easton occupy protestors

Easton Police notify the "Occupy the Planet' protesters Wednesday evening that they must move their encampment on North Fourth Street by noon Thursday or face being cited for trespassing.

(Express-Times Photo | SUE BEYER)

officials have given the

on North Fourth Street a choice: leave by noon Thursday or be cited for trespassing.

Officers this evening handed a protester four sheets of paper detailing which city laws they are violating, said Matty, a protester who only provided his first name. Some of the violations include public and common nuisances, unsanitary and unfit buildings, disorderly conduct and peace nuisances, according to protester Chris Leaning.

Leaning wasn't surprised when the police handed the group the papers.

"I saw it coming," he said.

The group will host meetings tonight and tomorrow morning and seek advice from legal counsel before it decides whether to move, Leaning said.

The group set up an encampment about two weeks ago in downtown Easton. After three days, the group was asked to move from Centre Square and took up residence in the first block of North Fourth Street where protesters camped in late 2011.

"Nature" Dave Gorczynski previously said the group reorganized with the goal of making people aware that all issues can be solved with education and unity. The occupiers consist of protesters from Easton, New York, New Jersey and Ohio.

Mayor Sal Panto Jr. said the city gave the group plenty of notice to be out tomorrow afternoon.



"We gave them the time to do what they wanted to do and they certainly made their presence known," Panto said.

"Now it's time for them to just close up shop," he said.

Panto said he has received complaints from residents about noise and he had a run-in with some of the protesters earlier today. He said some of them were running in the middle of Northampton Street, yelling and screaming. Some even shouted expletives at the mayor, he said.

"It's all a show," Panto said. "And we're not going to allow them to break the law and disrupt the whole neighborhood."

The group can find other ways to protest without breaking the law, the mayor said. The city is trying to be fair and consistent because "we cite people every day for parking tickets and cracked sidewalks and it's not fair not to cite them if they are going to break the law," he said.

Leaning's been living at the site

. The group has about 10 to 12 regulars and draws 15 to 20 others per day.

Leaning said the group isn't breaking any laws. He said the site is always clean and litter-free and it's the home of the only street recycling receptacle. Unless the city "considers plants as litter," the city has no reason to cite the protesters, he said.

Leaning said the city will be forcing several homeless and out-of-state residents out of the area.

"They are going to be displacing a whole lot of people," he said.