PITTSBURGH,None — Attorneys for BNY Mellon Corp. has asked a judge to order Occupy Pittsburgh protesters to leave the bank-owned downtown park where they've been camping for nearly two months.
The bank on Friday told the protesters they had until Sunday at noon to leave, but the group responded by cleaning up the grounds and saying they planned to prepare to stay through the winter while offering a symbolic threat to "evict" the bank.
On Monday, the bank had its attorneys go to court to reclaim Mellon Green from the protesters who have been allowed to stay there by the bank for nearly two months.
Channel 11's Alan Jennings was there when sheriff's deputies attempted to serve Occupy Pittsburgh with a court hearing notice to appear before a judge who will then decide whether to grant the eviction. However, the protesters refused to take the papers.
Allegheny County Sheriff William Mullen says the bank's attorneys will now have to file a court motion for "alternative service" since the defendants refused in-person service -- that is, official legal notice that they've been sued.
Once that motion is granted, the bank's attorneys will likely be allowed to post a copy or copies of the lawsuit at the Mellon Green parklet to satisfy the legal notice requirement. The bank's attorneys must still also file a separate motion requesting an injunction before a county judge will hold a hearing on whether to order the protesters to leave.
BNY Mellon asked the protesters to leave this weekend, saying it was concerned about reports of hypothermia and the use of propane heaters, gas-powered generators and other devices. Protesters responded by noting there had been no such cases of hypothermia reported and that no one was using heaters or kerosene-powered or gas-operated generators inside the tents.
About 100 tents and varying numbers of people have been occupying the park since mid-October.
Jeff Cech said there were about 35 tents in the park, which Occupy has renamed the "People's Park," and that part of the winterizing included moving the tents back from the walkways to make room for shoveling snow.
"We're also trying to find better ways to keep them dry and insulated," he said. "Putting them up on pallets so that they're off the ground."
Previous Stories: December 10, 2011: BNY Mellon Asks Occupy Pittsburgh Protesters To Leave
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