WASHINGTON (RNN) – A judge said the federal government must notify the Occupy DC if it intends to shut down the encampment, according to the Associated Press.
Representatives from the movement filed a motion in U.S. District Court on Tuesday to ban the National Park service from evicting the protesters off public land.
U.S. District Judge James Boasberg ruled that the protesters will be able to contest any eviction plans, according to the Associated Press.
The noon deadline came and went Monday, and the Occupy DC encampment hasn't moved.
The police did quietly enforce the no camping rule, telling protestors they had to remove sleeping materials and tent flaps had to be open at all times, CNN reports. However, there were no arrests, according to the Associated Press.
Protesters, in anticipation of the showdown that never occurred Monday, draped a blue tarp over the statue in the park, and many stayed awake all night in light of the ban.
"We're just having a great party," Occupy DC protestor Sara Shaw told CNN. "We've camped since October so it's a lot like any other night. We're all staying awake and looking out for each other."
Sgt. David Schlosser of the Park Police told the Associated Press that officers reminded protestors of the regulation on Monday, and that some had complied. He also declined to give a timeline of eviction, but that the ban extends to possessing bedding materials, not just sleeping on the ground.
Demonstrators previously said they will defend their sites at McPherson Square, located near the White House on K Street – synonymous with the lobbyists who work there - and Freedom Plaza, which is located on Pennsylvania Avenue between the White House and Congress.
If the confrontation occurs, the Occupy DC group said on its website they will resist peacefully, and fully expect to be arrested.
"Show that we are the citizens here. [We] are the ones that are fighting for our democracy who's saying corporations are people and money is free speech, which doesn't really make sense to us," Shaw said. "So we're going to make sure we're there to meet the park police."
Protestors have been at both encampments since the beginning of October 2011, a short time after the Occupy Wall Street protests began in September and spread across the country.
Over the weekend, many Occupy movements protested in cities across the country, resulting in arrests. Things turned violent in Oakland, CA, where hundreds of protesters clashed with police.
Some protestors entered City Hall, and vandalized some of the facility. The New York Times reported that more than 400 protesters were arrested.
"Officers were pelted with bottles, metal pipes, spray cans, improvised explosive devices and burning flares," a statement by the police said.
A video posted online showed an Occupy DC protester walking away from U.S. Park Police, yelling that he had done nothing wrong before one of the officers used a stun gun on the man. CNN reports that shortly before he was tased, the man was removing eviction notices placed on tents by the park service.
[VIDEO: Occupy DC protestor tased by police WARNING: Strong language, brief nudity]
Two weeks ago, National Park Service Director Jonathan Jarvis told CNN he saw no reason to remove the protestors as they were well within their constitutional rights to be in the parks.
"We have the National Mall, McPherson Square, Freedom Plaza, all of those are First Amendment sites," he said, "and I think if there's any place in this country, Washington, DC, is the place where we need to be the most tolerant of individuals that are exercising their First Amendment activities," Jarvis told CNN.
U.S. Rep. Darrell Issa, R-CA, took issue with this, calling for Jarvis to testify before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee on Jan. 24.
Issa and others on the committee pointed out that by law, protestors are permitted to maintain a 24-hour vigil in any park – but not sleep there. The Park Service can limit overnight stays in U.S. parks without infringing on speech, according to a 1984 Supreme Court ruling in Clark v. Community for Creative Non-Violence.
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U.S. Park police plan to shut down the Occupy DC encampment at noon today. (Source: CNN)
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