Seattle was declared an MAI free zone weeks after the WTO's selection of Seattle as it's Ministerial site was announced. Next comes a report of what took place on the streets of Seattle in the weeks leading up to the Ministerial and during the Ministerial itself. The report utilizes information from its 200 legal observers, and hundreds of witness declarations. It also utilizes information gained from public disclosure and from email chatlines utilized by participating members of law enforcement, including commanders and line members of the Seattle Police Department. A picture is painted of confused, inexperienced law enforcement officers armed with frighteningly powerful, potentially lethal weaponry and little idea of what to do with it.
Random forays seem to be launched against random groups of demonstrators.
Thousands of people, including bystanders, are exposed to potentially lethal chemical agents hours before the first window is broken. Masked unmarked police invade the most densely populated area on the West Coast North of San Francisco, attacking residents and shoppers. Those arrested are often subjected to conditions resembling torture. Weapons are repeatedly deployed in ways that may be potentially lethal. Police themselves, are often injured by their own weapons.