About 200 Longshore union workers stopped at the Cowlitz County courthouse in Kelso Friday to turn themselves in to authorities, but left a short time later after no arrests were made.
The workers stood quietly in two long lines in front of the Cowlitz County Hall of Justice. No law enforcement officers approached the group.
The demonstration came in response to multiple arrests made by the Cowlitz County Sheriff’s Office (CCSO) over the past several days in connection with last week’s violent union protests at the state grain terminal at the Port of Longview.
The International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) says it showed up at the courthouse because authorities had not responded to requests to peacefully coordinate with those charged with crimes related to the protests.
On Friday afternoon, however, CCSO deputies separately arrested 34-year-old Jacob Whiteside of Longview in connection with the events of Sept. 7, when union protesters twice blocked the pathway of a train carrying grain to terminal. Whiteside was the seventh person arrested this week in connection with the events of that day.
He was booked in the Cowlitz County Jail on charges of criminal trespass and obstructing a train. He posted $500 bail and was released.