TRENTON – A group of more than 30 people marching down the middle of State Street in Trenton Friday to hand deliver a petition to Gov. Chris Christie's office demanding changes to prevent police brutality in the state.

NJ Shut it Down, a coalition of students from colleges across the state, hosted the event called #BlackOutTrenton. The group began the afternoon gathering in Cadwalader Park before the march on Parkside Avenue and State Street to the Statehouse. The protest was guided by police cars, which blocked traffic.

"We want to continue the awareness of police brutality," said organizer Kay Simone. "It is going to take more than a couple of months to make change."



Simone said the group is appealing to college students and college-age students to take responsibility for making change in their community and nation wide.

“It is our turn to take off and start to lead,” Simone said.

The group presented a Change.org petition to Christie’s office that included a list of demands calling for transparency and accountability in policing practices. The petition had received more than 1,900 signatures as of Friday.

“As far as making a change, we don’t want to just cause a ruckus,” said Sean McJinkins II, a Trenton resident who helped to organize the event. “We want to effect the way that policy makers think."

Once they reached the Statehouse, three of the protestors went inside to deliver the petition. While inside, the group remaining outside continued their rally on the Statehouse steps and staged a “die in,” where they laid down on the ground, pretending to die for seven minutes.

Simone and McJinkins, who went inside to hand off the petition, said they hope Christie or someone in their office reads and considers the petition. They said the governor’s office also offered to help them get a permit to hold a larger rally at the Statehouse in the future.

Jenna Pizzi may be reached at jpizzi@njtimes.com. Follow her on Twitter @JennaPizzi. Find The Times of Trenton on Facebook.