DENVER (KDVR) — On Friday, FOX31 sat down with one of the high school students removed from the state Capitol earlier this week.
Colorado State Patrol released body cam video of the incident after officers removed three students from the House gallery on Tuesday, who were protesting gun violence and demanding change.
House Democrats are raising questions about the treatment of high school students by troopers. Representative Monica Duran, tweeted in part, ” I’m very disappointed by how they were treated, specifically that a young Latino student was dragged out of the chamber with a level of force that felt unnecessary and disproportionate compared to the treatment of his peers. I have a lot of questions about how and why this happened, and I intend to address those concerns with state patrol as we work to repair the harm perpetuated to this student and his peers.”
CSP released three body cam videos from responding officers stating, “We are committed to being transparent with our community, and it’s our priority to release this information as soon as possible.”
Peyton Carter is a sophomore at North High School in Denver and was one of the students removed from the Capitol and can be heard yelling in the CSP video.
“STOP, STOP, STOP!” Carter screams. “There is violence going on and you just threw a kid out.”
Carter shared how she felt when she witnessed her fellow classmate being carried out.
“I was really overwhelmed with emotion. It was traumatic. I almost started crying,” Carter said.
CSP said they removed three students due to disruptive behavior. Video shows students shouting while lawmakers are in the gallery. Carter can be heard on video yelling, “you’re taking away our First Amendment rights” and another student shouted, “how many more kids have to die?”
Carter explained how the day, Tuesday, went for her. She said about 100 students met in Viking Park and about 50 marched to the Capitol. She said students protested outside and nobody addressed their concerns. She said that eventually the students were invited inside and made their way to the House gallery.
“We sat in the gallery for a while, but it seemed like the people on the floor thought we were on a field trip. That is when I decided to stand up and say something,” Carter said. “I felt like that was the right thing to do because I did think the lawmakers weren’t taking us seriously. It felt like nobody was listening to us and we don’t have the right to vote as teenagers, so there really is no other way for us to make our voices heard other than to organize and to protest.”
The North High student also explained that she felt it was her civic responsibility to stand up and be vocal to ensure the voices of students were heard. FOX31 asked Carter if she agreed with CSP that her behavior was disruptive. She responded, “I agree, but there’s also a term called civil disobedience, practiced by Martin Luther King in which people have to break laws and practice non-violent protesting in order for their voice to be heard.”
Once asked to leave by troopers, things escalated. One student was asked to leave, stood up and walked away. Troopers on body cam are seen and heard saying, “We’re not asking you guys to get out, but we need to get her (Carter) out. If you don’t get up, you’re going to be removed as well.”
The male student does not get up and troopers are seen pulling at his arms and eventually carrying him out against his will. The student is heard cursing and stating that his belongings are ripped.
“At this point, they were assaulting my friend and that’s not okay,” Carter told FOX31. “They could have easily walked around and grabbed me from a different angle. They were much more aggressive with him and then it escalated. They instead forcibly removed another student for my own actions.”
Carter said she feels like her First Amendment rights were violated and her friend of color was treated with unnecessary force. She added that the fight for change is not over, and they are planning a sit-in next week in protest of armed officers in district schools, racism and corruption.
CSP said no arrests were made and no charges have been filed in Tuesday’s incident.
FOX31 reached out to House Democrats for a statement but has not heard back.