DRUMS OF DISAPPROVAL ARE STILL POUNDING

A day's hindsight provided little unity among drum-circle celebrants
swept out of Liberty Park Sunday afternoon by a police force armed
with nightsticks, riot gear and gas launchers.

Some protesters argued for the civil right to drum and dance in a
public park, especially one called Liberty; others called for the free
and legal consumption of marijuana.

"I'm asking the officers to differentiate between toxic and nontoxic
drugs and to leave the kids alone," said Amelia English, a 59-year-old
activist who urged city leaders to find a peaceful middle ground.
"Some elements gathering around the drum circle have disturbed me, but
not the peaceful [participants]."

On the other side of the badge, police were resolute: Salt Lake City
will not tolerate drugs or weapons in a public park.

"We cannot afford to let that park deteriorate to open lawlessness, to
where drugs and weapons are being brought into that park," Police
Chief Ruben Ortega said Monday. "It was just a matter of time for
these folks to take over the park."

For police, Sunday began with a saturation of parks across Salt Lake
City. The same squad of Community Oriented Police (C.O.P.) officers
who cruised through Liberty Park starting at 2:30 p.m. began the
afternoon visiting Fairmont and Sugar House parks. But Sugar House and
Fairmont netted only two alcohol violations -- one at a family picnic
- -- and a citation for a loose dog. Liberty was different.

From 2:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. -- before police in riot gear met the mob
in sandals -- officers arrested or issued citations to 16 people at
the drum circle: 10 for alcohol violations, five for possession of
marijuana, drug paraphernalia or distribution of drugs and one for not
keeping his dog on a leash.

In the middle of arrest No. 17, police allege Brock Anthony Horton
exhorted friends and cohorts to retaliate against two uniformed
bicycle officers.

"He started yelling we were violating his rights," said Salt Lake City
police Officer Phillip Kearney, a five-year veteran. "We could see a
bad situation coming at us very quickly."

On March 30, Horton was also arrested at Liberty Park by a C.O.P.
officer who allegedly saw the 20-year-old urinating on a tree. On
April 5, Horton failed to show up for a court appearance and a $2,500
bench warrant was issued for his arrest.

On Sunday, undercover officers allege Horton made four sales of loose
marijuana to spectators surrounding the drum circle. Kearney and
another uniformed bicycle officer, Cale Lennberg, arrested Horton.

At 4:30 p.m., Kearney and Lennberg handcuffed Horton and attempted to
move him away from the crowd. But at Horton's urging, officers allege,
scores of drum-circle partiers broke away from the dance pit and began
circling the officers.

"I was screaming on the radio for help," Lennberg said. Kearney and
Lennberg continued to back away, but even as reinforcements arrived,
up to 150 people purportedly taunted the officers.

"That's the first time I feared for my safety," said Sgt. Jed Hurst, a
17-year veteran. "We pulled back and they continued to come at us."

Hurst was the first officer to order the crowd to disperse, using a
megaphone. Watch commander Lt. Sandra Urry ordered the crowd to
disperse a second time, to no avail.

"They escalated this, we did not," Urry said. "We had to go back and
enforce violations of the law."

Said officer Randall Hendry: "It's an unreasonable expectation for them to
expect us to leave just because they challenge us."

Many drum circlers saw it differently. Only a few incorrigibles
taunted the police, they say. Some in the drum crowd say they never
heard an order to disperse.

"Half of the people there don't do drugs -- they are there to have a
good time, like a church without a specific religion," said Pam Morse,
37, of Salt Lake City. "But without telling anyone, they came and
bombarded us."

At 7 p.m., roughly 45 officers walked from the north border to the
south border of the park, clearing everyone in their path. During the
sweep, five people were cited for failure to disperse. Two of the five
were also cited for possession of tobacco and resisting arrest. One
was taken to jail.

"We gave them basically every chance . . . to turn around and walk
away," Hurst said.

Several in the crowd were hit with nightsticks, although no serious
injuries were reported.

"All we want is peace," said Morse. "We are not hurting
anybody."

The drum circle is a ragtag, rhythmic gathering of mostly teen-agers
and young adults who on Sunday dance and drum near the east edge of
Liberty Park, next to a sandstone Mormon monument and a row of
teetering rock pillars.

But among Sunday's pot smokers and beer drinkers were two 16-year-olds
and a 14-year-old. And among the revelers were a handful of infants or
young children. That, say officers involved in Sunday's standoff, was
the most offending aspect of the gathering.

"I remember looking into the general area of the crowd and seeing a
lot of young kids," said Sonny Ricks, one of the first officers on the
scene. "That was bothersome."