office Friday.

The senator's spokesperson indicated they'll be working to clarify with the building's owner how future incidents like this should be handled.

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